No Idea Where To Start

Hi There

I have done a little gardening in the past but not loads but I am very keen to learn. My current garden is a bit of a an overgrown nightmare and I do not know where to start. How do you know which plants to keep and which ones to dig up. Any pointers or links to resources would be really really helpful.

Thanks

G

 

Hi Graham welcome to G.C. we need a little more info to be able to make constructive comments, size, sun aspect and best of all pictures. We can then identify plants , tell you if it`s worth keeping or past its best.

 

Welcome to Gardener's Corner, GrahamD1.

You have come to just the right place, people on here will be delighted to help out. Why not take a few photos of the overall garden, plus any specific plants you want to know about and upload them to the forum? You will get lots of replies!

 

Hello and welcome Graham

 

Welcome Graham, could you post a few pictures, and any ideas you have, advice is happly given on here.

 

Welcome to Gardeners Corner

 

Welcome Graham,
I would say just get started .. if you know which plants are there in the garden, then put a list here and I am sure someone will come along and give you all sorts of ideas ...
One of the things which you can do is giving a basic shape/structure to the garden, draw some designs on paper, etc. catalogue plants you have and then look for complimentary plants online...
More info about what you would like to do with your garden will be useful...

 

Welcome to GC, GrahamD1
(pity you didn't opt for D1Graham ... we could have shortened it to D1G )
Re: #1
When I moved into my current home (3 1/2yrs ago), one area (which I lovingly referred to as the copse end) was literally that: "an overgrown nightmare"

June 2010


First thing to do was to totally clear it:



And the following year, clear it some more:

June 2011


Then I could begin "playing" until 2012 rewarded me thus :


Unfortunately, much of the area was flooded out last Autumn (I posted those pix somewhere, can't remember where)
Plus, the willow tree had to be removed due to honey fungus (but, I'm learning which trees/shrub/plants are more resistant to honey fungus and will be planning the area around those for the future)

But, come June 2013, I was rewarded once again


Unfortunately, it is yet again flooded, but I'm not quite so despondent about it! And the ducks are loving it.

Re: #2
For me, it was a combination of:

• trial and error
• buying reduced plants
• garnering as much advice from older posts that I could (the search engine on here was my best friend for months!)
• asking questions (no matter how 'dumb' I thought they sounded)
• providing pictures as often as was required
• using the Identification forum for things I was stuck on (e.g. hadn't bought/planted but was growing anyway)
• visiting public gardens for inspiration
• nebby nosing neighbours gardens
• attending garden open days
• generally taking time
• oh, and advice (freely given) by people on here

All those combined have given me the confidence to develop other areas in the main and front garden

Looking forward to reading your posts and getting to know you around GC.

Good luck with *your* jungle

 

Good afternoon Graham, I started to reply but got called away and forgot ...
A lot of what I had typed has now been covered very well by others so,
I'll just wish you happy browsing for the time being - too mucky out there at the moment to do much,
to Gardeners Corner,
Jenny namaste

 

Hello Graham and . First thing I'd do is identify your favourite colours and your priorities in a garden. Do you want fruit and veg? Prefer an ornamental garden? Want a space to chill out? Need to create privacy? Once you know what you want, do a rough plan and with the ID help on here establish which existing plants fit the bill and / or need moving. That'll keep you busy while the weather's lousy Once you know what you want, you're halfway to achieving it!

 

Ah, an easy question for starters! "A weed is a plant in the wrong place"

 

Wow lots of great advice on here - and typical British weather it is throwing it down with rain already. I think it is like anything I just need to start doing something rather than seeing it as an overwhelming task. I have put some pics up of what I am facing at the moment - sorry they are not great pics.

 

What sort of things do you like? need?

Cottage garden style?
Roses?
Bedding plants (like parks & gardens)?
Exotic / Tropical?
Vegetables?
Do you need lawn? - e.g. for kids to play football / have climbing frame
Area for party? BBQ, terrace / decking

How much time do you want to spend (probably "as little as possible ) but realistically how much time have you got?

Budget? Have you got "Some money" to put towards it, or "not much at all"?