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I recently demolished my garage in order to extend the garden and within the last few days I have broken out the garage floor slab. The idea is to create flowerbeds around the perimeter and to lay turf adjacent to that. The broken out flooring was only a couple of inches thick and once I have broken it down even more I was intending to put a topsoil/compost mix on top to create the flowerbeds. I am assuming that the broken up flooring will assist with drainage and stop the soil from simply washing away when it rains? I have several bags of Homebase topsoil and was intending to mix them in with compost of some sort. Can anyone offer advice and tell me if this is a good idea? I intend to plant climbing roses and honeysuckle at the far end of the garden because I have installed trellis at high level. Going forward I will be planting runner beans and tomatoes on the more exposed wall and pyracantha and other Sparrow friendly plants elsewhere. I will post some photos when I get home, in order to give a better idea of the layout. Hope someone can offer some advice. Thanks.
Unicum arbustum haud alit duos erithacos
(One bush does not shelter two Robins)
Zenodotus (3rd Century B.C.)
Hi MC, either you have caught my cold or shifting tons of rubble & soil leaves you open to infection!! I had a 3-day wonder last week, got through over a kitchen towel & had a nose like Rudolph. I felt a bit more like digging again yesterday & today but I still keep falling asleep in front of the telly! I think we'll both have to take it a bit easier!
Your garden is looking great now, a bit of instant colour & vegetation works wonders.
Best wishes
Hazel in Southwest France
Thanks Hazel, my ailment appears to have gone already. A day of Lemsip cold & flu, hot Ribena and Nurofen seems to have done the trick. I also had two litres of Lucozade and two packs of Anzac biscuits. Hand feeding my Robins at Kingston Guildhall this morning was also therapeutic.
Unknown said: (nothing Cyril related though!). it's too late your Christmas present is presents are already in a Santa sack lol btw, the sack doesn't just contain peanuts ;) [/quote] d'oh! Unicum arbustum haud alit duos erithacos (One bush does not shelter two Robins) Zenodotus (3rd Century B.C.)
(nothing Cyril related though!).
[/quote]
d'oh!
Of course, I already have a Spadger Tree! They are quite easy to grow and this year I had an exceptional harvest.
LOL, nice one MC I will put one on my xmas list !!
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Regards, Hazel
Great update MC but sorry to hear you felt unwell ... mine is just starting (courtesy of Byron, of course!)
All looking good, it's amazing how just a few plants can make such a difference & pleased you have decided to plant the Oak in such an auspicious place!!
I went mad & bought the water feature & am planning a quite small wildlife pond using a pre-formed liner ... I do like the sight & sound of water!
2013 photos & vids here
eff37 on Flickr
Grandmamac said: I hope your head cold is departing now, MC. I'm sure it won't do any harm to let all the soil settle for a while. If the peat in the soil mix had dried out a little, it will take a while for it to become rehydrated. Your garden is going to look so different; I've been too busy to look at the forum very often so I've had to look back in the thread and I'm amazed at the difference you've made in a very short time. I think your use of trellising is very creative.
I hope your head cold is departing now, MC. I'm sure it won't do any harm to let all the soil settle for a while. If the peat in the soil mix had dried out a little, it will take a while for it to become rehydrated.
Your garden is going to look so different; I've been too busy to look at the forum very often so I've had to look back in the thread and I'm amazed at the difference you've made in a very short time. I think your use of trellising is very creative.
Thanks GMM. It is slowly taking shape. The trellis makes things much easier and allows me to use the vertical approach since the area of the garden is rather limited. It also allows me to create safe areas for the Spadgers and GR, so that cats and other predators cannot get to them. The whole SBS area will be re-visited once the garden has reached a certain point. I have trimmed the ceanothus to allow a framework to be constructed along the wall between my garden and that of my neighbour. There is a lovely white climbing rose that even now is in full bloom and I would like to trail it over the side and into the new garden area, maybe even along the top of the wall to deter the cats.
Hope you are feeling better now MC. Taking shape nicely. Love the Spangler tree.
Edit. Oops Spadger tree!!
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Just read this whole thread and wow - what a project! You are doing brilliantly and it's going to be a wonderful space for wildlife.
My blog: http://mazzaswildside.blogspot.co.uk/
My Flickr page: https://www.flickr.com/photos/124028194@N04/
Going through the photos of the new garden, I spotted the old rose bush and how quickly it sprouted between the end of August and one week ago.
August 29th, trimmed right back to a stump.
Here it is about 6 weeks later, on October 12th. It has now grown almost four feet! The rose is now growing upwards rather than across because for the first time in years it is not competing for light with the Flowering Currant (Spadger Bush). By next Spring I expect the whole of the Chalet enclosure to be a tightly packed area, ideal for Spadgers and hopefully the Dunnocks might return if there is sufficient low level cover. In addition, GR will have a nicely concealed Chalet.
If the newly planted climbers and roses are half as prolific as this particular rose, then the trellis at the far end of the garden should be covered in foliage before long!