My First Garden - progress since October

I was really enjoying seeing your transformation and being drawn in with your enthusiasm. Then I read about your shrub theft

In one way, they have given you an opportunity to rethink what to plant and I say this because: you removed the trees because they blocked the light. To be fair, lavender and choisya are also evergreens, can grow large enough to also block out the light. So, eventually, you may have found yourself in the same "light deprivation" situation. (See! I'm really trying to give you something positive out of the negative ).

You could take Fern4's path and plant annuals - maybe you could rethink the front to be a wildflower patch to entice the butterflies and bees into your garden ... then they can buzz down the alley and pollinate the lovely haven you have created there?

If you still want to go the shrub route, remember the age old advice: if the window is south facing, go for deciduous (lose their leaves in winter). This will provide shade during the hotter months when it is most appreciated, but, give light in the winter when it is most needed

HG also gave sage advice: save your pennies and put your expensive plants in the rear garden.

As for advice on how to prevent it: Could you install a security light (with a sensor which turns it on when it detects movement?) Although, in a terraced street, you would need to be careful it doesn't go off when people simply pass your fencing.


You may find these articles interesting:
http://www.which.co.uk/documents/pdf/garden-theft-153985.pdf

http://thecrimepreventionwebsite.co...1/property-and-plants-at-risk-and-what-to-do/

 

So sorry to read this SJ, why oh why do these scumbags do this to us? I hope our responses have helped to heal a little and give you fresh ideas. I know you will have given so much pleasure to your neighbours with your transformation and to us here as well,

Jenny namaste

 

Hi SJ

Only just seen this thread, you have created a beautiful garden there, please don't let the low life A**ses spoil your enjoyment. Have you thought about the mixed seed sprinkle packs? It will look like a mini meadow of a variety of flowers? It would be difficult to steal those.

 

Thank you all so much for your supportive replies!

I'm feeling much better now. I do really want shrubs at the front and found choisyas on a "too good to refuse" offer at the local garden centre, so I'm giving it another go. If they're nicked again before getting established then I won't bother replacing them and will go for wildflowers or something. It's looking lovely again at the front and it's been a week now with no more thefts... the people down the street had theirs nicked too so it wasn't personal luckily. I may live to regret replacing the shrubs but I'll take the risk once more. I just want them to get some proper roots down now.

The tips and advice you've all given are fantastic. Thank you. I'll definitely have a read of those links. It's a shame we have to worry about this sort of thing, isn't it? Fingers crossed it doesn't happen again but if it does, I'll be going for the "mini meadow" option!

Everything in both the back and front is doing so well in the warmer weather. I'm getting the first flowers on my honeysuckle, hebes, astilbe and heuchera. It's very exciting. I've also planted some French marigolds.

 

Excellent, what ever the "buzz" they got out of nicking your plants - NOTHING can match the joy you are getting out of planting it up again And, the excitement we all get when we pop out of a morning "to see what's growed" - it's magic,
Jenny

 

Blimey, I missed this one too, toerags

I'd put something like a Dicksonia in the front and tag it with a microchip tracker

Find out who the scumbags are and where they live.

 

Have you any thorny roses you can take a few long cuttings from. You could tuck these just inside the outer foliage so they can't be seen and the blighters will get a shock if it happens again.