Advice on Garden design

I recently put down a patio with reclaimed slabs ... making use of an old dead zone behind the garage, it is an awesome sun trap... I am aiming to make the most of that space in the garden now.



^ How it started



^ The day it was finished



^ Now

You can see to the right, where the spare slabs and wood etc is.... its a dead zone that I want to make use of... I was thinking of a raised bed(s) and growing some veg or something fun for my young son to have a part in. Do you have any suggestions on a raised bed design to build, and also what we can easily grow?

That corner will get sun from midday to early evening.

I also want to make the overall general patio as welcoming as possible, I will save some money for garden furniture, probably for early next year.... I appreciate any advice or thoughts on garden design, things I could consider to make this space look as good as possible.

Cheers

 

The patio looks awesome.

I can't say much about garden design. I only have one design style, which is sort of deliberately semi wild looking (yeah I know, sounds like I'm saying I don't do anything, but my back garden has been carefully crafted over the last 12 years to look natural while actually being very functional).

With regards to growing things that will engage young kids, I think there are 3 basic rules for success. The seeds have to be big. They have to be easy and reliable, and they have to grow fast with minimal intervention.

Obvious examples include peas and sunflowers. But when my kids were tiny, nothing impressed them more than runner beans. I think it's the fact that in no time at all they can climb to ridiculous heights.

 

That looks really, really good, @Zola , well done!

Raised bed in the "dead" area is a good idea, an ideal spot for growing something edible with the kids with the added advantage of having fresh things in your BBQ or cocktail garnish.

I'd consider year round interest with some useful, evergreen perennials such as Rosemary and thyme. Bothe flower nicely and are tough as boots. Between and around them, annual veg of any type you like would go in well, including beans, tomatoes and chillies depending on what you like to eat. @Clueless 1 v2 is very right in saying that kids want to see the results quickly, so main harvest potatoes are probably not the thing there...

Chiltern Seeds have a great catalogue of edibles that also lists the ornamental and fun factor values, google them and subscribe to their catalogue. It's well written and fun to browse.

Strawberries are easy plants and planting several types will guarantee pickings for all summer and that's the best a fruit can do- straight from the plant into the young mouth. Do not overlook wild or "alpine" strawberries, they are very hardy and give one or two tiny but tasty fruits nearly all year round. They are easy from seeds too.

Looking forward to see what you decide to do, please keep us posted.