Skip & Wheelbarrow

-
I cannot begin to convey the amount of manual work we have both done in the garden to-date. We have uncovered several hundred meters of weed-suppressing material which was under several inches of heavy clay soil all around the garden.  We also found it beneath the stone circles in the lawn and the makeshift rockery to the left and another planting bed further down containing a Lilac Tree.

 Much to our neighbours dismay as she loves it, we have ripped this tree out - it reminds me of the weeds that you see growing rampantly on waste ground. (usually in the vicinity of train stations within the UK) 



Along the right-hand border hidden beneath the landscaping material we have found a concrete path the full length of the garden.  This is made up of huge rectangle patio slabs and then further down, hollow breeze blocks - so incredibly heavy.  These have been filled with large pebbles mixed with liquid concrete prior to being placed in the ground.

Beneath the concrete path is yet more weed-suppressing landscaping material. :( 

We have uncovered several hundred pavers but I'm sure these can be put to good use elsewhere - every cloud... :)

I am so happy to have a wheelbarrow right now

Skip 1 - wasn't big enough, who were we kidding? seriously that baby bath had been dumped outside too

Skip 2 - went up a size
A lot of the tree trunks that we have cut down earlier have gone into this skip, most of the branches have been put through a wood chipper that we invested in.  We also advertised some logs on Freecycle and gave some away to a friend who has a wood-burning stove. 


 With each month that passes the garden is being improved and we are enjoying the quality time we spend together working on our project.  

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Well overdue post - transforming a patio

-
Image
Having had a break from writing on these pages, I felt it was as good a time as any to return with transformative news, both in reinstating the original name of this blog 'SuburbanGaze' but also of the outside space.   Over the summer months of lockdown I began researched ideas around renewing the patio.  We had spent so much time concentrating on plants and nature that we had forgotten our own basic needs.   So many options to choose from, so many trawls through Google images to find inspiration.  I knew we needed a large flat area with a built in pergola for shade but all off-the-shelf models lacked the bold clean and dark masculine straight lines that I was looking for. I realised quickly that our needs were not catered for and I would need to design something from scratch.  So the process began, like so much in the outside space a lot of thought and planning has gone into it. The problem: A hideous eight...
Read more

Dark side

-
Image
Its always good to have a bit of a change, I guess life is a journey and we all move through different periods.  For now for me, everything shall be black with a splash of orange.  Have began by using some garden paint to coat the bird-boxes for a sheltered spot behind the potting shed, also painted black.   The bird-table has also been coated having been natural, cream, blue... The potting shed has also been transformed in the same colour, I love how this colour makes the boundaries and building disappear into the background.  All the plants appear front and centre the colour popping.  With new robust fences installed the garden has never been better for us.  And that splash or orange has been delivered in a spray-paint coat of the former white garden furniture and a new garden sofa in the al-fresco dining area.
Read more

Pond overhaul

-
Image
I love the wildlife pond area of the garden, its now hidden from view most of the year by a huge native hedge that was grown from whips.  There is almost a secret garden feeling now at the end of the garden, its an area to come to for contemplation.  I haven't got round to putting a bench down there maybe next year.  It looks lovely at the height of the summer, but I made a mistake in the choice of oxygenator and its unwieldiness (if that's even a word) has gone unchecked...That is until now.  Its autumn and the leaves of the Amelanchier are bright red, this has spurned me on to get the wildlife pond sorted for next years fresh load of frogspawn, apparently this is the perfect time - less wildlife to annoy! :)  It's been something to focus on away from the reality that is life.  Here is what the pond looked like in August/September, all super-green and abundant.  But, spot...
Read more