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Gardens and gardening

TheCatWoman

Does anyone else love their garden? I love mine although it's a bit of a mess, I've not been able to do as much as normal due to a bad shoulder. Earlier in the year, knowing I wouldn't be able to do so much, when I did a big spring clearing and weeding session I scattered loads of flower seeds, just to fill in any gaps, so now I have a slightly wild bed of established perenials and annuals that I hope will self seed, such as echiums, marigolds, love in a mist and verbena. I cleared out more weeds and stuff and am now waiting to plant some crocosmia's and a massive sedum I was given. Hopefully in the next couple of years I will have the bed as I want, with all year interest and plenty of forrage for polinators.

I want to re-invigorate by shrubs too, with more or new roses, lavender's, and ferns, I have geums floating through all of this as well as chives as they such a brilliant companion for roses, helping to keep black fly and aphids off them.

Come winter I will replant the old veg patch with more fruit, hopefully a couple of small fruit tree's and some raspberries and currants and maybe a raised bed for blueberries.

Parents

  • Yep - best place to be outside. Followed by the allotment.   Hehe, toatl of 4 domestic sized greenhouses too...  Found out this year (third year of keeping one in a pot) that blueberries are ericaceous - so if I might pass on a tip that (if you didn't realise already) the raised bed you mention might need a special fill and fertiliser.  I am daft enough to have several trees in my suburban garden as well as shrubs et al.  Oh and figs either side of the front door (south west facing) keep the house cool in summer and splendid to eat too!  Despite making the house look particularly eccentric it makes a pun that my family DO give two figs.  All the best with your gardening :-)

  • in reply to Phased

    I think trees can make a small garden look bigger, I hate that sort of "dad" gardening where everything has to be in neat rows around the edges of a lawn, geraniums, busy lizzies and lobelia with maybe the odd tortured rose bush. I think it makes a garden look smaller.

    I do know blueberries need ericacious soil, so do heathers.

    I have greenhouse envy now! I wanted a big poly tunnel where the veg patch was but was overruled, so now it's having more trees and fruit bushes.

  • in reply to TheCatWoman

    Most people don't have the experience, confidence or vision, to use height.

    You have to also know something about trees to pick the right one, plus you have to actually be bothered to prune them to get the shape.

  • in reply to TheCatWoman

    in my case the trees are either self seeded (including by squirrels in pots!) planted by children, special garden centre purchase and most spectacularly when a local charity shop received a donation of many potted plants.  Agreed too with the use of the garden - in my case having been in this "house for life" for a long time the garden has evolved with time and the changes it brings.  Design is by the same process - "does this grow here?" being an important part of it.

    No - I seldom watch gardening programmes.  Although I agree they can be inspirational.

  • in reply to Stuart333

    I think it depends on where you get your trees from and how big they are, I think a lot of people are stumped by the gardens they inherit with a house, gardens need to reflect the life of the people who use them too. Children will probably want space to kick a ball or a trampoline.

    I suspect a lot of people don't know where to start and need something desigened for them, like they do with interior decor. Modern houses have such tiny gardens too and I think it takes vision and confidence to make something of such a small space.

    Does anyone else watch programes like your garden made perfect?

Reply
  • in reply to Stuart333

    I think it depends on where you get your trees from and how big they are, I think a lot of people are stumped by the gardens they inherit with a house, gardens need to reflect the life of the people who use them too. Children will probably want space to kick a ball or a trampoline.

    I suspect a lot of people don't know where to start and need something desigened for them, like they do with interior decor. Modern houses have such tiny gardens too and I think it takes vision and confidence to make something of such a small space.

    Does anyone else watch programes like your garden made perfect?

Children
  • in reply to TheCatWoman

    in my case the trees are either self seeded (including by squirrels in pots!) planted by children, special garden centre purchase and most spectacularly when a local charity shop received a donation of many potted plants.  Agreed too with the use of the garden - in my case having been in this "house for life" for a long time the garden has evolved with time and the changes it brings.  Design is by the same process - "does this grow here?" being an important part of it.

    No - I seldom watch gardening programmes.  Although I agree they can be inspirational.