Complete novice advice for planting

Icey77

Good morning,

Following a year long garden renovation and extension we are now ready to think about making the garden pretty and hopefully productive

The garden is quite landscaped as we live on a hill so I have deep but narrow beds around the outside formed with sleepers. The soil has lots of stones but I don't think it's clay based, it seems to drain well and is crumbly if that's a helpful description?

Do I need to bring in topsoil to top up the beds or perhaps get some manure in there?

I already have a rhubarb crown in, planted last year, so looking forward to harvesting the stalks this year it seemed very happy - e crown grew lots of stalks and big leaves but I left it alone as per the instructions.

Over time I'd like to think about raspberry and or blackberry plants and I was thinking about strawberry plants in hanging baskets for this summer - obviously I will start small and grow rather than chuck it all in at once and lose it all!

Any advice you can suggest will be very gratefully received, I've not had a garden before and I'm rather excited :j

Scottish_Mike

Oh this is the fun time of year with all the planning and planting!

For a productive garden pick things to plant that you'll enjoy eating - if you don't like gooseberries, don't plant a gooseberry bush for example.But think about fruits that take a bit longer - raspberries planted this year will give a little crop, but will crop better the following year, so if you want raspberries, get them in. Places like Wilkos and Poundland have a good selection and can be a bit cheaper than places like T&M and the online plant shops.
Same with fruits trees - they're a good investment for the future but they will take a few years before they're productive, so again, get them in!

Regarding topsoil and manure - you don't necessarily have to add that to your soil, but on the whole it isn't a bad thing to add, just check if the things you want to grow like manure (carrots and nasturtiums don't for instance).

Check out growing videos on YouTube - there are LOADS out there and I find them quite inspiring.

Oh, other things - in its second year only harvest about a third of your rhubarb stalks - just to allow the roots to continue to develop - it'll benefit the plant in the long run. Rhubarb is one of the plants that loves manure, so get some down round the crown now, and it will be a nice feed for it.

Have fun, that's the important thing though. Good luck!

Icey77

Ohh thank you, you sound so encouraging

My husband will enjoy a nice garden but having grown up in inner London and the the only green space being Clapham Common isn't really interested in the work to get a nice garden if that makes sense. I'm a SAHM with 2 days a week to get everything done without the kids as they are at nursery and as much as they'd like to help ...

I'll look at getting some topsoil and or manure, unfortunately we don't have side or back access to the garden so it will have to come through the house which could be entertaining.

I'll also have a mooch through Wilko and the pound shop next time I'm at the shopping centre and get the raspberries in pronto. Thanks for the advice on harvesting 1/3 of the rhubarb, I didn't know that. Should I just leave the stalks on until they fall off?

Thank you again :beer:

Mojisola

Icey77 wrote: »

I'll look at getting some topsoil and or manure, unfortunately we don't have side or back access to the garden so it will have to come through the house which could be entertaining.

I don't see a need for topsoil. As everything has to come through the house, manure won't be the best way to add humus to the soil.

See whether your local authority sells on compost from the recycling collection - this will be very beneficial to the soil and isn't smelly.

Mojisola

For a complete beginner, the Expert books are very useful -
http://www.expert-books.co.uk/expertbooks.asp

Your local library will probably have some. Also look in second-hand bookshops.

Icey77

Aha!!! The local waste recycling sites apparently sell soil conditioner. 60L for £4. I have to go up at the weekend to get rid of an old plastic slide so will ask there if they have any

Thanks for the suggestion! x

REEN

As you have small children I recommend making something like a sandpit a priority. That should keep little 'uns busy while you get on with the garden on days when they aren't at nursery.

Pelleted chicken manure makes good fertiliser, much better to carry through the house than bags of horse manure!

Lots of shrubs, fruit bushes, fruit trees and summer bulbs appearing now in shops. Seeds of annual plants will fill gaps till the permanent stuff gets going.

DigForVictory

+1 for the local library.

If you know where any allotments are, drop by some time & ask. Most folk are friendly & generous with advice, seedlings & reassurance. (Some also have amazing BS, but as a community, very helpful & supportive!)

Have you checked out car boots for garden tools?

Icey77

My Mum has just set aside some of her chicken poo pellets and my husband has picked up a bag of soil improved from the dump - very productive afternoon

Hopefully I might get an hour in the garden tomorrow, failing that it will be next week. Very excited now :j

Thank you!!! xxx

DaftyDuck

Just a word of warning about getting soil conditioner from the recycling centre, from my experience of four different counties. It's made up of all the dross we dump there in the first place, and they are on rather a tight schedule to get it out again. It tends not to be heat-treated, will have viable seeds - and possibly viable weeds still alive in it.

From the four areas I've seen it sold, I wouldn't accept any of it for my garden. It's also pretty pricey at some. 60 litres for £4 is, in my opinion, daylight robbery, especially as they get the raw material for free!

I_have_spoken

we live on a hill so I have deep but narrow beds

Grape vines? :beer:

But seriously, do the terraces face south, where about in the UK are you (last date for frosts etc)

I always say the challenge with grow your own is you get a glut just when the fruit/veg are cheapest in the shops, as that's when the commercial growers crop!

So think about what you like and consider 'square foot gardening' (plenty about this on Facebook) where you grow lots of different things in manageable amounts.