Hi Guys,

My name is Jennings, I am 40-odd years old and I am a gardening noob. I have never been interested in gardening. I have always seen it as the dwelling place for the clinically dull.

However that changed when I recently moved into a new house. What changed? Well either gardening became fascinating or I became dull. Either way suits me.

The house has quite a large front garden and a medium sized back garden. The back garden was a mess. Well...I mean, it was nicely designed - but terribly overgrown.

I decided to do the bare minimum to make it look reasonable. I found that with some effort clearing rotten wood and ivy there was a really cool patio underneath. And I could improve the patio with some simple 'patio magic'. I pruned back some shrubs with crazy latin names, so they weren't growing into each other. I soon learned about 'thinning cuts' and 'bearing cuts' and soon people were saying - ooh your garden looks better.

So now I enjoy my garden. Maybe I will get bored in the next few weeks - or maybe I will stick with it. Who knows? But for now it is rewarding and enoyable.

I really want to grow a topiary of some description - you know a little tree in the shape of a ball (not everyone's cuppa, I know). I also want my lawn to look nice (currently it is 20% moss!). I also want to make a little patio down the side of the house - so I can use my main patio for BBQs and not storing my huge collection of recycle bins and bags. In the front I have a huge (30M squared rockery - what on earth do I put in there!?) So much to do.

Anyway, I dont have any specific questions for you fellow dullards, but I will lurk a little and learn what I can about the basics.

Thanks for reading,

Jennings

On Mar 16, 12:20*pm, Jennings
wrote:
Hi Guys,

My name is Jennings, I am 40-odd years old and I am a gardening noob. I
have never been interested in gardening. I have always seen it as the
dwelling place for the clinically dull.

However that changed when I recently moved into a new house. What
changed? Well either gardening became fascinating or I became dull.
Either way suits me.

The house has quite a large front garden and a medium sized back garden.
The back garden was a mess. Well...I mean, it was nicely designed - but
terribly overgrown.

I decided to do the bare minimum to make it look reasonable. I found
that with some effort clearing rotten wood and ivy there was a really
cool patio underneath. And I could improve the patio with some simple
'patio magic'. I pruned back some shrubs with crazy latin names, so they
weren't growing into each other. I soon learned about 'thinning cuts'
and 'bearing cuts' and soon people were saying - ooh your garden looks
better.

So now I enjoy my garden. Maybe I will get bored in the next few weeks -
or maybe I will stick with it. Who knows? But for now it is rewarding
and enoyable.

I really want to grow a topiary of some description - you know a little
tree in the shape of a ball (not everyone's cuppa, I know). I also want
my lawn to look nice (currently it is 20% moss!). I also want to make a
little patio down the side of the house - so I can use my main patio for
BBQs and not storing my huge collection of recycle bins and bags. In the
front I have a huge (30M squared rockery - what on earth do I put in
there!?) So much to do.

Anyway, I dont have any specific questions for you fellow dullards, but
I will lurk a little and learn what I can about the basics.

Thanks for reading,

Jennings

--
Jennings

It takes years and years to create a topiary tree. You can buy an
expensive lollipop sort of thing. Massive topic, best to buy a book.
PS. Have you got a friend named Derbyshire?

Ahh..thanks Harry. I may buy something to get me started, maybe a lollipop sort of thing.

Yeah, Darbi is my best friend. Although we are both on the warpath with Old-Wlkie. ;-)

Great to see someone who is familiar with the great Jennings books!!

On Thu, 17 Mar 2011 07:34:39 +0000, Jennings
wrote:


harry;915098 Wrote:
On Mar 16, 12:20*pm, Jennings

It takes years and years to create a topiary tree. You can buy an
expensive lollipop sort of thing. Massive topic, best to buy a book.
PS. Have you got a friend named Derbyshire?

Ahh..thanks Harry. I may buy something to get me started, maybe a
lollipop sort of thing.

Yeah, Darbi is my best friend. Although we are both on the warpath with
Old-Wlkie. ;-)

Great to see someone who is familiar with the great Jennings books!!

Oh, fish-hooks! Not another one!

--
Mike.

Haha...I have used the name Jennings on all sorts of places over the interweb - and this is the only place that I have found enlightened people!

I am going to have to retract my 'dullard' remarks if this persists!

"Jennings" wrote in message
...

'Jeff Layman[_2_ Wrote:
;915145']
Nice to see another one joining the sad brigade!

Regarding your topiary question, most people start with a clipped Box
tree. These are usually not too expensive if bought fairly small. But

watch out for Box Blight, which will do any Box tree no good at all.
Further info (with alternatives to Box) he
'Box blight / RHS Gardening Advice' (http://tinyurl.com/6j3r3sm)

You don't say how long you've been in your house or where it is. Now
you've tidied the garden up, wait to see what comes up this year.
That's particularly true of the rockery, where there may be many dormant

herbaceous plants and bulbs which will only appear during spring and
summer.

If you find that you get interested in rock gardening (ie go up a notch

on the "boring" scale like many of us) you might want to see if there is

an Alpine Garden Society group nearby:
'Local Group Venues and Contact Details - Alpine Garden Society'
(http://tinyurl.com/4qcmzz8)

--

Jeff

Great stuff, Jeff. Thanks for that. I had a look at the topiary stuff. I
quite fancy the euonymous - I'll see if I can get one.

The rockery was already dug over by the next door neighbour (we share
it). I have put down some slate chippings, and planted a couple of
shrubs - but I need a lot more in there. I was going to keep the shrubs
low, and add some pots (which I will grow seperately) and move them in
as they bloom. I guess i need to find stuff that blooms at different
times of the year.

