First time garden-owner - help needed!

Black_Cat2

Farway said:

Davesnave said:

Farway said:

Davesnave said:

IrisB said:

 If you want something bombproof but very thorny, look at Rosa rugosa. It has nice flowers and big rosehips in autumn. None of these need pruning.

I think rosa rugosa might, considering our neighbour and ourselves have these hedges done bi-annually.... with a tractor flail!

I suppose depends on space, but it can take over I know

By coincidence the ones in a border I volunteer to tend I've marked for hard pruning next spring once the birds etc have had their winter fill & shelter

That's a good point about the bird food, hence a bi-annual trim. However, by the time Old Bert gets around to it, the hips are usually at least half-gone!

His or the roses?

😹

Apodemus

Davesnave said:

IrisB said:

 If you want something bombproof but very thorny, look at Rosa rugosa. It has nice flowers and big rosehips in autumn. None of these need pruning.

I think rosa rugosa might, considering our neighbour and ourselves have these hedges done bi-annually.... with a tractor flail!

Indeed.  A few years ago, someone planted a number of them around our local war memorial, which I've been maintaining since lock-down.  I've taken it back as much as I dare over the summer (trying to avoid upsetting any sensibilities and they do flower beautifully).  But it is encroaching too far and there are some vicious branches that get you when you are grass-cutting around it.  Once all the hips are gone, it is going to get pruned right back, so that I can open up the lawn and the viewshed again.

NoisyGiraffe

I always love an update, so I thought I'd let you see the garden progress so far! 



The gladioli and alliums planted by the previous owner have returned this year. Had LOTS of compliments on the alliums! And the surprise bulbs I was waiting to see what they were... bluebells - hundreds of them! Took over half the garden, I've pulled up loads of the bulbs but I'm expecting to deal with them again next year, hopefully I can keep them in check a bit more 

Everything I planted last October has survived nicely too, and I've been pulling out the pansies as they die off to replace with new plants bit by bit. I've got lots of evergreen shrubs in now and a couple of perennials so it feels more varied and I'm loving it! I'll keep replacing the pansies with more perennials and start planting some bulbs later in the year. Still a bit of a battle with the weeds but I'm out there a couple of times a week to keep on top of it. The paving slabs are still on my to do list! 

I've been enjoying the gardening so much, that I don't think I want a driveway anymore! 

twopenny

Just from that photo you've done a brilliant job.

The back, oh I've so many ideas (including the loo) but I don't have to deal with those slabs. Perhaps you should sacrifice the loo in return for the muscle work on raising some slabs in the back garden. Pots need watering. A 'quite nice' job but it gets tedious where if you put things in the ground, especially when their roots can stay cool under the slabs, they look after themselves. Bonus.

Box Balls would be great in places there to give winter structure. Winter Jasmine flowers through the winter .... to give cheer

Can you persuade your OH to get free with the pressure washer? Despite it being a job any sex can do it's like BBQ, it's a 'man' thing. Get one and fiddle about with it out the back where the hose is until he can stand it no more and take over. It's actually a job I enjoy on a hot day and the result is amazing. When I cleaned mine both neighbours have taken to cleaning theirs lol.

Pansies are great. When I started my current garden 2yrs ago I got loads of them at 10p and kept my spirits up through the winter.

I've also got some roses from the rescue. They tend to have their roots pot bound but just take them out and bang the roots against the ground and they fall apart somewhat. Enough to get them growing.

Plunge the pots into a bucket of water until the bubbles stop coming out. This means the water is right through and no air around the roots,

Water the hole you are planting into, add a little grit, cover with soil, tread down around then water again from the top. Sprinkle with bone meal and a little grit on top. The grit opens the soil for the roots and the water washes the soil down around the roots leaving no air pockets.

Roses - have a look around neighbouring gardens. Your daily exercise. Look at colours. I was surprised to see that pink looks good against orange brick but there are lots of others.

Re the Alliums. Chives come under this heading and grow like Topsy into clumps. The bees love them and they need no tending. Many people can't tell the difference between the fancy version and the edible Chives. Something for your salad & omlettes too.

goldfinches

It looks great, well done you.

Couple of suggestions about any plants you don't want - either sell them via your local FB page (e.g.bluebells in the green go for quite a lot) or pot them up to use as presents later in the year or to give away on your local Freegle page.

 Giving things away when you first join Freegle is considered good etiquette and means that you will be taken more seriously when you subsequently ask for something someone else has listed.

I expect all this has already crossed your mind, but if not, it's worth thinking about buying a bargain bag of bulbs quite soon and then planting up some nice pots with a few pansies on top to give as Christmas presents or to use for winter hanging baskets.

Farway

Thanks for the update, it looks great and worth the effort I bet

On subject of bulbs above, once they start appearing do buy some tete a tete daffs, they are not the large trumpet types but small and perfect, you'll love them.

Don't skimp, plant in clumps not solitary soldiers, they'll gradually spread and give a bright start to Spring every year

And would be ideal in pots for gifts as mentioned [you see them for sale in flower come Spring]

NoisyGiraffe

twopenny said:

Just from that photo you've done a brilliant job.

