Colin and Mary came to us with a common concern of people in their late sixties. The continuous pruning, weeding, cutting and general garden chores were manageable now but what about in ten years?
It is to have your own independence and the relaxing setting of your own garden. The issue is if your garden is not engineered for low maintenance it can become too much in your mellower years.
Garden Problems
Colin and Mary had a few issues with their back garden in Harrow. There were low points which always gathered water causing flooding. A recently built nearby housing estate overlooked the garden limiting their privacy.
Vigorous climbers such as Russian Vine and Boston Ivy had taken over the boundary causing the fences to collapse. The garden had generally become unmanageable. Hilly flower borders with overgrown shrubs and nooks and crannies caused a mind block when tackling maintenance tasks.
Vigorous climbers such as Russian Vine and Boston Ivy had taken over the boundary causing the fences to collapse. The garden had generally become unmanageable. Hilly flower borders with overgrown shrubs and nooks and crannies caused a mind block when tackling maintenance tasks.
Garden Design Solutions using function and having a big vision
Colin told us he had an idea of what needed to happen to correct the issues but wanted our advice on what needed to be done. Mary and Colin had read the Harrow and Hillingdon landscape gardeners blog and noticed we enjoyed the problem solving side to landscaping. I had always approached a holistic approach to landscape gardening trying to see ‘the perfect garden of Eden for the client and what it would take to achieve it in a successful manner.
Simplicity
It was clear to me from the start that the family needed a much more simplified garden with neatly defined garden zones. The first thing that needed to be done was the whole garden had to be cleared of vegetation including all roots! Then using an excavator we would dig over all the gardens topsoil and spread it around to find a new flat level. This would allow Colin and Mary to have a perfectly flat lawn with much reduced flower beds.
Drainage
The new consistent level prevented water sitting in low points and turning the surrounding garden into a bog. We looked at the surrounding gardens and tried to figure out the lower side where the water ‘naturally wants to escape’. We then created a gentle fall to that side so excess storm water would drain away back to the landscape.
Paving
Now that all the shrubs, climbers and mess was gone and we had a perfectly flat plot we could start the hard landscaping. The reason why we always champion paving and patios as a perfect garden surface is they are so durable. A well build patio will last a lifetime and stop weeds and saplings taking over. With paving laid on a think mortar base on top of 100mm of mot compactable hardcore there is no chance weeds will be able to take hold.
Garden Paths and Patios as lawn edging
As Colin wanted easy access to the whole gardens perimeter this gave us a great opportunity to create a cutting edge. One of the most annoying maintenance features of landscaped gardens are those bits of grass the mower can’t get to. It is relentless battle to strip all the edges usually damaging the walls and raised boundaries you do have.
When hiring a professional landscaper to landscape your garden you have an opportunity to realise a new lawn flush with surrounding edges or paving. This allows you to mow straight over the lawn edges illuminating extra garden work. The result is a perfectly level garden with easy transition and maintenance from hard to soft landscaping. It looks better too!
When hiring a professional landscaper to landscape your garden you have an opportunity to realise a new lawn flush with surrounding edges or paving. This allows you to mow straight over the lawn edges illuminating extra garden work. The result is a perfectly level garden with easy transition and maintenance from hard to soft landscaping. It looks better too!
Screening
As Harrow & Hillingdon become more developed with high density housing overlooking issues are becoming more common. This unfortunately is a trend that will probably continue but there are some things you can do. Remember you are not allowed to raise you fences much over the standard 6 feet.
What we did it Mary and Collins garden is we built a growing screen for climbers 1 metre from the boundary of the overlooking development. We used 4 inch timber posts and robust 6 foot trellis to create a sort of hovering vertical pergola. You can see this on the video on this page. We planted evergreen, scented and flowering non invasive climbers at the foot of each post. This will create a complete green screen within 3 years.
What we did it Mary and Collins garden is we built a growing screen for climbers 1 metre from the boundary of the overlooking development. We used 4 inch timber posts and robust 6 foot trellis to create a sort of hovering vertical pergola. You can see this on the video on this page. We planted evergreen, scented and flowering non invasive climbers at the foot of each post. This will create a complete green screen within 3 years.
Conclusion
Growing older and gardening are things two things that should go hand in hand. Our gardens can give us gentle exercise, the joys of gardening and hours of relaxation. But to guarantee they keep providing pleasure later in life without becoming burdensome some planning is needed. If your garden is engineered with low maintenance and simplicity in mind our gardens can become truly a lifelong joy.
If you are starting to find your garden more work than what it used to be and need to remodel your garden contact us for a consultation. Harrow & Hillingdon Landscape Gardeners have years of experience in garden design and landscaping. We can turn a problematic space into a functional paradise for you, your friends and your family.
If you are starting to find your garden more work than what it used to be and need to remodel your garden contact us for a consultation. Harrow & Hillingdon Landscape Gardeners have years of experience in garden design and landscaping. We can turn a problematic space into a functional paradise for you, your friends and your family.
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