Hello all.

Another question from me. ( Sorry ).

I have just brought a new house and and slowly fighting the indoors and outdoors into shape.

The garden I got was very badly overgrown with 2 and 3 years growth on everything. Now that I have hard pruned everything to a more respectable size, I can weight up what I have.

2 small gardens, a front and a back. Rear garden is north facing and incredibly exposes. Front garden is south facing and has some shelter. Front garden is sandy loam, rear garden is clay/loam mix.

I have a number of large shrubs, mostly buddlia along with a few large tree's. Talking to the neighbours, there is very little in the way of planting in the ground itself, no bulbs etc apart from a few daffodils.


My aim is, over the next three years, to get the garden into a more plesant condition.The problem that I'm facing is that I really don't know where to start, and I'm confronted with such a huge amount of choice plants that I getting a little confused.

This is my ( very brief ) three year plan. I wonder if I could get some comments on it with any suggestions on what to do, what could be better etc?

Year 1 ( starting from now )
This year I just want some colour in the garden and some practise at gardening, as I'm new to it all. The idea is to plant a load of bulbs and annuals throughout the year and see what looks good.

I want to see the garden in all seasons, learn the micro-climates, learn what sort of colours, shapes that I like etc. I also want to improve the soil a LOT, as there is a huge amount of stone and rubbish in it. I am thinking of getting a large riddle in a frame and hitting a border at a time while the garden is fairly bare.

Year 2
Remove some of the larger shrubs and maybe a couple of the trees and add in perennials and different shrubs. Add a bits of hieght to the garden. fewer bulbs. Keep improving the soil

Year 3
Remove some more of the tree's and the existing shrubs, add in more bulk to the existing planting schemes.


Becuase I'm new, I don't want a hugely impressive garden, just something that is nice to sit outside in and doesn't need a huge amount of work. By the end of the three years, I want to have interest and colour in the garden for most, if not all of the year, and have it fairly self-perpetuation. I'd like to get it to a point where it's full of self-seeding/perenial plants that do something in all the seasons.


Am I taking the right approach? Am I going to slow? Should I get all this done in two years?

Also, from experience, is it actually possible to have a fairly simple to maintain garden that is interesting all year around? Or does this take a whole lot more effort than the books suggest?

Many thanks

Steve

On Nov 23, 6:38 am, RipSlider ripJUNKslider{at}gJUNKmail-dot-coJUNKm
- delete junk wrote:
Hello all.

This is the first of a few questions that I'll be posting today.
I'm only just getting into the swing of gardening, so this may be
obvious, but I'm struggling to find any information on the subject.

I have a fairly exposed garden. The rear garden is north facing and
looks over 1,000+ acres of fields, and so is VERY windy as well as not
very bright. The front garden is sound facing and a little less
exposed.

In each garden I have 2 or 3 very large trees. 1x large holly, 1x large
Yew and 3x large pines. The ground under each of these tree's is bare,
and I would like to add some planting to it.

That ground is bare for a reason. Plants find it hard to grow under
big trees, especially close to the trunk. It is very dry there; the
combination of lack of moisture and shade means very few things are
able to cope. Some plants can grow under trees naturally and these
tend to come out in Spring while there is still some light (e.g.
anemnones and celandines). With some effort you may be able to grow
some things like that and have a nice show in early spring; but only
under deciduous trees. Yews are fabulous trees but cast dense shade.
Pines and hollies are both evergreen although they can have fairly
open canopies, depending where they are.

Exposure is a different problem. Plants hate being blasted by
hurricanes and shelter always helps to improve the range of things you
can grow (shelter from fences and hedges).

Des



I'm just wondering what sort of plants you could suggest that will cope
with plenty of wind and be happy growing around or under tree's? I have
been able to find nothing that seems to fit the bill.

The front garden is fairly well drained, sandy loam. The rear garden is
heavier, loamy, but with a good deal of clay in it.

Any advice on what I can do to the soil to improve chances of growth,
and also plant idea's would be very greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Steve

--
RipSlider

In article , RipSlider
ripJUNKslider{at}gJUNKmail-dot-coJUNKm - delete junk says...

Hello all.

This is the first of a few questions that I'll be posting today.
I'm only just getting into the swing of gardening, so this may be
obvious, but I'm struggling to find any information on the subject.

I have a fairly exposed garden. The rear garden is north facing and
looks over 1,000+ acres of fields, and so is VERY windy as well as not
very bright. The front garden is sound facing and a little less
exposed.

In each garden I have 2 or 3 very large trees. 1x large holly, 1x large
Yew and 3x large pines. The ground under each of these tree's is bare,
and I would like to add some planting to it.

I'm just wondering what sort of plants you could suggest that will cope
with plenty of wind and be happy growing around or under tree's? I have
been able to find nothing that seems to fit the bill.

The front garden is fairly well drained, sandy loam. The rear garden is
heavier, loamy, but with a good deal of clay in it.

Any advice on what I can do to the soil to improve chances of growth,
and also plant idea's would be very greatly appreciated.

Many thanks

Steve




--
RipSlider

Start with the obvious stuff like wood anemones, snowdrops, daffs and
blue bells which are all likely to do better under deciduous trees rather
than evergreens, Euphorbia robbii is indestructable and some of the
helebores. Ruscus the butchers broom, coloured leaved ivies, variegated
hollies, geranium pheum, are all evergreen and there are lots more.
Woodland gardens are not my thing as ours is in full sun.
--
Charlie Pridham, Gardening in Cornwall
www.roselandhouse.co.uk
Holders of national collections of Clematis viticella cultivars and
Lapageria rosea