Hi all

I posted here a few weeks ago saying I'd got a new garden. Now I'm at the
"planning what to do with it" stage and I'd appreciate any thoughts or
advice you might have on the following projects:

1. The instant herb garden project.

There's a pre-formed fibre glass raised pool with a wooden surround right up
by the house (surrounded by wooden deck). I don't want it as a water
feature (I have two other ponds - one quite LARGE). I thought I might empty
it out, drill holes in the fibre glass, fill with gritty compost and plant
with herbs. It's about 5' x 3' and about 2' off the ground. Faces SW and
gets reasonable amounts of sun. What do people reckon - will this work or
will it get waterlogged?

2. The native hedge project.

Deciduous hedge runs up one side of the garden for about twenty five feet.
It's about six foot high and has obviously been trimmed with hedge cutters
and not much else done to it as it's got very thin in places. Hard to tell
what it's made of at the moment, but I reckon it includes hawthorn, berberis
and possibly viburnum. Also full of old brambles and rubbish growing
through from next door's neglected and overgrown patch. I'd like to thicken
it up a bit and try some evergreens to give a bit more privacy at this time
of year - any ideas for relatively quick growing - preferably native -
plants. I'd like it to stay an "informal" hedge.

3. The anti-magnolia project

No, not that kind of magnolia. I like those.
The previous owners overdid the "house doctor" bit and have painted the
fibreglass edging of the LARGE (20'x 10') pond and the concrete path edging
and the terracotta "brick" path edging (ALL over the garden) and even the
stones lining the "stream" that feeds the pond, with magnolia paint!!!
Judging by the amount they painted in the house I reckon they got onto
"autopaint" and just couldn't stop...... I think it's ordinary emulsion,
although it looks almost luminous in poor light and is doing the "natural"
look of the garden no favours at all - any ideas for removing it?

I hope you don't mind multiple questions in one message - I expect I'll
think of some more later..........

Seasons Greetings


Heather

Gardening in Wiltshire, on the side of a hill.



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