The back, oh I've so many ideas (including the loo) but I don't have to deal with those slabs. Perhaps you should sacrifice the loo in return for the muscle work on raising some slabs in the back garden. Pots need watering. A 'quite nice' job but it gets tedious where if you put things in the ground, especially when their roots can stay cool under the slabs, they look after themselves. Bonus.

Box Balls would be great in places there to give winter structure. Winter Jasmine flowers through the winter .... to give cheer

Can you persuade your OH to get free with the pressure washer? Despite it being a job any sex can do it's like BBQ, it's a 'man' thing. Get one and fiddle about with it out the back where the hose is until he can stand it no more and take over. It's actually a job I enjoy on a hot day and the result is amazing. When I cleaned mine both neighbours have taken to cleaning theirs lol.

Pansies are great. When I started my current garden 2yrs ago I got loads of them at 10p and kept my spirits up through the winter.

I've also got some roses from the rescue. They tend to have their roots pot bound but just take them out and bang the roots against the ground and they fall apart somewhat. Enough to get them growing.

Plunge the pots into a bucket of water until the bubbles stop coming out. This means the water is right through and no air around the roots,

Water the hole you are planting into, add a little grit, cover with soil, tread down around then water again from the top. Sprinkle with bone meal and a little grit on top. The grit opens the soil for the roots and the water washes the soil down around the roots leaving no air pockets.

Roses - have a look around neighbouring gardens. Your daily exercise. Look at colours. I was surprised to see that pink looks good against orange brick but there are lots of others.

Re the Alliums. Chives come under this heading and grow like Topsy into clumps. The bees love them and they need no tending. Many people can't tell the difference between the fancy version and the edible Chives. Something for your salad & omlettes too.

Thanks! And thank you for the extra tips as well! 

I forgot about the back garden, but I've been working on making that a bit nicer too! Gave the slabs a good jet wash and got to work with some pots for the time being. My greenfingered neighbour moved out at the start of the year and the new neighbours cleared her garden out so I've inherited a bench and about 10 of her potted plants (including a hydrangea, a huge hebe, and what looks like 3 different rhododendrons, the others are undetermined as yet). And I painted some pots and brought in a flamingo, just for some fun. It's a work in progress (and I've pulled the weeds since taking this photo!) but here's what it looks like at the moment: 

NoisyGiraffe

goldfinches said:

It looks great, well done you.

Couple of suggestions about any plants you don't want - either sell them via your local FB page (e.g.bluebells in the green go for quite a lot) or pot them up to use as presents later in the year or to give away on your local Freegle page.

 Giving things away when you first join Freegle is considered good etiquette and means that you will be taken more seriously when you subsequently ask for something someone else has listed.

I expect all this has already crossed your mind, but if not, it's worth thinking about buying a bargain bag of bulbs quite soon and then planting up some nice pots with a few pansies on top to give as Christmas presents or to use for winter hanging baskets.

Thank you! That's a great idea about giving them away too. One of my neighbours came over yesterday and gave me about 6 plants from her own garden and appreciated it so much. It'd be nice to pass that on, so I'll definitely keep this in mind when I take things out in the future. 

I hadn't thought of the Christmas gifts/baskets so thanks for the tip! 

NoisyGiraffe

Farway said:

Thanks for the update, it looks great and worth the effort I bet

On subject of bulbs above, once they start appearing do buy some tete a tete daffs, they are not the large trumpet types but small and perfect, you'll love them.

Don't skimp, plant in clumps not solitary soldiers, they'll gradually spread and give a bright start to Spring every year

And would be ideal in pots for gifts as mentioned [you see them for sale in flower come Spring]

Thanks, and yes I'm really pleased with how it's coming on! 

I was a bit disappointed when no daffs appeared in my garden this year but all my neighbours had them! I was planning on planting some, so I'll definitely look out for those that you've recommended - thanks! 

Farway

NoisyGiraffe said:

Farway said:

Thanks for the update, it looks great and worth the effort I bet

On subject of bulbs above, once they start appearing do buy some tete a tete daffs, they are not the large trumpet types but small and perfect, you'll love them.

Don't skimp, plant in clumps not solitary soldiers, they'll gradually spread and give a bright start to Spring every year

And would be ideal in pots for gifts as mentioned [you see them for sale in flower come Spring]

Thanks, and yes I'm really pleased with how it's coming on! 

I was a bit disappointed when no daffs appeared in my garden this year but all my neighbours had them! I was planning on planting some, so I'll definitely look out for those that you've recommended - thanks! 

One problem with daffs is people tend to not plant them deep enough, aim for at least twice the height of the bulb of soil above bulb [measured from top pointy bit] more info here, American site Fall etc but info is good

Now I'm a sucker for the unusual, which can be an expensive hobby, but for talking points look out for the newer strains of daffs, with red trumpets for instance. may be too garish for some but there are subtle ones around

And from a design viewpoint avoid bags of "mixed daffodils" OK for planting in your meadow but in just a small patch a clump of all same variety open at same time has more of an impact than one open here & next week a different variety opens as the first fades

An exciting time ahead