"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...

"Phil C" wrote
We're not good gardeners. We have a courtyard/town garden which we
recently
had block paved (with full drainage).

We're planning on putting in a large wooden planter (2.5m long, 40cm wide
and 50cm deep.

I went on one site and it said we would need 1 ton of topsoil to fill it!

Can we put stuff at the bottom of it so we need less soil? Does it need
to
be top soil or is multipurpose compost ok?

We are thinking of having a couple of lavenders in it and a hardy
perennial
(?) and perhaps something else ... but nothing that grows more than say
..... 75cm wide and 75cm high.

We want things that are low/zero maintenance, provide all year round
colour
and flower sometime in the year.

Ideally we'd like to do it in the next month or so .... but is it
something
we should leave to do next spring??

You will need drainage holes in the bottom of the planter as others have
said and a layer of rubble or shingle in the bottom to aid drainage.
Soil is OK and will probably be your cheapest option and delivered by
Builders Merchants. John Innes Compost is also OK as it's also loam based.
However, do not use a peat based type compost (multipurpose) as it will
quickly stop providing any nutrients, is difficult to wet once dry, and is
loved by Vine Weevils and their grubs. It's not meant for permanent
planting.

Lavenders need full sun to thrive, will get straggly in time and will need
replacing. If it is in sun then other herbs might be a good idea too, sage
and rosemary never get too big and can be pruned anyway. Then there's
thyme, marjoram and oregano for ground cover, all pretty maintenance free,
all flower and attract butterflies.
Being Mediterranean plants all do need full sun.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
just W. of London

Hello Bob,

That's really useful stuff. You guys and girls certainly have green
fingers.

When the jobs done (by the end of the month) we'll post and let you know how
it ended up.

Any further advice still gratefully accepted.

Phil