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New Home -Blank plot

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George F wrote (see)
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New Plot, where do we start?
 

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  • Sorry, very new to all of this. 

    Hopefully will get the hang of it shortly!

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  • Zoomer44Zoomer44 Posts: 3,267

    Hi, George,

    Now that is my sort of garden, how nice to start off with a perfect blank canvas. Presumably that is your home in the distance with a summer house at the top of the garden.

    Without imposing what I'd do, what do you want - high/low maintenance garden. Do you like gardening, would you like a pond, lawn, flower beds, wild life area,tree's, grow your own veg, a play area for children, an orchard.. there are lots of different designs, reading books on design would give you idea's.

    A little more information would be helpful as to what you want and where you want to start?. Doesn't need to be long windedimage

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  • Start by looking at lots of pictures, and think about what floats your boat as a gardener/householder.  Collect lots of ideas and then start making lots of lists.  Be realistic about how much time you want to spend working in the garden - high maintenance is my idea of heaven, but I realise that is not shared by everyone.

    Very envious of such a pristine dreaming space to work on!!

    Also, look at other gardens around yours - what kind of plants seem to be growing well?  That will give you an inkling of soil type, as will doing some soil tests, and this will help you consider what plants to include/discount from your daydreams.

  • Thank you all for your ideas, a great help.

    My husband and I love to garden, we are on our own but have a few years before retirement so it will be a slow process.

    We dont mind high maintenance, deep flower beds, greenhouse, wildlife.

    I think the general consensus is to leave it now until the spring and spend winter thinking of what we can do.

  • catnipcatnip Posts: 73

    I'd wait longer- get used to your garden- where the light falls in each season- if there are places that get particularly damp or stay dry - what type of acidity do you have- soil? That looks like a big playground- many happy years of gardening to you both!

  • steephillsteephill Posts: 2,841

    You could get a decent vinyard in there - Bacchus, Siegerebbe, Seyval Blanc. Start now!

    Or you could be sensible and wait at least for Spring to see what bulbs etc. might be there.

  • PetaPeta Posts: 13

    How exciting - a blank canvas!  Mine had to be cleared of leylandii, elderly shrubs, and undergrowth first before I could assess the space.  Then I used a large notebook/ringbinder to record thoughts, ideas, and photos. 

    First, I discussed with my husband what we wanted the garden for.  He said he wanted somewhere nice to sit and vistas to view (! our garden is very small!).  I wanted to be able to pick my own fruit and vegetables, and have colourful climbers on the walls and fences, amongst lots of other things.  What do you want to DO in the garden when you're not actually gardening?

    I think that Autumns and Winters are actually the best time to prepare the 'bones' of the garden, with shrubs and trees and any hard landscaping.  And besides the bulbs for Springtime, perhaps you could put in some instant colour with pansies and primulas, for example.  Find ways of stocking the garden without spending a fortune.  Don't forget to keep a record with regular photos.  I agree with Hollie-Hock; It's a long-term project, can't realistically be done in one year, if ever, and I have learnt to be much more patient!  Just enjoy all the processes, including just looking at it.

    A book I found very helpful was 'Creating Your First Garden' by Paul Thompson.  He also calls it 'Virgin Gardener'.

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,139

    When we were moving to our new garden (not as big as yours - you are lucky image) I picked up Alan Titchmarsh's little Garden Design paperback - he's not my favourite gardener by a long chalk, but I did find this inexpensive little book very useful for focusing my mind on some basic design principles. image


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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