What should I do in my woody area
Peanuts3
Posts: 759
When we moved in 2.5 years ago our woody area was a mess, an old dangerous shed, over grown etc. Plus it was dark due to a neighbouring lleylandii hedge.
The hedge has gone and we have cleared the area lots, plus I had some advice to remove the bamboo as it wasn't native. Which I have done.
Now I'm wondering how best to tackle this area. The front half is covered in bluebells, snowdrops, daffodils etc and looks great at this time of year. The back half though at the moment, I have moved primroses up there, daffodils and snowdrops for next year, plus I planted foxgloves last year so looking to see if they amount to anything.
I'm just wondering what else I can do to make it look nice in summer and keep the nettles and alkanet at bay, which is what will happen if I don't manage it to some extent. I'm happy for nettles in two corners from a wildlife point of view. but also want it safe for my children to run around in, hence keeping the nettles at bay.
This is the view from the lawn.
This area now gets pretty much full sun, due to neighbours hedge removal.
This side is very dry and gets lots of sun. I was wondering if I could plant any ferns at the back as we have a stump there, so to make a stumperie ?? Will it be too sun baked ?
How would you all deal with this area ? Would love it to be a nice english woodland area. It has 6 x 80ft Scots pine, 2 oak trees and a sycamore in it.
Any advice very gratefully received. Thank you.
Posts
Some perennial geraniums would work well. They are ground cover too so would keep weeds down. They are very tough and some are evergreen.
Are you looking for native plants only Peanuts?
A mower is a very good tool for keeping down the weeds once the bulbs have died back
In the sticks near Peterborough
I was hoping to achieve a nice native looking english woodland look... Just not sure how. A lot of woodlands tend to be a bit damper than this.
We also have v sandy soil, which doesn't help. hmm
Ivy is good ground cover and bulbs grow through.
In the sticks near Peterborough
Easy one for me, I would move away from the stark transition between trees and ground by adding lots of log piles to give a more three dimensional feel.
A path could be kept open for the children by mowing between the piles. I'm sure they would love finding all the bugs and creatures that would thrive in there. It's already a pretty good woodland site by the way!
As for the plants, hope the foxgloves take hold well, it seems just right. It isn't a great idea to have ponds under trees but a bog area that sits wet in the winter would let you grow native snake's head fritillaries and a better variety of plants. Some damp areas always go well in a woodland. Wood anemone is another plant that would go so well, particularly if you added some soil to the log piles and planted it on those.
Oh go on ! Chuck a few hostas in there.
Some great ideas, thank you. I too have thought of fairy doors, might get some for when the bluebells come out...
As for a bog area, love the idea but I guess that would be the same as digging a pond etc. We would like a pond, so maybe this could be a place for it. but just so many leaves we'd have to put some sort of cover over it in autumn, plus what about pine needles in the water ? There is no way to make the area damp other than that, it is just so dry due to sun and sandy soil.
Love the idea of hosta's, would they survive in such conditions hostafan ?
I already have log piles but tucked behind trees in the back.
Re mowing, I'm not sure I'd be brave enough to take the mower in there, so much leaf litter and when I cleared that the first year we were here, then the soil just got really sun baked.
i am attempting to do a path though, we have an archway coming into the wood, and trying to get roses coming up over that, as an entrance.
off to research hosta's that might cope in sun.
Keep the ideas coming. thank you.
You could keep paths open by using wood bark chips, that would save you mowing them.