Small Garden Project

That's what's confusing me - it's a very fast leak, the water recedes within minutes, so I had assumed it would be pretty much pouring through somewhere. But I can't find anything obvious around the level the water settles too. I hadn't thought of removing the liner to look for gaps though, that's a good shout, thanks @Sheal.

 

Another thought @2nd_bassoon. If it's a fast leak and is at the base of the liner there's a possibility that the water that has gone through the hole is saturating the soil underneath, creating back up and stopping the rest from draining away.

 

Starting to look more and more like a garden! Another B&Q trip has resulted in a few more additions:



I'm starting to think properly about what is going where. I've got a fair few seedlings on the go now, plus a few plugs settling in, and the dahlias quietly cooking in their pots:



Cosmos, lavender, zinnia, rudbeckia, sunflowers, lupins, to name but a few. Basically I got a little carried away at the thought of actual garden space and bought any seeds I liked. Made the rookie error of buying more sunlovers than shady options given the garden is pretty much half and half so space will be interesting but I'm sure it'll work out!

The chicken bed is the easiest, it gets full sun for most of the day, and anything in it has to be quite low lying. I've scattered poached egg seeds along it and may transder a few alipines if they recuperate sufficently from the Devon-Bristol relocation trauma.



Top corner also gets good sun for most of the day. My 50p bargain primroses are at the front and there're the stumps of two Mystery Roses, one against the red wall and one against the grey - time will tell with those. Dahlias will go in here, and probably cosmos? Not sure how they'll look together but I want both to get full sun advantage.



Back stretch is a mix, the more left side gets some sun but it gets progressively shadier towards the right. There's another rose here and I've added some snowdrops for next spring but otherwise it's empty thus far.


Back right corner is pretty much full shade, other than the very front edge where the daisy-like plant is (purchased today and already forgotten the name ). Suggestions on shade-loving medium to tall plants welcome!



This bed, the other side of the concrete slab, is another mix - bits of it are full sun, bits are dappled shade due to the tree to the right, and the back against the wall is full shade. I *think* it's a crocosmia at the back right, and I've put a diosma just infront of that (may have to relocate that at some point but I just wanted to get something evergreen in). I've got freesia bulbs in the sunniest parts and nemophila and linum seeds scattered in the dappled bit but again would like something taller for the back.


The front bed gets good sun, though for not quite as long as the area around the hens. There are anemones around the rose to the left and a scattering of poppy and cornflower seeds in the main bed. The stump behind the large daisy (names are really not my strong point) is the giant buddleia I cut back a couple of months ago; I'm a bit nervous I was too harsh to it, but we'll see. Zinnias and rubbeckias will probably slot in here too.



Made two new friends today as well. Other half decided to tackle the lean-to/shed (you can just see the door to the right of the above picture). I won't go in there due to the enormous, albeit deserted and collapsed, wasp nest. He found some useful bits and pieces in there from tenants gone by - nice pair of secateurs, plant supports and ties, etc. And a newt who appeared to be living in the drain pipe, now relocated to pond edge. And this fellow:



Home as yet undecided!

 

You've certainly been busy! I'd risk a couple of Lupins in shade, they can always be moved at the end of the season if they don't thrive. I had some in a bed that only had an hour of sun in the morning and they were okay. Heathers (Erica) will be happy in shade and if you pick a couple of winter ones they will brighten the area later in the year. White will stand out better than the pinks and purples. An Azalea also flowered well in the same bed.

 

Day off today was unexpectedly active. Browing facebook over lunch yesterday when an ad popped up from a guy selling 15m2 turf for £5, dug up on Sunday to makeway for his own project. So today was spent digging up...



...turning/tillering...



...levelling...




...and finally laying.


It's not perfect, the downside to buying someone else's turf rather than retail is that it's a bit longer than it probably should be. But for £5 I'm more than willing to give it a shot. Not sure my back will ever forgive me - initial plan was to spend Easter weekend leisurely prepping/laying, with other half to help. Doing the whole thing on my own in a day was unintentional. And turf is heavy; for some reason that hadn't occured to me.

Worth it for the end result though - morning:




Evening:



I'm off to Birmingham tomorrow for a 4 day conference with work. Other half has been left with Very Strict watering/feeding instructions for all fauna and flora. We'll see how that goes!

 

You have worked so hard and what amazing results. You must be feeling very proud of what you've achieved. Your garden is going to be so pretty

If you do decide to replace the pond liner it might be worth asking on Freecycle as sometimes people have left overs from a larger project. Or maybe Ebay.

 

Well the turf seems to have taken No yellow patches and it's already growing well, will need to invest in a mower soon.

Starting to plant up the borders again - there are a few roses/small shrubs pre-existing, and some bulbs are finally beginning to work their way up, but on the whole the beds are all still quite empty. I've got a a fair few annuals and perennials waiting to go out but what I'd really like to add are some evergreens/more permenant residents. I've got dahlias for the sunny side and hostas for the shade but there won't be much evidence of either of those come winter, and I don't want to strip back to completely bare soil all round again.

Can anyone suggest any moderately sized shrubs/evergreens? Nothing that will get too overwhelming in a small space, and ideally ones that do ok in shade. I have an unfounded dislike of hydragas unfortunately - they make me think off old people's homes for some reason. I love ribes and ceanothus but suspect size and sun will be an issue

 

And the pond saga continues...followed @Sheal's excellent idea and lifted the whole liner out today. Discovered three slow worms and a newt living underneath it - thankfully the chickens are still in confinement while the turf settles in (I'm hoping they don't hear that AI restrictions were completely lifted last Thursday )

Laid the liner flat and cleaned the whole thing off with a hose, to find...absoloutly nothing Not a hole, not a crack, not a split. I cannot for the life of me figure it out. Assume it must be a tiny weakness/deficit somewhere, but it drains so quickly I was sure it was going to be something obvious.

Throwing in the towel at this point and sourcing a new liner. Only need about 9ftX6ft which goes for <£20 online, so not the end of the world by any means. Other half is keen to widen the narrow channel in the midde too, and create another shelf for planting. I want to put a spitter on the edge to give it a bit of motion/noise, so might be a compromise on that one.

Hole spotting:


Water lily in temporary accomodation:


It's a big pit.


About 4ft at the deepest part where the lily was sat - slow worms congregated down there. Snake pit as an alternative to the pond was considered but ultimately discarded.

 

Well that's really strange, there's got to be a hole in it somewhere. Anyway, you've cut your losses and decided to go for a new liner, probably a good idea in the long run.

Another good idea, plants will soon grow and spread taking up the water quickly particularly in the summer months.

 

I'm assuming at this point it's a tiny split or weakness that I'm just not seeing. It's currently laid out to dry overnight for one last hunt tomorrow; if not then I'll repurpose it to cover the beds until plants are ready. There's already a part of me that can't face the idea of watching it fill and then empty yet again....

 

It could be it's just become porous with age so a good idea to make use of it elsewhere.

I agree, there's no point in fighting against a lost cause.

 

Guys. Guys!



It looks huge now it actually fills fully. We ended up laying a new liner, and took advantage of that to widen the narrow middle channel a bit. Need to figure out the solar panal for the duck spitter, it's a bit tempremental with positioning, but otherwise now just a matter of waiting for the plants to grow in

 

(Please ignore the empty can of Tesco own brand lager in the background. I was topping up the slug traps I swear...)

 

Looks great, we'll done!

 

You've been working hard and what a difference, great job 2nd_bassoon! I bet you're checking the water level every day. I like the ducks too.

Are you sure you didn't test the lager before using it?