So you’ve settled into your new home and it is time to think about the garden. It’s a mess. Perhaps you have managed to keep the grass cut, but the rest is rampant. Full of weeds and plain unsightly. And even thought the builders have left, their rubbish didn’t go with them.Don’t Panic! Before you really start to work on your garden, you need to decide what you want to use it for.
Perhaps you need some of these:-

• Decorative flower beds
• Somewhere to entertain
• A vegetable plot
• A greenhouse to raise plants
• A garden pond
• A playground for the kids

It is always a good idea to make a shortlist of your needs. The last thing you want is a patch of grass bordered with narrow flowerd beds.

Provided you have a reasonable size patch, with some planning it is fairly easy to combine two or more of the above uses. You might want use some landscape design software to make this process easier. You should always start by drawing an outline of the plot together with an indication of where the sun is. You will then know which areas are shady and which are in full sunshine. You will also want to place seating to catch the last of the evening sun when you are entertaining. Remember that many plants cannot tolerate full sunshine, whist others really flourish in those conditions.

Before doing anything else, you should clear the worst of the builders rubble. Next test your soil PH. You need to know whether you have an acid soil or if it is alkiline. Test several different places, since the PH may vary across the garden.

OK. Now you have the basic information you need about the plot. Down to work. You need to dig the garden over and clear all those weeds. There is no easy way to do this. You can try weed-killer, but the deep rooted and pernicious weeds will only come back. Whatever you decide to grow, it will do much better and save a lot of time and effort in the long run if you do this preparation thoroughly. Its boring, its tedious, its hard work, with very little to show for it. But its necessary.

Next comes whats known as hard landscaping. Deciding where to put paths, garden ponds,a patio or seating area, and if you want them a potting shed and a greenhouse. A potting shed may seem unnecessary at first, but you will find it immensely useful to store all your tools (thus freeing room in your garage or utility room). If organised, it will make it much easier to find everything and can also be used to sow seeds in pots or put plants in pots. Garden sheds have had many books writen about them so I shan’t go into detail here.  However, you will want the shed to be attractive if it can be seen from the house. So be sure that you leave enough room to grow plants over it if wished, or have other ways to screen it.

Now comes the fun bit. Draw a plan of what you want where. Just a general outline is enough for now, you don’t need too much detail. If you want a pond or other water feature, plan what you will do with the soil you dig out. What will you do with dead plants, grass cuttings etc. You need a compost heap, again plan where it will go and how you will screen it from the house. If you intend to raise hens, then think about building your own chicken house.

The actual build process should start with the major earthworks. Don’t forget any excavations you will need for the garden pond pump and pipes. Then your paths etc, then any grass. After that come plants.

All of this will take time and hard work, but you will eventually be fully rewarded with a garden just as you want it, fulfilling the functions you want and will take much less work in its upkeep than if you had not put in all that hard work.

Tags: garden design, Garden Preparation, New Garden