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My1st garden!
DaveTebs
Posts: 12
Good afternoon all,
I finally have a new house with my very own garden, i'm just not sure what to put in it.
I would like lots of colour all year round and i would like to attract wildlife (but keep the wasps away.)
The garden faces NW, so the sun hits the right hand side the most.
I have an alleyway which is in the shade almost all day, but i don't want it to become a dumping ground.
The front just needs a bit of colour, apparently the bush by the drive is a nice red.
Any tips or suggestions are most welcome.
Thanks
Dave
0
Posts
Hi Edd,
The 1st picture is from the patio doors, that faces NW.
I'm not too sure about the hedge, there isn't much behind us that requires privacy.
What i'd really like is a pergola with seating below, and hanging vines overhead.
Where abouts are you in the country? Fill a bit in in your profile. You may find some locals contact you with free plants or pop round with some good ideas!
5th picture - I think I would keep it as a gravel garden, but plant it with grasses through the membrane. I would also trim any small twigs that are very low down on the plant that's already there to tidy it up and remove the weeds. I did this for the front garden of my former brother in law and it did look good.
4th picture - if the slab is loose I would put it in the middle of the gravel and get a large plastic terracotta looking pot to stand on it and either put in a standard plant or seasonal bedding that you can change through the year.
3rd picture - coloured slate or gravel on the ground, maybe a coloured pot standing just proud of the alleyway, or painted trellis on your wall only.
1st and 2nd pics - as you have some circles already, you could have a small circular lawn or curved beds.
Sorry for the reverse order.
I think the hedge was probably planted for privacy from next door and you would be quite overlooked if you got rid of it.
I'm still not sure which side gets shade and which gets sun. Is the fence in shade? If you want flowers and colour then dig up some lawn in a sunny bit, add some compost and plant some flowering perennials, such as salvias, lupins, pinks, campanula, rudbeckia, penstemon etc. If it is a shady place then go for shade loving plants with colour and/or form in the leaves, such as hosta, heuchera, Brunnera "Jack Frost, certain hardy geraniums, pulmonarias.
Is the fence in shade? It would look nice with a bit of trellis along the top for a bit more height and wires fixed along it to support climbers. But the climbers you choose would have to like it, so if it's shady you are more limited. There are clematis to suit most situations. I would enlarge the bed it front. I like curved lines in gardens rather than squares and straight lines, so I would make the corners of the lawn rounded. But it's your garden so you choose, depending on what you like.
Is the brick terrace bit in shade or sun? Is it big enough for seating and some pots of flowers, or herbs?
If you want to know about gardens or gardening it helps to buy a book and do research using Google.
Hi Dave, before you start anything, have a good think about it, is it going to be high/low maintenance, children's fun garden, fish pond, paths, borders, raised beds, pergola sounds good, put down a few ideas on paper, when you have come to your final ideas, the jobs will go much more smoothly, if you still want a pergola I can post a picture of my pergola I built myself just to give you a idea, Barney.
the nice red shrub look like a nice Japanese acer
I don't think a pergola with seating will be of much use in a north west facing garden unless the garden's long enough to accommodate it at the end where it gets most sun. Something simpler might get used more
I'd agree with BL - some climbers along that rear fence will instantly make that more attractive. It should be south east facing so will get a decent amount of sun. A good border there to incorporate a seating area would be ideal. Put in some year round interest for attracting wildlife, plus some evergreens and spring bulbs, and that gives you something nice to look at during the winter. I'd keep the hedge too - privacy will be necessary with that conservatory in the far corner.
The area nearest the house can have some simple planting around your patio. Treat that separately - it will be shadier. Small areas work best if they have decent sized planting areas but fewer of them, otherwise it becomes very fussy.
It also depends how much time you have to devote to your garden maintenance.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Hi all,
Thanks for your input.
I am undecided about the hedge as i'm not sure how much privacy it gives.
I agree that climbers will make the fence more attractive, the 2 i know are Clematis and Wisteria.
I will take a few more pictures, give you an idea about shade.
The garden needs to be puppy and young child friendly (i'm not allowed to build a pond)
A small pond with either a simple fence round it (vertical bars not horizontal) or with a wire mesh cover securely fixed, makes a pond suitable for children - coupled with educating them. They will be fascinated by what goes on. I had a raised one in the garden when mine were small. It was near a window too, so that we could watch during wet days and through winter
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
eh...umm....err...not sure about that Edd....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...