How can I transform this into a beautiful space?

Total newbie here, never planted anything in my life. I've got no idea what type of soil I have, basically I'm clueless.

I've attached a series of images which show my garden in its current state. All plant pots etc were inherited from the previous owner.

Based upon what you see here can anyone make suggestions in terms of where to start and what to do?

Do the plants I currently have on those pots look as if they're worth keeping? As for the border areas should I dig up the soil a bit and perhaps plant something new to add a bit of colour? Apologies in advance for the basic questions.

 

My immediate comment would be to wait, have patience, do nothing. Let the plants grow, see which you like, and which you dont.

If you do feel compelled to do something, limit it to tidying up. Get rid of the weeds between the paving, edge the lawn. Things like that. Get the "feel" of the place before changes are made.

 

yes i agree with the above comments and to the forum Sandhun
It looks like you have inherited some nice pots/planters some with some strawberry plants in... some with daffodils and primroses all which will transplant to the areas suitable for them when you discover which areas are shady, semi shady and full sun spots. You do have a great opportunity to do your basics such as ie; weeding, painting walls,staining fences, fixing trellises to said walls /fences, laying paths and or stepping stones now as you have in effective your blank sheet to design what garden you like be it formal with shrubs and trees or wildlife garden with a cottage feel or a modern architectural style so once you decide enjoy the journey and get lots of piccy's of your progress and don't forget there's lots of friendly folk on GC here to ask advice and lots of photos and links to get ideas from
also in my garden i did look around when out walking to see what was thriving in the area My very basic advice that has helped me along my gardening journey is if i see something i like ...before purchasing it i google to find out where its best suited and if i have the right area for it it has saved me a lot of money as it is so easy to buy on a whim then find that the plant has expired or is not thriving due to my impulse i want want must have purchase For a much cheaper option I now have a wall with a Pinboard of Picture cuttings of lovely plants that i know won't cope with my garden i also put those lovelies on my screen saver to enjoy.
You could also attend Open gardens with lots of plants to enjoy and gain ideas from and purchase great priced home grown plants that are acclimatized to your own area and the best news is they are usually sold for a charitable concern with plenty of homemade goodies and a nice cuppa its a lovely way to gain gardening experience

 

I agree with the above two comments. The usual advice when taking over a new garden is to wait a year before doing anything major to see what you have first. As things begin to grow you can take stock of what you have, similarly with the pots. Maybe as things start to grow you could post pictures to get some IDs from people on here. If things in the pots do not grow over the next few months, you can assume they are dead and get rid of them. It looks as though there is some structure to the garden, for example the steps leading up and the paths to the BBQ area as well as some medium size trees on the left. You could plant some climbers against the end wall.....so it's really a case of wait and see.

 

I'd agree with the other posts above, don't go charging in but wait it out for this season to actually see what you have in the beds. I had to do this in my current house - moved in in December, it was very frustrating I agree because I just wanted to get stuck in. But waiting was worth it. There were areas that were very neglected that I tidied etc. Everything will be a surprise this year and some good ones.

What I would recommend if you do leave it for a season to see what you have, is to take lots of photos throughout the coming season, some close-ups of each bed so that you can map out what you have where to make it easier when it comes to planning and moving and changing come the autumn. Mapping out the beds on large sheets of paper and noting what is where as they emerge and grow through the season will be really useful when you start re-planning.

You have some lovely things in the garden already, the red brick low walls, the terracing part, the pathway and some of the plantings (the bamboo at the back looks handsome and you have a few small trees in good spots). The lawn areas are manageable too. For the moment these can all be tidied, brought back to life with a bit of weeding, feeding and generally a bit of maintenance. It is surprising what tidying, getting your grass in decent shape, doing some edging as others have suggested will make. It will look 10 times better with a bit of graft.

The 'barbeque' area looks a bit of an eyesore. If you intend to get rid of that, that can be done now, or you could decorate it with pots of plants until you decide what to do.

One thing which might be good to do soon is the fencing should be checked to make sure it is sound, if you want to keep it (and why not, the costs will creep up I assure you!) you could think of getting it in good shape and re-staining it.

The pots- yes, tidy them up but some judicious pruning and generally getting rid of dead leaves/stems and see what happens.

One thing I have found in the past is the most important bit is doing some research about what you might want and plan any developments carefully (you can always go off plan if you fancy).

Looks very exciting to me. And the garden looks a nice size and I can imagine it being very handsome when you have it the way you want. A few weeks graft of cleaning, tidying and maintenance will make a big difference and I'm sure it will be more than nice enough to enjoy for this spring-summer.

