Ideas for covering large concrete slab please.

elljay

At the end of my garden I have a big scruffy ugly, concrete slab, approx 8 m long by 2 wide.  It's roughly laid, (an old farmyard I believe), cracked and slightly sloping in parts.  To cover it this year I've had loads of pots which were nice but watering has been a killer and I'm dreading the water bill.  Can anyone suggest any creative ideas to cover it and make it look a bit prettier?  It's a rented house so I can't dig it up and I have raised beds in other parts of the garden and can't afford any more.  Unfortunately it's on full view as soon as you walk out of the back.

One thought was a scrambling plant of some sort - I have a mile-a-minute in another part of the garden which climbs beautifully over fence and wall.  I know it's invasive but invasive is pretty much what I want!  I thought I could   plant it in a couple of pots and let it scramble over the concrete.  Or maybe there's another plant which will do something similar?

I would  be so grateful for any ideas.  Thanks.

EJ

twopenny

Any chance of a photo for trying to visualise it Elljay?

You're idea sounds good but you're back to watering again and potentially frazzle if we get this heat next year.

I was thinking about paint designs but if rented perhaps not though they could be pressure washered off. 'Dot painting' is all the rage now.

If you have a pressure washer you could work designs into the concrete by cleaning in pattern

Or you could collect differnt coloured pebbles to work shapes and patterns - or use it like a Japanese gravel garden.

Both these terms come up in google images.

[Deleted User]

What surrounds this slab, lawn, gravel ?? 

* If lawn, you could buy some artificial grass (tasteful, not astroturf cheap stuff) or, for a living thing -  some sedum matting, i used that ontop of manhole covers aswell as shed roof. 

* If gravel, how about one of those small, solar, water features - with pebbles etc surrounding it that could look nice.

Eldi_Dos

8m x2m, if you put some edging timber around slab and fill with sand you would have one of those urban beaches which seem to be getting more popular.

x_raphael_xx

What about some astro turf? We have a tiny concrete yard and bought a small patch of astro turf to hide it, and to give the dog something more comfy to sit on in the sun

You can get stuff that looks quite realistic

twopenny

If it's not a long term rental I saw some artificial grass in Lidl.
It's not the best bbut cheap and easy. If you found it worked well then buy the better stuff.
At least you can roll it up and take it with you.

Apodemus

Eldi_Dos said:

8m x2m, if you put some edging timber around slab and fill with sand you would have one of those urban beaches which seem to be getting more popular.

More likely that you'd have the biggest litter-tray in the neighbourhood!  Hope the OP's a cat lover!

elljay

Just to say thank you so much for all these ideas.  Good point about the litter tray - I have one fiercely territorial cat and next door has 4.  However they enter my garden on fear of death!  I'm thinking of a combination of some of these suggestions - agreed the landlord might not like the painting but I could be much more creative than my original idea so thank you very much everyone.

EJ.  

Eldi_Dos

Apodemus said:

Eldi_Dos said:

8m x2m, if you put some edging timber around slab and fill with sand you would have one of those urban beaches which seem to be getting more popular.

More likely that you'd have the biggest litter-tray in the neighbourhood!  Hope the OP's a cat lover!

Did think about that before posting, but have never seen a cat on a beach when I have been out for a stroll, they do not seem to like that environment.
Maybe cool cats go elsewhere?

twopenny

It's an interesting problem to solve.
I hope we get to see the result. 
Plants that will spread might be hops. It will go mad, you can either dry them for decoration in 70s style, put them under your pillow for sleep or make your own beer.
They will take pruning to shape and mostly don't need watering.

Apodemus

twopenny said:

It's an interesting problem to solve.
I hope we get to see the result. 
Plants that will spread might be hops. It will go mad, you can either dry them for decoration in 70s style, put them under your pillow for sleep or make your own beer.
They will take pruning to shape and mostly don't need watering.

2p, I agree that hops are a good spreading option, but my hop vines die back to a ground-level crown in winter and then grow as vigorous vines in spring/summer.  I can train them to shape, but I'm not sure that pruning them would achieve much?