My Garden Progress

Hello @NigelJ

Thanks for the reply.

Here, rain is forecast for the coming week.

I watered everything well when the plants were planted on Tuesday last week and a couple of days later, the soil still looks damp so I will hold off for now and keep an eye on the plants.

Thanks

Kevin

 

Hello @ARMANDII

Thanks for the reply.

Lets try inserting a Quote shall we

It worked, and just to say, I also answer to Kenvin

I am in the process of getting a Quote for the seating area and paving around the back of the house at the moment so hopefully I should be able to get that work done in March so more photos to come in this thread then.

Thanks

Kevin

 

Hello all

I hope you are all well.

I have now got a date for having the Patio laid and the paving around the back and side of the house.

The work will be done the week beginning March 16, really looking forward to it

I was planning on having Contemporary Silver Grey Flamed flags but apparently they are in short supply so I may just go for the Contemporary Silver Grey.

As part of the work, four of the paving stones running up the middle of the garden will go since the Patio will cover that area.

I also want to remove the rest of the paving slabs, eight in all and replace with grass again.

I will be looking at creating a new path up the garden, I am just not a fan of the slabs :(

Since an area of lawn will be removed when the Patio is laid I was thinking it would be easy (never easy though) to take one of the slabs (12" x 12"), lay it over the lawn which will be removed and cut out squares to lay it in place of the slabs I want to remove, does that make sense

Anyway, do I have the process correct, is there anything I have missed?

Also, when would be the best time to do this since the Patio is being laid in March?

Thanks in advance

Kevin

 

I don't see a problem with this Kevin, as long as the ground not frozen when removing the grass to re use ( thats what I think you are referring to ) it can be done anytime . If you are placing the turf on a previous patio area you will have to relieve the compacted soil / remove concrete - builders sand, re level the ground and push out the air pockets using your heels shuffling across the area like a penguin so its not soft when you start walking on it in future .

Might be an idea to lift the turf and leave it somewhere like on a flower bed so it touching the soil, just so the landscapes don't trash the turf before its taken hold.

 

Hello @Perki

Thanks for the reply.

I am wanting to remove eight individual 12" x 12" slabs that make up a path in the lawn, there is a 12" gap between each slab and they are just laid on soil, no hardcore.

I will try to do one to start with, once the weather improves from the rain we have currently.

Thanks

Kevin

 

Hello all

Well, I received a phone call from the Garden Designer I used for the planting and whose Landscaper was going to be doing the Patio and Paving.

Apparently, the Landscaper has had an accident in Europe and is expected to be out of action for most of the year and there is some doubt that he will return to work.

I feel more sorry for the Garden Designer than I am about the Patio and Paving as she will lose quite a bit of Landscaping work that she has already got booked.

Anyway, she was very apologetic and has advised me to see if I could find someone else to do the work.

After a fair bit of research I have found a Landscaper locally, so I will be having the Patio and the Paving around the house laid in Kandla Grey Indian Sandstone and I am also having the Lawn edged using matching Setts, the Landscaper is also going to remove the unwanted Paving in the Lawn and replace them with Turf.

I have had to move the date back slightly due to the slightly increased cost but I will now be having the work start on 06 April and it should take a few days to complete.

I will be posting photos when the work is completed.

I am really looking forward to finally having somewhere to sit out in the Garden and watch all the plants develop and be around nature, all I need to do now is buy some Garden Furniture, probably in early Summer which will be Rattan (Synthetic) as they are easy to maintain.

Kevin

 

Hello all

I hope you are all well.

I have now had the Patio done, the landscapers came on Wednesday and Thursday (Yesterday).

I had planned for the work to be done on 6 April but they asked if they could do it earlier as they could then fit it in alongside another smaller job.

They are allowing me to pay on April 9 which is the only reason I agreed to the new schedule.

I had to adjust my plans somewhat since when they were on site it became apparent to us all that the size I had planned for would not work neatly with the size of the paving.

