I am not one of life's natural gardeners. My girlfriend likes to see flowers in the garden. I can't argue with that, but my efforts don't seem to get anywhere. A couple of years ago, I planted bulbs - NONE of them came up. I need suggestions. The part of the garden I'm thinking of is an overgrown veg patch up against the fence, facing SW, lots of sun. I'm in Kent. I haven't a clue about the soil. My requirements are: - flowers - hardy perennial - the slugs ignore them I would appreciate any suggestions. My girlfriend would, too. Many thanks in advance.
You could grow a lot of things in that situation. Off the top of my head your shopping list could include: Lavenders Geraniums Shasta daisies Asters Phlox Hemerocallis Echinacea Helianthus The list is endless, really. Easy seeds could include Aquilegia Calendula Californian poppy Nasturtium
I'm in Kent Madahhlia has given some great suggestions. But, while Kent *is* the garden of England and can grow a good many plants, much will depend on which part of Kent you live! Which bulbs did you plant? When did you plant them? What preparation did you give the soil you planted in (if any?). Do you know which type of soil you have? Is it free draining, or does it tend towards water logging? How much time/energy do you have to spare for a "bit of gardening"? What type of garden would you most like? Ultra modern? Least effort? What would you like to *do* in your garden? Look out of the window at it? Have BBQ's in it? Sunbathe? Potter? Engulf yourself in it? Grow food/herbs or just flowers? (for example, chives can provide both ) SW/lots of sun immediately flags up a need for constantly watering (or, at the very least, a deep layer of mulch to reduce the amount of watering you need to do). So, do you have a compost heap (which, in time, will give you the mulch your garden may need). Do you have an outside tap so you can hook up a hose to keep your beds watered regularly (or, water butts? Large, strong watering cans?) Would you prefer flowering evergreens (hebes spring to mind - evergreen shrubs which flower and are quite resilient!). Lavender and rosemary (rosemary is great with lamb dishes! And lavender is a joy to smell - better dried and used for your linen cupboard/wardrobe too) both like a hot, dry bed - which SW facing can be, and both have mauve/blue flowers. I know that is a lot of questions to ponder on, but ... once you begin to narrow down your *wants* for a garden and then narrow down the *needs* of your garden and divide that by the time you have to *give* your garden ... well, the results can be amazing! Yes, even with only half an hour per week (or so ). Looking forward to hearing your wish list and your "this is what sort of soil/conditions I have" list
How come? I wouldn't be put off by that just yet. There are plenty of reasons why they might have failed. I think we need to establish the likely cause before offering advice on new plants to try. If there is an underlying problem with the ground, then you may get one failure after another until you address the problem. You said you have no idea what the soil type is, but it was formerly a veg patch. If it was successful as such, then most likely the soil is good, so I suspect we can rule out soil woes, unless it floods? You hint that slugs are to blame. Quite possible. You've said the area is an overgrown veg patch. Is it still overgrown? If it is, then you'll struggle anyway, as slugs love to lurk in the undergrowth where its cool and moist, and the blackbirds can't see them. How deep did you plant these bulbs? The general rule of thumb I've heard is to make the planting hole twice the depth of the bulb, so for example if the bulb is an inch tall, you make the hole two inches deep, and then cover with loose soil or compost. What time of year did you did it? Were the bulbs from a reliable source, or where they dessicated dust as sold in some supermarkets and pound shops? What type of bulbs were they? All these things will help us to work out if there is some problem waiting to repeat itself, or if it was just one off bad luck. As for limiting your options to hardy perennials, why is that? Is it because of the misconception that hardy perennial = low maintenance whereas annual = high maintenance, having to do it all again the following spring? I only ask because that's what I used to think. When in fact, some 'hardy perennials' are not hardy at all. Ok, they might take the cold of winter, but may not take the wet. Some also have a tendency to leave their dead stems around so you have to do all the work of tidying them up, otherwise you just get mostly brown plants the following year. Whereas while annuals die at the end of the year, quite often they set enough seed before they do that they're every bit as likely as many perennials are to come back next year.
Many thanks for that. I was already thinking about lavender, and that gives me more things to look at. I will print the list and go to the garden centre.
All these questions... No, the veg patch wasn't very successful. I'm not aware of any problem with the soil, as such, and it doesn't flood. I planted the bulbs in a corner of the lawn, following the instructions. What can I say ...? I don't have a lot of time, and also I'm away from time to time, for weeks at a time, so anything requiring frequent attention isn't going to work. (I live alone.) I will pick from Madahhia's list and proceed slowly. Many thanks to all who responded.
Glad you liked it! Bear in mind that I only put down what I could think of on the spur of the moment, there are many more that are potentially suitable, and all on GC could add to the list. When you've finished buying, let us know what you got and we can help you to plan how to put the big things at the back and the small things at the front etc. Before you plant it is worth spending time getting the plot clear of weeds and maybe edging it to stop grass and weeds creeping back in. It will make planting a lot easier and keep it looking good for longer if you have got perennial weed roots out. If they are really bad you can make your life easier by applying weedkiller to the whole area before you start planting as it will be too late to do it after you have got things planted in there.
So the veg patch wasn't successful, and the bulbs you planted as per instructions were not successful, but there is no problem with the soil. Hmmm. And you don't want/have time to do any work to either find out about the soil or look after anything you put in it. But you want lots of flowers. Any of these any good? http://www.floristsuppliesuk.com/Bulk-Buying/Artificial-Flowers/
Clueless I think you're being a bit unfair with your sarcasm. Everyone's lifestyle is different and the point of GC as you well know, is to help people with their gardening problems and ideas.
Sheal, it is not sarcasm, and I think you are being a bit unfair with your judgement of me. I don't entertain sarcasm. I find it too tedious and petty, plus I'm not very good at it on the rare ocassions when I try it. Exactly. Everyone's lifestyle is different. In the case of Beecee, as he has already said, he wants flowers that will not be attacked by slugs, will grow where everything else has failed, and requires no maintenance as he is away for weeks at a time. Beecee has indicated that he can not spare the time to look after a garden as it needs to be looked after. My concern is that it can cost many hundreds of pounds to stock even a fairly small area with plants, and so far we know that there might be a problem with the soil, as other plants have failed for reasons as yet not established, and that Beecee can't spare the time to look after the plants once they're in. Beecee now has ideas from several different people about what may or may not work for him, and only he knows his requirements, preferences, budget (both time and money) etc, so he can take or leave any advice offered in the spirit intended, which is to try to find a solution to a very difficult set of circumstances. He may choose to take the gamble and stock it with live plants, and it may well work. He may not. That is not for us to decide.
I think your reply was meant to be a light hearted "josh " Clue and it made I larf. The older I get, the more I rate a larf as a very precious thing indeed, Jenny
Clueless.....Okay I accept you say it wasn't sarcasm, so perhaps I've read what you said the wrong way, this is where the Smilies come into their own as they shed a whole different light on the way things are meant. The link you placed in the post didn't help!
With respect, smilies would not be appropriate in my post, as I was 100% serious. Maybe you don't find the link helpful, because you have the time and interest to look after live plants. I'm not going to argue about it. If you think I'm out of line, feel free to hit the report button.
Surely live plants are what GC is about? I've no intention of hitting the report button Clueless, I respect your reply.
