Hello from County Durham

Saying hello to you all for my first post.
Ive not had a huge interest in gardens until now, in my 50s, then it’s hit me what all the fuss is about ☺️ … wish I’d taken more of an interest sooner, as it so good for mental and physical wellbeing.
Loads to ask but I’ll try to ease myself in gently.
Currently working out what to put in a small damp border below a north facing wall, so I’ll do some searching..
I look forward to learning a lot here and getting to know you all, many thanks

 

Hello @joannecw , welcome

 

Hi, I'm in Durham too and a fairly new member here. Mid 50s and had a large garden thrust upon me after moving house. We had plastic grass and gravel borders with some pots. Now we've got half an acre, a little woodland and a two mile walk to mow the grass!!

Plants grow themselves, so how hard can it be?!

Once you get settled, start a thread to show us your progress.

 

Welcome to GC joannecw.

That's a difficult one. How tall is the wall and does the area get any sun? I have a similar problem - not long having moved house. My 6ft garden wall faces south but with just an 8ft gap between it and the house wall it only gets early morning sun from the east.

 

Welcome to the forum! My Mum was a war bride from Darlington and I heard many lovely stories about their gardens.

Oh, WWII that is!

 

It’s a gable end of a garage to a neighbouring property, sun only at bottom corner first thing on the morning I have currently planted a hosta and some phlox. There was ivy growing up the wall when we moved in that I’ve left there. Sadly it’s a popular pit stop shall I say for a local cat to use the soil. Yours sounds tricky….

 

Thank you. That’s some garden you have now

 

Shrubs that are already there are Crinodendron 'Hookerianum', Berberis 'Darwinii', Cotoneaster and Euonymus. Perhaps one of these may work in your shady spot @joannecw, depending on the type of soil. Ilex (Holly) is happy in shade too.

That's a problem I have too. 12 cats here at the last count, so ground cover plants are a must.

 

Plenty of ground cover to counteract that particular problem @joannecw - I use things like Pachysandra and Ajuga which are evergreen, and perfectly happy in damp shade.

If you have a pic of the area you want to plant up, that always helps.
The size of the site, and what you would like - ie perennials. evergreens, year round interest etc, is also important, but shady damp sites aren't as hard to deal with as many people often think.

I would doubt that Phlox wil be happy though.

 

Thank you (although I would like to 'un-like' the issue with cats (although I do love cats otherwise) .. oh I recognise those shrub names as my Dad used to refer to them a lot - thanks again.

 

Thank you so much - its not a huge area to be fair so anything is going to look better than the 'nothingness' so far of soil - just a patch the length of the garage about 1 foot wide. The phlox was going slightly OTT in my garden elsewhere so I tried some and its ok but not 'happy' as you say. I am going to look your suggestions up now - as I say something to keep it going will be great until I have more time to perhaps invest further in it in the future.

 

The best way to stop cats,........is to get a cat! Any variety or flavour of cat will do, but Lions and Tigers work particularly well to keep others away.

 

Cat discussion is treated delicately here on GC @ArmyAirForce as it tends to cause friction.

All I will say is I don't like cats and can't/won't tolerate them.

 

The aforementione Cotoneaster will grow in a narrow site like that @joannecw . There are many types, so if you go for that, just take your time in choosing. Some are very good for up against a wall/fence, and become freestanding, and some are more suited to small areas as groundcover. I have several types, but not all are evergreen either, and I'd suggest that would be the best for the site you have, so that it's more attractive all year round.
The Euonymus fortuneii varieties will also grow up against walls if planted there, but if the garage isn't yours, that isn't ideal unless you have the permission of the owner. They grow as shrubbier, less formal shapes otherwise.
I grow Osmanthus burkwoodii in a similar aspect, and although it can get bushier, it can also be trimmed and shaped if necessary. Small, creamy flowers in late winter/early spring.
The advantage of a narrow north facing site is that it doesn't dry out so easily, which can be a problem with some plants. However, the more plants you put in, especially woodier ones, the more moisture they take up. It also depends on what the border is next to - ie grass, a driveway etc. as that can affect what you want to have. Many of the 'jaggy' plants will be fine too - Pyracantha is generally regarded as a plant for sun, but it grows in almost any site, and is also free standing. Great for wildlife, and can be pruned and shaped too.

The little plants I mentioned as ground cover can also be grown along with spring bulbs, snowdrops and crocus for example, so you could add those for interest. Another useful one is Saxifraga urbium - London Pride. I also grow the perennial candytuft - Iberis in shady sites. There are others - like Brunnera and Pulmonaria, so there's plenty of choice once you get the main plants in.