The new garden

I promised this a while back after a little push from @Loofah. It's now a month since I moved home and settled in so it's time to get this thread underway. The garden is very different to my last one, I've had to down size because I could no longer look after my previous one.

With the bungalow side on - on the plot it wasn't easy to take shots and I've placed them in order, moving from the front all the way round.





The two following images are looking from back to front.





And then turning around, this largish bed is in the back garden.




Looking from that bed across the garden. The larger shed needs a repaint and roof re-felt. I also need to clear it of some fixed units. When that's done my lawn mower and scarifier will take up residence and the smaller shed will be sold. The arbour? That may have to go to make room for a greenhouse.


Now along the other side....


....and back to the bed at the front.


A log shed was standing here until last week. I started work on this little plot today shifting gravel. I intend to have a small composter to the left of the Euonymous, and extend the bed a little more the other end.


At the moment the garden has mostly shrubs, and the same being mostly evergreen. Lacking colour I intend to remove some of the shrubs next Spring and plant herbaceous perennials. The first two to go will be variegated Laurels.

I will update on the project as it progresses.

 

Look a lovely place @Sheal , give yourself time to settle in and get a good feel for it.

 

Thank you @DiggersJo. There won't be much happening until Spring but I will need to tame some of the shrubs that haven't been tended for the best part of a year.

 

Hi,
I moved at the end of last year, and decided to leave the garden unchanged for a year, to see how it grew.
Nine months on, and I just couldn't help myself.
I wish you all the best with your new place. Happy days working, and nights planning.

 

A lovely plot to play about with though @Sheal
Surely you'll have somewhere else to put the wee arbour? It would be a shame if you can't use it.
Conditions will be pretty much the same as your previous garden, which always helps.
I can understand getting rid of the laurels. Useful for very difficult spots, but not the most attractive shrub. I expect the previous owners [if they planted it all] wanted something easy to maintain, and shrub based gardens are definitely easier, especially in colder, windier parts of the country where perennial based gardens are far more work, and also if you're working and don't have that time to spend on maintenance.

I remember vaguely going to Dingwall with my Mum and Dad, but it would have been the best part of 60 years ago, so I don't really remember anything about it! It's odd, because we would never normally be on the east side.

 

Looking forward to seeing your progress @Sheal , it looks like it's a lovely garden and extra colour will be the finishing touch

 

It looks lovely already. I particularly like the wall.

 

It looks lovely, Sheal. I like the front garden how it is, very attractive, but I agree with you that the back could do with some perennials to brighten it up. I also agree with @fairygirl, it would be a shame to lose the arbour, I hope you can find it a new place.

You could dig up some of the lawn to plant perennials in front of the shrubs, rather than having to dig up shrubs, roots and all, tough work.

 

That looks like a perfect garden for downsizing to @Sheal . Nicely positioned on a private plot with other attractive properties nearby! The wall is a great feature and I'm a big fan of evergreen shrubs for winter interest. I'm sure you'll have plans for a revival once you've settled in and the new gardening year begins. Looking forward to seeing the developments!

 

That’s a lovely new garden for you @Sheal, and looks very peaceful. It’s quite different to your last garden and it’ll be really interesting to see what you do with it. You have a lot of shrubs! Hopefully some will give you some nice winter colours. I love your wall, and also how it’s been shaped at the front entrance. Wishing you lots of pleasure making your mark on your new garden

 

Can’t wait to see the progress, Sheal.

 

Thanks @fairygirl. To be honest I find the arbour ugly and I very rarely sit outside anyway. I get fidgety and need to be doing something.

Sorry, it may seem that I'm going against your every word but the conditions here are entirely different to my last garden. The previous one was rural, 3ooft above sea level and exposed to the weather. This one is in a village, surrounded by a 6ft stone wall and almost at sea level. I'm yet to discover soil type but first impressions are loamy. The previous garden had sandy loam, and with more sand than loam, was a nightmare to work with.

I believe the previous owner was past retirement age and sadly died late last year. So yes, he probably planted for low maintenance. There's certainly an assortment of shrubs here.

The town of Dingwall is the postal district I live in and if you were to re-visit now I doubt you'd remember it. Like many other towns it's suffering with shops closing down. Perhaps your parents fancied a change of scenery? They may well have felt at home away from the west coast, if there's rain about you can guarantee it will find Dingwall. Driving up the A9 today we could see it was pouring there but it was dry at home.

 

Thank you everyone for your lovely comments and good wishes for the future here.

I'm with you on that, there's no way I could wait nine months let alone a year. As seasoned gardeners I think most of us know exactly what we can lay our hands too and what should be left for a while.

I won't touch the lawn Busy-Lizzie. I find a garden crammed with plants tends to feel claustrophobic.

The shaping of the wall was necessary. The garden was part of a larger plot originally so the front wall was continuous. It had to be partially dismantled to create the entrance for the plot/driveway.

There won't be much progress outside over the coming fortnight as I have family visiting. There will probably be snow on the ground when I can get back to it.