My tiered garden log.

Well, me and my other half have just bought our first house!
The garden it has, has been neglected for 25years+ at the top, and half-maintained for the rest of it.
It used to be owned by an old lady and her daughter, who liked to plant plants in the garden, from pots. I know this only because as I've been digging things up for a fresh start, every single root ball is pot shaped!
Anyway, I'm looking for some advice and ideas on what i can do with this garden.
I've had a Google around but it's an unusual steep tiered garden so "copying" other ideas doesn't really work.

So- the garden so far!




This is before we moved in- note the near black shadow in the distance at the back of the garden.

It's laid out in tiers of 5 squares and one strange shape at the top. It HAD three apple trees within 1m of each other, and there's two conifer type trees right at the back (which i want to rip down, i dont like them!)

At the moment i'm just trying to get it to a clean slate, so we chopped the worst two trees down which were suffocating each other badly!



during!



This is after, note the location of the greenhouse, eventually i'll have that in the left hand side of the shot (eventually) but we had to move it around a few times while chopping the two trees down.

Question number 1 is:
The tree that is left, we want to keep, will it eventually fill out into the gap caused by the other two trees?

Question number 2 is:



On said tree there's these growths, i know for a fact the tree in the worst health had severe canker, is this canker on this tree?
Oh by the way we think it is a bramley apple tree, not currently producing apples really. All of these growths are on joints??



Finally, this is the top level of the garden, you can't really see it in the pics, but i'm mid way through clearing it.

I have done a few things which i will upload pictures of later, but i don't know where to go to finish this off...

I haven't got a clue where to start whatsoever! Any ideas on what i can do to make this garden into a garden again? I would like to keep the apple tree if at all possible.

 

I'll attach the pictures in the right places, how do you locate them via attachments in the text line?
If not i'll just edit the first post once i can upload links to photos

 

Welcome to Gardeners Corner

No sure if you can, let me just try something

Yep, that worked

Upload one file then carry on typing underneath it before uploading the next. Select the full image option too

 

There's some great levels in your garden, I'd love something like that.

 

Super! Thanks for that, the pictures are in- ish

 

Without a closer picture I would guess it's woolly aphid: https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=724

...or adventitious roots.

 

I'll have to wait until summer to see!
There seems to be no fluff or activity on them, the growths are hard as rock and heavy as hell!
I should know, when i trimmed a branch off just under one, when it hit the floor it sounded like i'd dropped a large ball of concrete!
I'll have a wonder up tonight after work and get a few better pictures.
the other tree was definitely canker though, i found a few branches that were literally exact replicas of the picture on RHS


Which i hope does not reer its ugly head, as that means i'll have to replace the tree. Which is not good as i've already plated bulbs around it!

 

wow love the different levels!

 

If it is canker and the tree is not badly affected, I would be inclined to prune out the affected branches and see how it does over the next year or so rather than rip it out straight away.

 

I'll upload a few pics tomorrow when I'm on the computer again. My phone isn't playing game uploading things at the moment.


It's absolutely everywhere on every joint, so unless it's harmless it's a bit of a problem

 

Welcome to GC Vibrating_cake.

The only way you would get it to fill out is to prune it right back and let it re-shoot from further down, so it would take years to fill the gap. I've just seen your latest pictures and sadly I think it's canker, the tree is obviously quite old and probably succumbing to disease because of that. I think perhaps it's time to think about replacing it, sorry!

The link below may give you some ideas on what to do with the area you have cleared.
https://www.google.com/search?q=tie...&ei=ez4bVLKzNdGO7Qaq64GADw&sqi=2&ved=0CBwQsAQ

 

Well that's a shame! It can't come down until winter anyway, there's still a pigeons nest that's in use now.
We always said we'd plant an apple tree (or an edible cherry with epic pink blossom) when we eventually decide to have kids. And match the age of the tree to the new introduction into the family.
Hey Ho, or a grafted Apple tree with 4types of Apple, that would be nice.
But anyway, that's a shame indeed

 

Right!
Poor apple tree! All the images of canker seem to be taking away material rather than adding material growths, (from all my googling anyway!) I hope it isn't, I like that tree!

So, the garden. Other than a tidy up, i don't know what i want to plant, where how why etc.
I want to plant something that requires little maintenance, i will run through current plans, but i only have a small knowledge of plants etc so knowing what i can plant, that won't need much maintenance is an issue here. So, any suggestions are welcome! I do want a water feature eventually, but that will be in a couple of years i'm sure.

From the bottom to the top!



