Water, water everywhere....

[squashysu]

tony

so hope your daughter arrives safe and sound, a huge worry - i pray the sun comes out soon for you and us, it is still raining here and a a lovely flood by my back door, but nothing compared to you guys.

Good luck with the pumping out.

SS

[Novice Gardener]

Tony, hope your daughter has a safe journey and the weather improves for you soon.
Barleysugar, your garden is lovely despite the rain

[BarleySugar]

Thanks for the complements on the garden. I designed it from scratch. When we moved into a brand new house 4 years ago this coming August, the plot was just turf (which was dying through lack of water!), with 3ft chain link fences between us and the neighbours. The garden is 14ft wide, as the house is a terraced town house, and, without the space behind the greenhouse, is about 25 ft long, with the garage at the back (the door you can see at the end).
I wanted a greenhouse, and patio space, but with the children older, I didn't need a lawn (I love growing plants, hate mowing lawns). It was also important for me to have some space to grow fruit and veg, hence a fan trained sweet cherry, 2 minarette plums (which I don't think I pruned quite right last year), the grape vine up the trellis to shade and hide the greenhouse in summer, as well as the blueberries in pots. Oh, and the gooseberry bush as well as a blackberry. The garden is very wet and the soil would have made great clay pots, so with a naturally high water table, drainage is a problem.
We started the autumn after we moved in, siting the greenhouse first, and then sorting the path and patio. The path was just paving slabs, so we took them up and used them to extend the paved patio space. Then the path and circular area was lined with weed suppressant (which has helped keep the mud at bay as well) and edged with the log roll. The slate is plum coloured, and was chosen to be easy to walk on, also its not popular with cats as a litter tray. It has sunk more this year, so I intend to order another load to put on the top to raise the level. The garden is North east facing, so we don't get much sun on the patio, which suits me as I burn very easily. We dug out all the soil in the beds, and replaced it with well rotted sheep manure from my brother's farm. I've also added home made compost, and spent compost from plant pots since.
The fencing came in the late spring, one side the neighbours erected 6 foot weather board, as they are the ones with the 3 large dogs. The other side we put up 4ft fence, with 2 ft trellis on top. This way it acts as a wind break and the garden gets more light.
Right up close to the house I have a small patch as a woodland, shady area, with primroses, bluebells, ferns, and hostas. A Gertrude Jekyll rose is trained up one side of the fence and over the arbour seat, as well as a spring flowering alpine clemetis which covers most of the fence at the back. Up the other side is a winter jasmine, an american wisteria which is smaller growing than the sinesis variety, as well as a Lady Boothby climbing fuschia. Along the bottom of the trellis my broad beans are flowering nicely, despite the onions (which I didn't realise should not be put close to beans), being in front of them. Dotted about I have put in celeriac and kohl rabi. Vicky has a white 'icecream' hybrid tea rose, planted over our beloved Tansy's grave (she was out 15 year old cat, who passed away last year), and I put assorted flowers in any spaces I can find, so we have some colour. The wigwams for the runner and climbing beans looked lovely last year, as well as providing beans for the family all summer.
It is still a work in progress, but the plants are maturing nicely, and filling the space. I will need to prune carefully to keep it all contained, and I really haven't got space for much more!