Low maintainence garden NE
Martin Brown
Having tried to create a low maintainence garden and failed, can anyone
recommend a reliable hard landscaping garden contractor in the Newcastle
area to redesign and implement a truely low maintainence suburban
garden. Ideally one with a good track record of similar work, and able
to handle a small amount of monthly maintainence.
At the moment I am severely tempted to mulch with 4" of concrete as it
is beginning to get out of hand... I started with a reasonable plan, but
insufficient time. And now some self seeded perennials are as bad as the
weeds, and invasive raspberry canes have taken over patches.
Web searching on this has totally let me down. I can find suitable folk
in Newcastle Oz, Za, US and the only UK one was "404 not found". I found
one in Durham Ontario too :(
There doesn't seem to be too much on the web about low maintainence
gardening either.
Perhaps I have overlooked something here ?
Thanks for any suggestions or leads.
Regards,
Martin Brown
cormaic
<martin...@pandora.be> enriched all our lives with these words:
>
>Having tried to create a low maintainence garden and failed, can anyone
>recommend a reliable hard landscaping garden contractor in the Newcastle
>area to redesign and implement a truely low maintainence suburban
>garden. Ideally one with a good track record of similar work, and able
>to handle a small amount of monthly maintainence.
Many h/landscaping contractors will not be interested in the
maintenance work - they want to sort the paving, get paid and clear
off. You'll probably need a garden maintenance co for that. Try Yellow
Pages or the Thomson Local, but be advised that the silly season for
landscapers starts today, 1st March, and prices will have just gone up
from the lower winter rates.
>
>At the moment I am severely tempted to mulch with 4" of concrete as it
>is beginning to get out of hand... I started with a reasonable plan, but
>insufficient time. And now some self seeded perennials are as bad as the
>weeds, and invasive raspberry canes have taken over patches.
>
>Web searching on this has totally let me down. I can find suitable folk
>in Newcastle Oz, Za, US and the only UK one was "404 not found". I found
>one in Durham Ontario too :(
>
I can't tell you about Newcastle, but that's because it's
outside my patch, but there are contractors out there - it's just that
not many have bothered using the 'net to date, and the few that have
tend to set up poor sites that are glorified adverts for their
business. Have you tried asking at a local BM for who they can put you
on to?
--
cormaic Garden - www.tmac.clara.co.uk/garden/
Culcheth Paving - www.tmac.clara.co.uk/paving/
Cheshire URG faq/webring - www.tmac.clara.co.uk/urgring/
(allegedly) Last Updated on Feb 21st 2000
cormaic CAN BE FOUND AT tmac.clara.co.uk
Anton
Martin Brown wrote in message <38BCD4F6...@pandora.be>...
>
>Having tried to create a low maintainence garden and failed,
>At the moment I am severely tempted to mulch with 4" of concrete as it
>is beginning to get out of hand... I started with a reasonable plan, but
>insufficient time. And now some self seeded perennials are as bad as the
>weeds, and invasive raspberry canes have taken over patches.
>
>There doesn't seem to be too much on the web about low maintainence
>gardening either.
I have also been trying to create a low-maintenance garden. Depending on
the time of day or the phase of the moon, I'm either failing miserably or
partially succeeding. I can't help with a recommended garden designer or
web site, but if you can dredge up the enthusiasm for another try, here's a
few gleanings from my experience so far. The urglers I'm sure will offer
more advice if you decide to 'go for it'.
Apologies in advance to the urg if I shock anyone- he *does* want a
low-maintenance garden.
Firstly, see if there is anything you want to keep, especially if it's trees
or large shrubs, or a particular jewel. Be ruthless- if you decide to keep
27 different shrubs and plants it will make your job much more difficult.
Fry everything else in the garden. Glyphosate will kill most things, a
flamethrower will reduce the resulting mess to ashes. One or two pernicious
weeds may need a couple of hits.
Draw up a plan ensure that separate areas are genuinely separate. If you
put a border next to lawn, put say 9 inch wide edging to separate the two.