Ground floor- entertaining.
The BBQ lives in the garage, and currently the garden furniture in the shed, because the garage is still a tip and we can't open the garage door as the lintel has given up.
What kind of potted plants can i grow down in this area on the retaining wall?


Level 1: Now, because of the ground floor being big enough for bbq's etc, i'm a bit hit and miss with what to do with this level, we won't really use it as-is, and it has 3 surrounding walls and all the light comes from behind where i'm taking the picture, so it doesn't really get much ground level light. The greenhouse is temporarily here (see next pictures)


Level 2- right hand side, as you can see i've dismembered the plant in the middle, that's coming out this weekend, the plants with root balls in the middle are off to the tip, and the small area at the bottom of the picture we have planted a pattern of tulips of various colours, earlies up front and lates behind (closest to the small fence). I don't know what else to plant here while the tulips aren't in flower.


Level 2 right hand side. at the back of the last shot-
We are going to buy another trellice so it's the full height of the wall.
From left to right- lavendar-red rose-lavendar-pink rose-lavendar-white rose-lavendar-ivy
All three climbing roses, which will hopefully grow well with a purple flowering under them from the lavendar (and smell devine!) I'm hoping to fill out the entire wall with roses.


Level 2 Left hand side, the greenhouse is going in the corner where the bubble wrap is.
There's two roses which are coming out, and under the soily weedy bit is a square of patio, that'll stay.
A bit messy, but i'm unsure of what else to do with it. the hedge may stay, it may not, let's see how the greenhouse fairs.


Bottom of this photo is level 2 left hand side, under the pile of logs is a tree stump, to the left a purple tree thing and a few other tree things, no idea what i could grow here!
Level 3- with the tree in the middle, tree stump to the right.
The purple plant in a pot is just there because we re-potted it as it's pretty and it was root bound, i want to find a home for this somewere.
Around the growing tree about 2-3feet out i have planted both snowdrops and bluebells in a ring, which will hopefully look pretty when they come through.


Can anyone ID this hedge, not been trimmed for 25 years so i've cut it back as far as i dare (taking 6 foot sections off at a time mind you!) Hopefully it's the same as the hedge further down so eventually i can get it into a neat manageable shape!


Top level- all in one! The two massive trunks are going to be chopped down eventually, once i finish taking the last pile of tree to the tip this weekend.
This is all flat soil and was overgrown with weeds, so may be a pain in the backside to rejuvenate. Eventually we were thinking a nice shed in the corner (after removing part of the hedge) custom made to go right into the corner. with a porch and front-windows to view down the garden and valley. With astroturf covering all the soil.
Maybe with a stepping stone pathway leading to a small paved area under where the tree waste is, with a small fence and maybe a boarder with some nice flowers, no idea what i can grow!

Right on the back wall the neighbour is putting up a 5foot fence, so that will soon be private-ised


This is where we'd have the paved area, there is a nice view, just the camera is pointing too far down here.

And last of all, another pic of the disease? tree



Looks pretty poorly!

So, any ideas on what i can plant, i'm going to have many separate micro-climates, shade, under tree, near hedges, up walls, exposed full sun, etc etc etc.
The sun shines from left to right (in the last garden pic) down the hill (from behind the camera position in the photo)
So,I'll try keep this updated as-and-when, but i'd like some ideas for planting etc

 

That's why I thought it might be adventitious roots. Here is a really good website for fruit trees that I've been using. I'm planning on buying an Apple, Pear and Plum tree: http://www.keepers-nursery.co.uk/search2.aspx

 

You are a star!
After googling adventurous roots, i came across a few websites, including two that really stood out.
Crown gall, and the burr knot apple tree.

I can't post links-grr!

Crown gall, look familiar?

I can't post links-grr!

burr knot apple tree, i recognise those apples!!! See picture 6 of this thread, centre of the picture, just less than a quarter of the way up!
Also to the right hand side of the picture halfway up, just to the left of the trunk.

Both (after plenty of googling) seem to be "non life threatening to the tree"
or "no real cause for concern" so i'll keep an eye on the growths throughout next year, it looks like the plant has been living with these for a while, and the canopy was full and lush with leaves, the only problem being lack of air circulation which meant poor conditions, which it now has airflow, so i'm hoping for a good recovery from this tree!!
I hope anyway, i was genuinely gutted this morning thinking i'd have to chop this tree down prematurely.

Not this year, but next year i'll probably use that website too, i want to grow an espalier apple tree at the top of the steps on the top level (where the conifer trees will be removed)
Let us live in hope my favourite tree will flourish next year!