I had three choices:

1. Stay with the size of Patio I had planned for and have a 7" row of paving (not a good look)
2. Reduce the depth of the Patio (not an option)
3. Increase the depth of the Patio so that an equal number of pavers could be accommodated

Needless to say I chose option 3.

I also chose to add a path going from the back of the house to the Patio since i would otherwise have to walk over the lawn to get to the Patio which would potentially drag dirt, mud etc. over the Patio.

I also had the lawn edged with the same stone, Kandla Grey Indian Sandstone.

The Patio and Paving is going be Sealed at a later date, by the same company for no extra cost, probably utilising the wet look finish as the paving looks really nice wet, otherwise they are nearly white.

All in all I am mostly pleased with the result, unfortunately I do not think my Bank Account is on speaking terms with me at the moment.

Now the issues that I need help with.

The lawn needs some attention.

It has been trampled and has mud over it in places, also, there are gaps between the pavers and the lawn.

I remember reading somewhere awhile ago that you can use a hose to wash off mud from a lawn, is that effective?

Also, with the gaps, can I just put soil in them and then sprinkle grass seed, will that work since there is some cement present?

I have been advised not to walk on the paving until tomorrow so when I can I will add pictures.

Thanks in advance

Kevin

P.S

Apologies for the tome

 

Hello all

As I am now able to walk on the Paving and Patio, and before it rains, again, I have taken a couple of photos.

From the back of the house:



From the Patio:



Now I just need to fill the gaps between the edging and the lawn and seed.

I will be doing that at the end of March or early April.

I will probably over seed the lawn too as it has been knocked about a fair bit, unfortunately.

I just need to read up on how to do it

Please ignore the section to the right side of the house, that is only temporary.

I am going to have the driveway Block Paved either later this year or early next, if my bank account is talking to me by then that is

The Block Paving will go up to the gate line and the paving this side of the gate will be extended to the gate line.

All in all I am quite pleased with how it all looks, the paving is Kandla Indian Sandstone and will be sealed, probably with a Wet Look Sealer as the stone looks really nice when wet.

Thanks for looking.

Kevin

 

Looks grand Kevin .

Just use topsoil or soil from the garden for the gaps , it may not even need seedling in the gap the grass already there will creep into it. But if your giving the lawn some TLC it worth overseeding the lawn and seedling the larger gaps.

Before you over seed give the lawn a rake and then spike the lawn with a fork , with landscapers / builders they walk all over the lawn compacting it . Then over seed and ideally top dress with a sandy loam mix.

 

Hi Kevin, I love the patio design. Looking forward to seeing the garden mature.

 

Hello

Thanks for the comments.

I am not a fan of 'Car Parks' and like a Patio to flow, if that makes sense, hopefully I achieved that.

The garden was only planted last September, this Spring will be its first so I am looking forward to seeing how things grow this season.

Also, being a bit negative for a moment, see if everything is present.

Kevin

 

Hello all

I hope you are all well.

Well, the two Ceanothus 'Skylark' that were planted last September have flowered, White, really not a fan of White Ceanothus.

So, I am now looking to replace them, I have already removed one and put it into a large pot since I do not want to leave them in case they establish and become harder to remove.

The other one will have to wait until I can source a large pot.

The one I removed had a root mass only slightly larger than what it was when it was planted so was not a problem, hopefully the other one will be similar.

I am looking at replacing them with the Ceanothus 'Skylark', Blue this time, or the Ceanothus 'Concha', does anyone know if these two differ much apart from size, and can both be Trained and Pruned if they outgrow there allotted space?

Thanks in advance

Kevin

 

Evergreen Ceanothus don't particular like being pruned but the Spring Early summer flowering varietys can be trimmed back after flowering but not into brown wood, they must be pruned immediately after flowering.

Concha is a bit of a beast and quite fast growing , not sure about skylark. What are where are you growing the ceanothus @Kevin Cowans ?