Help with gravel and mesh

Hi everyone,

This is my first post here and I am desperate for some help.

My garden is half patio slabs, half largish gravel areas. I don't like the gravel areas and want to do something with them, but (a) I am poor, and (b) there is mesh under the gravel, then mainly hardcore from when the house was built.

I would love some creative cheap ideas, cos I am stumped!

Many thanks in advance

Salisbury sleeper

 

Welcome to Gardeners Corner

 

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Hi!

Thanks for replying.

Its not mesh, sorry its black plastic membrane.

It south/south east facing.
Its about 5m wide in a triangular shape.

The left side has a sumac and small eucalyptus tree and I am happy to leave that section.

Along the border I would like some screening, in the middle I would be happy with either herbaceous plants, interesting colours and leaves or edibles.

 

Hi Salisbury S, and a very warm welcome to the forum.

I started gardening about 12 years ago. I had no idea what I wanted. So I looked through a lot of pictures of gardens in books (in a bookshop). I noted whether I liked the pictures or not, and then tried to work out why.

This way, I got an idea of roughly what sort of style of garden I wanted. There is nothing stopping you from seeing a corner of a garden in a book and then trying to copy it.

As far as cost is concerned, gardening doesn't have to be an expensive hobby. Many people go to a garden center and buy a single plant for £8. But for that sum you can get several packets of seed and raise 100 plants or more. Growing from seed can be a marvellous way of getting cheap plants.

As far as the plastic and hardcore are concerned - its worth trying to remove as much as you can in the area where you want to put plants. Again that doesn't cost money - but it does take time and effort.

 

Thanks PeterS, I di have a bad back, but I've decided if I just do a very little at a time, I can probably clear the gravel and plastic. Hopefully will post some pics when it all comes together ☺

 

Welcome to the forum!

Gosh, there is a lot of gravel, isn't there? However, the slabs and gravel look as though they had been laid very carefully, so I think they look quite good as they are - if a little barren. I like the neat, simple path taking you all the way round.

It will be hard and back-breaking work to get all the gravel up, so I'd be inclined to keep most if not all of it in the short-term and think of ways of getting your garden to look more like your personal vision.

For example, you could put out pots of bedding plants to provide instant colour for the rest of this season - but bear in mind the watering requirements. That might cost about £30 to get a reasonable show if you buy in cheap places, car boot sales etc, not the big garden centres.

Thinking laterally, why not google gravel gardens and see if it changes your perspective on it at all. Years ago they had a lovely gravel garden at Ryton in Coventry with big masses of echinaceas that you could walk all round and were set of well by the gravel. Also alpines can look fantastic against gravel.

If you planted into it, you would brush aside some gravel, cut a cross shaped aperture in the membrane, then plant into the earth below. The membrane would help to make it a low-weed garden, although it would still require some weeding. If there was too much hardcore below you could add compost to the spot before planting. It's good to have a planting plan which you stick to so you don't end up with unnecessary holes in the membrane.

You could lay out about £20 on carefully chosen seeds for sowing now or next spring and take Peter S's advice - you can get a lot of plants that way for very little outlay.

Have you just moved in? How long are you likely to stay there?

 

Hi Maddahlia! Thanks for your thoughts too - I literally started getting some of the gravel up and my neighbour said she's worried about the roots she knows are under the membrane from before it was gravelled, before I got here.
I am planning on being here for some years. My neighbour has suggested instead that I can plant some climbers on her side and train them round to my side, put up some trellis and voilà a perfect screen.
That just leaves the triangle - I do like the shapes, I thought maybe I could try to get some reclaimed wood, and build 3 raised beds, one square 2 triangles, but I'm not sure how to deal with the membrane and gravel. Can I just fill in on top with topsoil?
The other side of the house is all patio, and full of pots, I do like them, but they are expensive, and I never feel that the plants look there best, maybe I need to repot or add some better ingredients when I do repot, see I'm rubbish!
But I really want to learn, and am very happy for all ideas ☺
I will check out the echinacea and gravel gardens for ideas thank you.