Hello,

Im an absolute newbie to gardening - i really dont have much of a clue. Plus with a toddler and a baby i dont have much time either to research things.

I would like to re-vamp the garden, particularly the side strip of grass we have which is pointless at the moment.

Can anyone suggest what sort of plants i should buy - i would like a mix of flowers & shrubs which are colourful & low maintenance, and will not grow higher than the fence.

As i stand out the back of my house im looking in a north-west direction (i have no idea what aspect this makes the border)

Any advice would be hugely appreciated - i went to a couple of garden centres in the spring and quite frankly they made me feel stupid for not knowing much about gardening :-(

View of garden

eve83 wrote:

Im an absolute newbie to gardening - i really dont have much of a clue.
Plus with a toddler and a baby i dont have much time either to research
things.

I would like to re-vamp the garden, particularly the side strip of grass
we have which is pointless at the moment.

Can anyone suggest what sort of plants i should buy - i would like a mix
of flowers & shrubs which are colourful & low maintenance, and will not
grow higher than the fence.

As i stand out the back of my house im looking in a north-west direction
(i have no idea what aspect this makes the border)

Any advice would be hugely appreciated - i went to a couple of garden
centres in the spring and quite frankly they made me feel stupid for not
knowing much about gardening :-(

http://www.amazon.com/Gardening-Dumm.../dp/0470018437

On 7/23/2014 2:56 AM, eve83 wrote:
Hello,

Im an absolute newbie to gardening - i really dont have much of a clue.
Plus with a toddler and a baby i dont have much time either to research
things.

I would like to re-vamp the garden, particularly the side strip of grass
we have which is pointless at the moment.

Can anyone suggest what sort of plants i should buy - i would like a mix
of flowers & shrubs which are colourful & low maintenance, and will not
grow higher than the fence.

As i stand out the back of my house im looking in a north-west direction
(i have no idea what aspect this makes the border)

Any advice would be hugely appreciated - i went to a couple of garden
centres in the spring and quite frankly they made me feel stupid for not
knowing much about gardening :-(

Where I live (California, USA), there are nurseries (your "garden
centers") that provide a garden-design service. You pay a fee for the
design; but if you buy a certain amount of plants, tools, and supplies
from them, you get a credit for the fee against future purchases.
Generally, such nurseries also provide guidance and instruction to
novice gardeners. Scout out other nurseries in your area to find out if
any of them offer such a service.

As for those places that "made me feel stupid for not knowing much about
gardening", you should talk to the managers about that. If they want
your money, they should treat you politely and help you learn.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean, see
http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary

eve83 wrote:
Hello,

Im an absolute newbie to gardening - i really dont have much of a
clue. Plus with a toddler and a baby i dont have much time either to
research things.

I would like to re-vamp the garden, particularly the side strip of
grass we have which is pointless at the moment.

Can anyone suggest what sort of plants i should buy - i would like a
mix of flowers & shrubs which are colourful & low maintenance, and
will not grow higher than the fence.

As i stand out the back of my house im looking in a north-west
direction (i have no idea what aspect this makes the border)

Any advice would be hugely appreciated - i went to a couple of garden
centres in the spring and quite frankly they made me feel stupid for
not knowing much about gardening :-(


+-------------------------------------------------------------------+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------+

There is no general answer to your question as the suitability of plants
depend on your soil and climate which we don't know and (not trying to be
rude here) possibly you don't either. From what you have said so far any
specific recommendations will be a wild guess that have small chance of
being useful. If you don't have time to learn and to do it yourself, do you
have the money to pay somebody who does? If you have neither time nor money
then lacking a knowledgeable friend/neighbour/ relative who will do it for
free you are out of luck. TANSTAAFL

You could:

- hire a local gardener or professional
- go to the local garden club where people know the district
- get books from the library, preferably that deal with growing in your
region

--
David

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
A better world requires a daily struggle
against those who would mislead us.

On 23/07/2014 7:56 PM, eve83 wrote:
Hello,

Im an absolute newbie to gardening - i really dont have much of a clue.
Plus with a toddler and a baby i dont have much time either to research
things.

I would like to re-vamp the garden, particularly the side strip of grass
we have which is pointless at the moment.

Can anyone suggest what sort of plants i should buy - i would like a mix
of flowers & shrubs which are colourful & low maintenance, and will not
grow higher than the fence.

As i stand out the back of my house im looking in a north-west direction
(i have no idea what aspect this makes the border)

Any advice would be hugely appreciated - i went to a couple of garden
centres in the spring and quite frankly they made me feel stupid for not
knowing much about gardening :-(

There is an old saying: If you want to be happy for a day, get drunk.
If you want o be happy for a month, get married but if you want to be
happy for a lifetime, plant a garden.

Another saying is: Women have 3 loves in their lives and the last of
these loves is a garden.

My advice is that if you are short of time, have babes around and don't
feel like you need another activity then just leave the strip as it is
and wait a few years because if you don't get it right, it will irritate
you and you will constantly feel under pressure by this area that still
looks like crap.

Alternatively you could use it as a place to learn about gardening from
the bottom up (ie make mistakes and experiment) and perhaps take the
kids out there so it becomes a recreation area where they can be
outdoors and you can spend time with them.

Don't be intimidated by anyone because it's YOUR garden and all
gardeners had to start somewhere.

Try a local library ofr soem basic books (like the Hessayon books
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D._G._Hessayon )or take the kids for a walk
round your neighbourhood on a weekend when people are working in their
gardens and if you see a plant you like, ask the garden owner what the
plant is and if they could tell you a bit about it. I yet to meet any
gardener ('real gardener', as opposed to those instant makeover idiots)
who didn't like to talk about their gardens or their plants

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