The border things will flop over the edging and after a year you'll barely
see it, but it will make mowing unbelievably easier. Separate drives from
borders, your garden from your neighbour's in a similar way. If you have a
chain link fence then dig a gulley under it & fill it with concrete. If you
don't separate things with a heavy hand to begin with then you will spend
the next ten years trying to keep them apart. Have a generous patio area-
if you later decide it's too stark you can put some pots on it. Ensure
there are paths to the things you want to access- don't force yourself to
need wellies every time you go outside.
While you are sorting out your hard landscaping, do not try planting- leave
the scorched earth (scorching it again occasionally if necessary). This is
the tough bit, & where I went astray. My Dad brought over a bag of potatoes
to plant, and my in-laws kept bringing me various plants to fill the 'bare
garden'. If you do succumb then you will find your hard landscaping &
edging projects brought juddering to a halt by the need to earth up the
potatoes or whatever.
When your patio is paved and your lawns edged etc, then start planting.
IMVHO, be very wary of herbaceous stuff because it leaves the soil bare for
weeds and it's not easy to hoe the beds in the spring. Think in terms of
shrubs or even trees if there is room. Keep it really simple. A few choice
shrubs/trees in a simple setting can look wonderful, and you can always add
bulbs underplanting, climbers etc later.
Good luck!
--
Anton
Martin Brown
cormaic wrote:
> 'Twas Wed, 01 Mar 2000 09:31:40 GMT, when Martin Brown
> <martin...@pandora.be> enriched all our lives with these words:
> >Having tried to create a low maintainence garden and failed, can anyone
> >recommend a reliable hard landscaping garden contractor in the Newcastle
> >area to redesign and implement a truely low maintainence suburban garden.
> Many h/landscaping contractors will not be interested in the
> maintenance work - they want to sort the paving, get paid and clear
> off. You'll probably need a garden maintenance co for that.
That's as I expected. The reason for asking is that it will be hard enough
selling the idea of having one lot of "strangers" jumping up and down in the
garden. Two lots is pushing it.
> Try Yellow Pages or the Thomson Local,
I would prefer a personal recommendation or to see samples of their work.
> but be advised that the silly season for landscapers starts today, 1st
> March, and prices will have just gone up from the lower winter rates.
Thanks. I didn't know that. It's a clay soil so it would be hard to work on
in winter.
> >At the moment I am severely tempted to mulch with 4" of concrete as it
> >is beginning to get out of hand... I started with a reasonable plan, but
> >insufficient time. And now some self seeded perennials are as bad as the
> >weeds, and invasive raspberry canes have taken over patches.
> Have you tried asking at a local BM for who they can put you on to?
Trouble is my local builders merchant speaks Dutch and is even further from
Newcastle than you are. The reason this went haywire was that on moving to
Belgium it became impractical to visit frequently enough to maintain the
existing garden adequately.
The rise of B&Q and HomeStore seems to have done for most traditional
builders merchants...
Thanks for the tips.
Martin Brown
Martin Brown
Anton wrote:
> Martin Brown wrote in message <38BCD4F6...@pandora.be>...
> >
> >Having tried to create a low maintainence garden and failed,
> >
> >There doesn't seem to be too much on the web about low maintainence
> >gardening either.
>
> I have also been trying to create a low-maintenance garden. Depending on
> the time of day or the phase of the moon, I'm either failing miserably or
> partially succeeding. I can't help with a recommended garden designer or
> web site, but if you can dredge up the enthusiasm for another try, here's a
> few gleanings from my experience so far. The urglers I'm sure will offer
> more advice if you decide to 'go for it'.
It has to be gone for - the question is more one of logistics.
> Apologies in advance to the urg if I shock anyone- he *does* want a
> low-maintenance garden.
>
> Firstly, see if there is anything you want to keep, especially if it's trees
> or large shrubs, or a particular jewel. Be ruthless- if you decide to keep
> 27 different shrubs and plants it will make your job much more difficult.
Agreed - there are a few shrubs, herbs, hydrangeas and a nice cotoneaster hedge
which are worth keeping. The mistake I made was not being ruthless enough at the
start.
> Fry everything else in the garden. Glyphosate will kill most things, a
> flamethrower will reduce the resulting mess to ashes. One or two pernicious
> weeds may need a couple of hits.
Been there done that (chemically - I don't find flamethrowers much use) and the
only remaining weeds are mostly annuals and the dreaded invasive and self
seeding raspberry canes.