Best of luck, there are lots of more experienced people on here who are very helpful and there is an Identification section to put photos up to ask for help. Oh and always label everything once identified (I only wish I did! LOL). Do keep us posted with progress.

GG

 

So much potential.
If it were mine I would get a power washer,the white wall would come up beautifully assuming they are sound.
It would take all the Algi off the fence.
The brick walls the patio and paths would come up like new.
That should put a smile on your face.
Then garden.
Good luck.

 

As above but I would also get a watering can full of water if you have not had a lot of rain and water the pots which would help any bulbs and plants you have in those pots to grow,then you can post some more photos of the pots for identification.

It would also help if you give us a rough idea of where you live in the country because if you live say down in the West Country your plants will grow more quickly than say if you were living way up North.

Getting rid of the Algae as Roders suggested is a good idea but I personally would repaint it in a cream colour because if it is stark white it can get a bit glaring in strong sunlight unless of course you are going to grow some climbing plants up the wall.A good rose for that wall would be Gertrude Jeykll which will grow quiet fast or you could try either Clematis Montana Rubra which has nice pink flowers or the same plant in the Alba(White) variety.A nice honeysuckle would be nice as well as you would get the scented flowers and then red berries which the birds will enjoy on the Autumn/Winter months.

 

Wow, thanks to everyone for the great advice, really appreciate it.

Confession - actually been here 15 months, so this will be our second year in the property but in year one the garden was neglected as there was so much to do in the house itself. In summer it looked a little greener but was otherwise fairly unremarkable. I didn't really pay much attention to what was growing and where.

I don't own a jet wash so may have to paint over that ugly white wall. Anyway, I took your advice on board and today was a day of hard graft, i.e. weeding the patio/paving. I used a mini spade to dig out the moss/weeds growing between the gaps and it's already made a difference (see attached). Next I'll see if I can edge the lawn and do some general tidying up.

Question: Now that I've done that weeding and dug out some mud/moss from the cracks do I need to do anything else to stop the weeds from growing back? Am I supposed to sprinkle some sand in the gaps?

I also have a few unsightly patches of mud in the grass which I'll need to 'fix' at some point.

 

@sandhun whata difference already bet your really pleased well you should be ...the garden is now beginning to look loved...i can see that your garden is going to be a gorgeous tranquil place ...it already has a lovely look about it with the different levels always nicer to see and appreciate your plants at ...roll on the summer sat there with a well earned tipple enjoying the fruits of your labour

 

Already an improvement!

 

What a great job. Such a difference. It will now allow you that vision and inspiration to progress throughout the year. I look forward to seeing how this lovely space develops. All the best.

 

UPDATE: 8th May 2016

Things are slowly starting to happen.

Plants and flowers are now sprouting in some of the border areas and in the pots themselves. I'm not sure what most of the flowers are or plants are. Image 2880 has some heather in the top right but I've no idea what the other green leaves are in this frame.

In general terms is it best to keep plant pots be kept in the sun or in the shade? Quite a few of mine are herbs e.g Oregano, Rosemary, Chives etc.

I have some climbing plants growing from the troughs on my decking which I'm quite happy with but the trough itself looks rather unsightly in my opinion (see attached images 2873 + 2874). Instead of fertile soil and nice flowers it just looks like an untidy bed of moss, shells, stones, plants and possibly weeds. If this was yours, what would you do?

I used a jet wash to blast the algae off the fence. However, it proved trickier to remove the algae from the white walls, so I think my only option here is to paint them.

Anyway, it's work in progress, watch this space

 

Hi sandhun, You've got some terrific hard landscaping there to work with!
For your climber troughs, I'd suggest one of three options.
1) Detach the climbers and give the troughs and trellis a coat of woodstain.
2) Ditto above but give them a coat of a bluey/greeney/grey garden paint. It's a lovely colour that sets off plants really well.https://www.cuprinol.co.uk/products/garden_shades.jsp Seagrass and Willow are the ones.
3) If you prefer the weathered look, leave the wood au natural and plant up with dwarf evergreens like Hebes, Lavenders, Cistus and Thyme if they'll get sun, or Box, Sarcoccoca, small-leaved Ivy if it's very shady.

 

Before everything starts growing I would cut in lawn borders clean decking and patio paint fence and white wash certain walls, all the hard work landscaping is already done it just needs a little TLC and a few plants and you have a lovely garden