My little haven

Thought I would post some pictures of my basic garden and tell you a little about it and what I would like to achieve.

We moved here two years ago and this is my first real garden, I have no knowledge and very little green finger experience. I would like loads of tips and advice along the way to help me have a garden I can be proud off.

The main things I would like to do with the planning in mind is
1, have a Japanese theme
2, Attract Birds
3, Have a pond
4, Plants for all year round
5, acer trees and lemon trees in pots

This year I,m working on a budget as I get married in November so this is a four year plan. Any spare cash will be going to the garden .

This is how it looked when we first moved in, Not sure the pictures show but it slopes to the house quite a bit , and its a west facing garden





First job I did was create an area where we could sit and enjoy the summer during the warmer months







Once most of the slabs were down it was time to start the mini wall





Once done it was time to relax and enjoy, not letting the rain ruin it either




That was the summer, now winter is here this is the sorry state of the place



So that was phase one. Now for phase two

I would like to put in a pond on the right hand side of the garden why the trampoline sits ( that's going tip thank god) This is the kind of pond I would like to try and build, also love all of the ferns and the palm tree I think it is in the picture





Thanks for reading, hope I didn't bore you and if you have any tips or advice I would love to hear from you

All the best for now Jamie

 

It's never boring planning someone else's garden for them First thing to splash out on would be some sort of bamboo 'screen-on-a-roll' or trellis to attach to the fence and to cover the visible sides of the shed, too. Or...more economically, paint them black. Are you planning on Koi carp in the pond? Make it as big and deep as possible if so..they get huge! If you don't have pure clay or limey soil, with a bit of preparation you could grow an Acer in the ground. They're not that fussy about soil, just need shade and shelter from cold winds.
I'd avoid a flowering cherry in a smallish garden...they have horrendous roots and a pretty short season of interest. Perhaps a Chaenomeles (Japanese quince) would be a good substitute?
I'm not very well up on Japanese plants but would suggest Anemone japonica, perennial with pink or white flowers. Another very good plant is Ophiopogon planiscapus nigrescens (sorry about that!) the 'black grass'.
The main thing with any garden design is to get the proportion of evergreens right so the garden looks good all year. Try to avoid too many deciduous flowering shrubs which look deadly when they're not in flower.

 

thanks again for your help, so should I trellis both side fences from top to bottom? Also with the shed could I sink bamboo in pots around it as I hear they spread and wouldn't want that.
I would like a couple of carp in the pond not to many though just want it for the look and sound of trickling water.
As for the Japanese theme I could get that from the pond and some statues placed around the garden , plants don't have to be Japanese just anything that looks nice.

Jamie

 

Perhaps just trellis the fence with the posts etc showing? Good idea about growing bamboo in containers! Some varieties are less invasive than others but they're devils to control once they start. Long-term, it might be a good idea to dig a big trench and line the sides with some very strong material, then re-fill with soil?

 

Done well there Jamie

I'd be thinking about blagging a few mirrors to put on the fences, maybe with arches over them to create the illusion of space. They don't half pack em in with new build these days

 

Been given some more plants to think about, not sure if these are suitable for my garden but i'm sure you will let me know.

roses, olive, lemon, orange, zambucca and a mimosa.( in pots ) wisterias. a euonymus , quince , azaleas, rhododendrons, camellias, bamboo.

Victoria plum, conference pear, stella and morello cherry trees in tubs. almond tree hebes, dahlias a sorbus tree and lilies

 

Right any tips on anything i should change then please feel free to post, as i'm very new to this and trying to plan and imagine a nice garden is very hard to do for me. So far i think ive gone a little bulb crazy and started to dot them round the place also quite like bits of rock but may have also gone a little over the top.

Starting at the far corner near the shed i have two silver plants ( not sure i like these ) and some tulip bulbs



again at the far back running along the garage wall some more tulips



and to the far right of the garden i have planted a bunch of daffs three fern plants behind the water bath and a pyracantha.



Three different ferns planted around the rocks , which is mainly a shaded area of the garden



Next to my patio i have planted the dwarf acer tree and built a little slate circle around it and added a bunch of daffs



Along the patio wall i have added many different bulbs



more bulbs and a clematis to climb up the fence



And today i have added some more rocks with a couple of cool plants, not sure if this will take off but i do quite like the look so far




Hope you like but would like guidance either way pros or negs

Thanks for looking Jamie

 

Might I suggest shubunkin instead of Koi for your pond? They are much hardier and less fussy about water quality/space etc. they come in many colours and markings and are also different from ordinary goldfish in that they don't have scales, the colouring is on their skin. I find them easy, attractive and soon come to be fed at regular times if you would like to do that (not when temperatures are cold though as they won't digest it).

 

What clematis have you planted? If you want one to spread nicely and cover the fence on a trellis, try tangutica. I think it has a japanese look to it. This is ours which grows on an arch with a rose. The fluffy bits are seed heads.

 

P.s. I think it looks great so far!