There is an elderberry tree which is not ideal, but doesn't cause enough trouble
to be worth eliminating and it provides a focal point at the end of the garden.
Weeds don't grow under it.
> Draw up a plan ensure that separate areas are genuinely separate. If you
> put a border next to lawn, put say 9 inch wide edging to separate the two.
I think the lawn may be for the high jump. Cutting it is becoming too much of a
burden.
What alternatives work for an area of about 20' square and look half decent ?
I am considering something like flagstones with gravel or pebble mulched
plantings of heather, dwarf conifers, thyme or other low growing ground cover
plants, but open to suggestions.
> if you don't separate things with a heavy hand to begin with then you will
> spend
> the next ten years trying to keep them apart.
That was part of my mistake. The other was to introduce new plants some of which
proved to be every bit as invasive as the weeds in this sheltered town garden.
They were quite well behaved in my windswept N Yorks cottage garden.
> Have a generous patio area- if you later decide it's too stark you can put
> some pots on it.
Good idea. Very few weeds can grow through flagstones.
> Ensure there are paths to the things you want to access- don't force yourself
> to
> need wellies every time you go outside.
Agreed.
> While you are sorting out your hard landscaping, do not try planting- leave
> the scorched earth (scorching it again occasionally if necessary).
Yes - but I hope to have a contractor do this part. I'm in the wrong country to
do it myself.
> IMVHO, be very wary of herbaceous stuff because it leaves the soil bare for
> weeds and it's not easy to hoe the beds in the spring. Think in terms of
> shrubs or even trees if there is room. Keep it really simple.
Evergreens like eg Skimmias seem reasonably well behaved. Perhaps we should
start a sub thread of herbaceous plants which *can* be recommended for a low
maintainence garden ?
Heavy mulching also helps cut down on maintainence. Has anyone used the planting
fabric under a mulch that is supposed to minimise weeding problems ? Does it
really work in practice ?
> A few choice shrubs/trees in a simple setting can look wonderful, and you can
> always add
> bulbs underplanting, climbers etc later.
>
> Good luck!
Thanks Anton - good luck with yours too.
Regards,
Martin Brown
Jason
<cut>
> Newcastle than you are. The reason this went haywire was that on moving to
> Belgium it became impractical to visit frequently enough to maintain the
> existing garden adequately.
>
> The rise of B&Q and HomeStore seems to have done for most traditional
> builders merchants...
>
> Thanks for the tips.
>
> Martin Brown
Although I can't recommend and landscapers here in Newcastle I can
storngly recommend Fossway Builders Merchant's. I have always gone to
the one on the Team Valley and they are friendly and Very helpful. I
would expect they might be able to recommend some one to you. (tel :
0191 4870077).
Hope this is of help.
Jason Revell
jason....@unn.ac.uk
Kay Easton
<martin...@pandora.be> writes
>I am considering something like flagstones with gravel or pebble mulched
>plantings of heather, dwarf conifers, thyme or other low growing ground cover
>plants, but open to suggestions.
There's a very nice pebble mulched bed of conifers at York gate in Leeds
- I think it's picture in one of the big RHS encyclopaedias. I was
horrified to find out from the owner (this was some years ago) that
every year she had to take out all the pebbles and cleared out the pine
needles and dead leaves, then put all the pebbles back. Not my idea of
low maintenance!
>
>Good idea. Very few weeds can grow through flagstones.
But they can grow *between* them. I had a sunflower last year! But,
yes, even with weeds between the flagstones, a patio still looks vaguely
tidy.
>Evergreens like eg Skimmias seem reasonably well behaved. Perhaps we should
>start a sub thread of herbaceous plants which *can* be recommended for a low
>maintainence garden ?
Hellebores and the big bushy euphorbias - they don't spread invasively
and do a very good smothering job. Look good, and provide all year round
interest.
>
--
Kay Easton
Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/garden/
Jill Bell
<k...@scarboro.demon.co.uk> writes
>>
>>Good idea. Very few weeds can grow through flagstones.
>
>But they can grow *between* them. I had a sunflower last year!
And I've got an agapanthus!
Jill
--
ji...@bellsbarn.demon.co.uk