Complicated stuff! I thought gardening was simply about mowing, weeding
and occasionally shouting at kids in the street for kicking their
football too close to my prize roses!




--
Jennings


Beware "Dwarf" Conifers :-)

Bill

On Thu, 17 Mar 2011 12:00:04 +0000, Mike Lyle
wrote:

On Thu, 17 Mar 2011 07:34:39 +0000, Jennings
wrote:


harry;915098 Wrote:
On Mar 16, 12:20*pm, Jennings

It takes years and years to create a topiary tree. You can buy an
expensive lollipop sort of thing. Massive topic, best to buy a book.
PS. Have you got a friend named Derbyshire?

Ahh..thanks Harry. I may buy something to get me started, maybe a
lollipop sort of thing.

Yeah, Darbi is my best friend. Although we are both on the warpath with
Old-Wlkie. ;-)

Great to see someone who is familiar with the great Jennings books!!

Oh, fish-hooks! Not another one!

To make life easier Sacha may be in a position to sell the OP a box
nicely pruned into the shape of a Buddah soon - she has one but may be
about to replace it with a phallic symbol. ;-))
Jake

On 16/03/2011 12:20, Jennings wrote:
Hi Guys,

My name is Jennings, I am 40-odd years old and I am a gardening noob. I
have never been interested in gardening. I have always seen it as the
dwelling place for the clinically dull.

However that changed when I recently moved into a new house. What
changed? Well either gardening became fascinating or I became dull.
Either way suits me.

The house has quite a large front garden and a medium sized back garden.
The back garden was a mess. Well...I mean, it was nicely designed - but
terribly overgrown.

I decided to do the bare minimum to make it look reasonable. I found
that with some effort clearing rotten wood and ivy there was a really
cool patio underneath. And I could improve the patio with some simple
'patio magic'. I pruned back some shrubs with crazy latin names, so they
weren't growing into each other. I soon learned about 'thinning cuts'
and 'bearing cuts' and soon people were saying - ooh your garden looks
better.

So now I enjoy my garden. Maybe I will get bored in the next few weeks -
or maybe I will stick with it. Who knows? But for now it is rewarding
and enoyable.

I really want to grow a topiary of some description - you know a little
tree in the shape of a ball (not everyone's cuppa, I know). I also want
my lawn to look nice (currently it is 20% moss!). I also want to make a
little patio down the side of the house - so I can use my main patio for
BBQs and not storing my huge collection of recycle bins and bags. In the
front I have a huge (30M squared rockery - what on earth do I put in
there!?) So much to do.

Anyway, I dont have any specific questions for you fellow dullards, but
I will lurk a little and learn what I can about the basics.

Thanks for reading,

Jennings

Nice to see another one joining the sad brigade!

Regarding your topiary question, most people start with a clipped Box
tree. These are usually not too expensive if bought fairly small. But
watch out for Box Blight, which will do any Box tree no good at all.
Further info (with alternatives to Box) he
http://apps.rhs.org.uk/advicesearch/profile.aspx?pid=96

You don't say how long you've been in your house or where it is. Now
you've tidied the garden up, wait to see what comes up this year.
That's particularly true of the rockery, where there may be many dormant
herbaceous plants and bulbs which will only appear during spring and summer.

If you find that you get interested in rock gardening (ie go up a notch
on the "boring" scale like many of us) you might want to see if there is
an Alpine Garden Society group nearby:
http://www.alpinegardensociety.net/g...-and-contacts/

--

Jeff

Great stuff, Jeff. Thanks for that. I had a look at the topiary stuff. I quite fancy the euonymous - I'll see if I can get one.

The rockery was already dug over by the next door neighbour (we share it). I have put down some slate chippings, and planted a couple of shrubs - but I need a lot more in there. I was going to keep the shrubs low, and add some pots (which I will grow seperately) and move them in as they bloom. I guess i need to find stuff that blooms at different times of the year.

Complicated stuff! I thought gardening was simply about mowing, weeding and occasionally shouting at kids in the street for kicking their football too close to my prize roses!

There's a theory that english gardens tend to look a bit miserable come midsummer because people are tempted out and into the garden centres with the first fine weather, and buy whatever is in flower then.

You can turn that round on its head: find a nurser or garden centre that you like, and make a point of visiting it at different times of the year. Then any impulse buys will have their season of interest at different times during the year.

Ideally, of course, you'll see things that you like, then you'll go home and research their needs, and only then come back and buy them. Yeah, right.

In message , kay
writes


Ideally, of course, you'll see things that you like, then you'll go
home
and research their needs, and only then come back and buy them. Yeah,
right.


By which time they will have sold out
--
Flossie

Thank you! I knew there must be a logical reason for impulse buying ;-)

In article , Nospam@invalid
says...

Uh, am I a wimp because I take the RHS Encyclopaedia with me when I go
out to garden centres?

Yes. I prefer places where they have quality plant reference books for
staff (often kept under the desk) and let the customers borrow it to look
stuff up :-)

Janet

In article , Nospam@invalid
says...

That's why I only bother to take books to Garden Centres (where if
there is a copy of anything RHS it's heavily sealed in plastic and
sold for full cover price).

IME, it's very unusual for any of the big GC chains not to have
reference books available to customers on request.
(staff copies are usually under the desk or in the back office; you won't
see them unless you ask).

Janet

Ellesmere Port, according to his GB info