I have recently moved inti a house with a garden of a hundred problems. I have 2 strands of grass for every 2 weeds, nettles, something that grows along sidewards so fast it seems to be indestrucatble. The ground is not level and is seems impossible to turn over. Oh and did I mention I have no money left after doing the inside of the house. Any ideas????

Weeds are a nightmare! But, do you go to the gym or work out? If you do, ditch your membership and get working over that garden - it's the best exercise going. Dig out all the weeds or use a weedkiller before you start and then start digging. If you don't like weedkiller, pick up some old carpet and lay it over the weeds. After a few weeks, with no day light, they'll soon die back. Think of the toned body you'll have after all that digging! You'll be the envy of all your friends and save money into the bargain.

We have nearly an acre of land around our house and when we moved in it was shoulder high in weeds - mostly docks & nettles. We found that the only way to clear it was by hard work. SORRY! We started by chopping the largest weeds down with a sickle followed by a strimmer then the lawnmower. It took us about four months but was worth it. We then dug out various different beds for roses, shrubs etc as and when we needed them. We've got a veg patch as well. What with weeding and grass-cutting, I don't know how we used to have time to go to work as well!

our garden is very square. no imagination. dog and children square pond, no curves, two square patios and a square piece of grass, with a monstrosity of a garden swimming pool stuck right in the middle. haven't got a clue about plants really, so just plant and hope for the best. it is about 76ft long and 18ft wide, so lots of potential. Would love some advice. Low maintainance and cost effective. THANKS. Ann and Bill

Ann and Bill firstly you have to decide what you want from your garden. If your children are young are they going to want a climbing frame, swing or slide these take up lots of room (I know from experience ). Do the children need space for football - if they do you need grass but not a manicured lawn your rough grass would be perfect with some of the weeds removed. Do you want a patio/barbeque area. Do you LIKE gardening or do you just want somewhere to hang the washing :D and have a wander round. When I moved in here I drew my thoughts onto a piece of paper and just worked on one bit at a time. It is still evolving - last year we added my son's climbing frame. Our garden is only 40ft long by 15ft wide :D It all seems to fit. Tracey

Hi Ann and Bill
If you hate gardening you could buy a few interesting containers and tubs and fill those with seasonal plants and flowers and change them from time to time. That would also soften the corners of your square areas. Also you could sink a few circular paving stones near to the corners of your lawn and stand containers on those.
Jacqui (D)

Hi Ann and Bill,

I have to say there really isn't a low maintenance garden - but there are methods you can employ to make some types of gardening less work than others...

I agree with what has been said about really thinking about what you want from the garden, and then think of where these uses are going to go and ways of introducing boundaries into the garden so you do not see it all at once.

I have split the bottom third of the garden off from the top two thirds by a width wide trellis and rose arch... now once it is smothered by climbing roses and different types of flowering clemetis it will hide the working part of the garden with the grow house, the compost bin and the shed etc from view... the very bottom of the garden I have let go a bit wilder and turned over to wildlife and storage etc...

The top third of the garden is terraced, with one half being paved and the other half being slate... the two contrast very well and I have lots (and I mean lots) of pots, planters and containers in these areas which I can change around as each come into season.

The middle third of the garden is the herbatious beds - filled with little treasures which come up year after year with no trouble - such as Verbena, Verbascum, Veronica's, Iris's and lots of different types of hardy geraniums and heuchra's - these give added interest in the winter as most retain their leaves - there are also hardy fushia's and holding it all together are the evergreen shrubs...

So you are talking of layers... the shrubs are the backbone of the garden giving it shape, texture and form through the year, the perenials are your doers - they are there when you need them and go away when you dont.

Then you fill in the remainder of the space with annuals - either sown from seed or bought from the garden centre depending on what money you have... I am hoping that some of the hardy annuals from last year like the Icelandic poppies and the Rudebekia's will have self seeded.

You might think that such a garden takes a lot of time - well about one hour a day during the summer - and thats mainly watering and dead heading - as for the most part it takes care of itself quite happily. Quite a lot more time is spent in the autumn tidying up a little (however it does not pay the wildlife to be too tidy) and again in the spring when the real work is put into the garden.

I will say that without a doubt that the most labour intensive part of the garden is the lawn - and mine looks absolutely awful after being waterlogged for so long - in fact at the New Year it was standing about 4 inches under water - at least it was not foul water... and being clay just walking down to the bottom of the garden compacts it... So I think that I will have to lay a stepping stone path down the middle in true cottage garden style.

You might ask what is the answer to your question from all of this - and it is make the garden work for you not you for it - do what you are happy with - if you want to turf it all - then fine but consider with the size of your garden you may want to invest in a ride-on mower...

I really would recommend that you each do mood boards of what you like and dislike - you never know you might like things so different that you each have a part of the garden each - its been done before...

Then works out what soil you have, which way the garden faces - and plant what will be happy in those conditions... I must admit that Alan Titchmarsh's book how to be a gardener is good on this subject and well worth getting out of the library.

You need to know if you have sunny borders, semi shaded border or shaded borders as well as whether your soil is acid, alkaline or neutral before you go to the expense of buying plants that just won't suit... its not that you cant have them - its just that you would have to grow them in pots to be happy.

Hope this has given you some idea

Angela

P.S. My garden is about 19 feet by 40 feet and I am running out of space for all the plants that I really would like to get into the garden - so I think that after the end of this year, I will loose some more of the lawn (its down to about 1/3rd of what it was) to beds...