Hello from the East Mids

A very good evening from north Nottinghamshire!

Now for all you seasoned gardeners, cast your mind back to when you just started taking an interest in gardening.

You tried to remember all the fancy names, you may have watched Gardener's World for inspiration, and tried to imagine how your garden could look. You may have bitten off more than you could chew.....tried to run before you could walk.

Well that's where I am.

I would say that next year will be my first year properly trying to make a concerted effort in organising what I want and how I want it.

I'll get some pictures in due course, but it's a modest garden, currently with zero beds, so everything is pots pots pots....for now.

I want to change that and get a fruit bed - strawberries and raspberries - and then a larger set of raised beds for varying plants/shrubs etc.

Anywho,

Just thought I'd pop along and say hi

 

Hello and welcome to the forums @Mark_RS

 

Welcome to Gardeners Corner Mark_RS.

I can't think that far back, it's a very long time ago. However, we're all here to help you along the way, so good luck and happy gardening.

 

Welcome to the forum!

I'm constantly planning because my gardening conditions keep changing along with my fickle preferences. This month I'm figuring out how to make a spectacular shade bed from what was a sunny spot only weeks ago. (Due to new fencing.) It's always a fun challenge and I'm glad not to have a fully established garden. Where would the much enjoyed planning and subsequent good exercise come from without designing and busy redesigning? Too much fun!

Oh, and I love having lots and of lots too. You can arrange them at lots of different heights.

Enjoy

 

Welcome @Mark_RS , enjoy it all!

 

As promised, a few photos.

Forgive the mess - I ran out of space in the garden waste bin so had to leave some of the hideous ivy on the paving.

One thing I'll say about this house. I'm fasting learning just how little the previous owners did to look after it. We've lived here for 5 years. We moved in in the middle of Covid lockdown - 8 and a half months pregnant no less - try it, great fun ha!

As if that wasn't enough, we moved in with (unbeknown to us) 3 leaking bathrooms, that ended with a lovely shower feature in the kitchen... oh and then to just top it off, the boiler went pop the following January. So all the money we had allocated to furnish the house and get a new sofa etc, ended up going on two new bathrooms and a new boiler.

The decking (what was there before the paving slabs) was a death trap in winter, I tried to prolong it's life by putting the anti slip coating over it, but alas, no use, it was rotting through and after fast forwarding a few years and the eldest becoming ever more active, the time had come to replace. Hence next year being the first real year of gardening.

On top of the lack of upkeep with the house contents, the previous owners were just as inept in the garden too. If you take a look at my wonderful hedge - it should be conifer, but instead, it is dead or dying conifer and an ever overgrowing pain in the backside ivy.

My next door neighbour shares the same conifer trees - her side (because she looks after it) is a glorious green, mine is what you can see in the last few images. She think's it'll grow back once the ivy is removed. Sadly I do not share the same optimism, and plan on removing the whole lot and replacing it with new hedging, and this time it'll be looked after.

Please feel free to add any comments about said hedge issue, I won't be offended.

As stated in the original post, I've a few plans for the stoned areas that will hopefully be achieved next year, if funds allow, failing that then the year after all being well.

 

Your avatar box says 'male' Mark, so I assume it's not you that was pregnant?

I think it's impossible to find a house that doesn't need work on it. I/we moved just over a year ago to a ten year old bungalow and we haven't escaped the outlay either, not quite in the same predicament as you though.

Conifers don't produce new growth when either cut back into brown wood or starting to die. You're right to remove them. Can I suggest you don't replace them with the same. Their roots extend some way and can do a lot of damage to utilities and foundations as well as sapping the ground of nutrients and water. Good luck with the ivy removal, the battle is on! I've got similar problems with it, growing through the garden stone walls from my neighbours properties.

Good luck with both the house and garden.

 

Ha! Yes, definitely not me and most certainly the good lady.

Thank you for confirming my thoughts about the conifer. I always felt they were on borrowed time, and now I can have that conversation with a little more conviction, especially given the expense of new patio, I don't want their roots causing issues with the foundations going forward. And yes, another great piece of advice, I have zero intention of replacing them like for like.

I was thinking more Laurel, or Yew, but whichever I/we decide to agree on, it will have a little more thought and research to prevent similar issues in the future, which with us both tackling either side shouldn't get to the same state.

Yes, the battle is most certainly on, short of whipping out a flame thrower, I shall endeavour to rid the border of it with a bit of hard work (and no doubt some swearing). An easier said than done task I've no doubt, but I'm a pig headed brute when I want to be, so will do my best

 

This sub forum is usually for new members introduction. I and others would like to follow your progress, so may I suggest you start a thread in 'Projects' or 'Gardening Discussion'.

You're welcome, our friends here are always ready to help and give suggestions.

Knowing you have a youngster (or two) both Laurel and Yew are poisonous including the berries, to humans. You may want to rethink the idea, unless you're happy to rear your family with awareness of the plants that grow around them.

A flame thrower won't kill ivy as the roots will remain alive. If you decide to dig, every fragment of root has to be removed or it will grow back from the tiniest piece. I'm trialling a liquid killer on it at the moment and it seems to be working but needs some adjustment. Pig headedness, translating to persistence, will help.