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As @infradig says, the plants which succeed will depend on several factors @AndyG99 - your location/climate and the type of soil in terms of how rich or poor it is. The general aspect is also relevant, and the nearby hedging/trees will affect the success of various plants.Bear in mind too,...

My pleasure....I look forward to seeing photos of it next Spring, in all it's glory

Ha that really made me laugh - thank youHa - that certainly make me laugh

Box topiary (balls, obelisks, etc) and hellebores do well in shade. I have three dogs, two of which are destructive chewy horrors, and they have left these well alone. I did remove a Pieris forest flame sort of shrub as one of said dogs chewed a branch off it and was really quite unwell....

I actively grow daisies, too. They're absolutely splendid. I like the cane idea, too. Thanks for this!

I know how you feel, it can be tricky trying to strike the balance between making your display last for as long as possible and trying to plan ahead for next year.@Busy-Lizzie is right, you can plant the shrubs as late as early November as long as the ground isn't frozen or waterlogged. The...

In my experience, Lonicera BG gets very unhappy in a container. Even a large pot would only be OK for about 5 yrs max (assuming you started with a tiddler plant under a foot tall. They grow fast and love to be free.

@AnniD -I never do that...honest guv.....I forget what I've done an hour previously, so trying to remember what I did in the garden the previous day[ for that thread] is almost impossible! I've just been outside to check on something and remembered various things I'd done that I hadn't...

I didn't realise you'd done any mowing because it looked so dead! If you're just trimming lightly, that's ideal - little and often is always the best method as it encourages the grass to spread, and will help to fill spaces over time. Normally, you wouldn't cut too soon after getting a new lawn...

I agree re the mowing. If you want the grass cut asap, that can affect the future health of the crocus. They take a very long time here to fully die back, so I'd have to leave my grass till about the end of May before cutting for the first time. Your location will dictate the length of time...

Thank you! This is a great idea and I really was at a loss!

Lovely @Selleri . I'm sure ours became the family Xmas22 card.

I wasn't sure if the plants had all been removed @Obelix-Vendée and all beds were empty, or if some of the pix were different, empty beds, and not that first one! If the plants aren't there, then it's easy. I like to leave any additional material to settle, then add more before planting, but it...

Also - what size was it when you planted it @Sue Crewdson ? It takes several years for any woody shrub/tree to be mature, and if it was only planted in spring 2023 it'll have taken until this spring [more or less] to be properly established and start growing well, assuming it's healthy, which it...

Good idea, many thanks.

I found some rubber edging strips that look like cobble stones in three foot strips with holes for plastic long nails to keep them in place from my local garden centre.

Possible other causes apart from compaction by construction machinery: High water table (groundwater). Will vary during seasons. Can also vary with tidal movements, mine pumping etc. Geological strata. Could be a springline between layers; with underlying impervious layer. Old service or drains;...

Thank you, all. Interesting advice on gypsum. We're also working on the house at the same time so leftover bags of plaster could be on the horizon.

They're relatively small plants, so maybe they're focusing on growing their roots out into the soil and not on flowers. That would be normal, although generally it's best to plant in spring or autumn so that plants aren't flowering at the same time. Don't worry about flowers this year, it's more...

Pelargoniums definitely last a long time. You could try some bedding fuchsias next yr. They need very little attention and flower till well into autumn. Some trail and some are upright. Lobelia are fairly easy too. And osteospermums, if you like daisy-type flowers. You can get these in...