So, we started renovating our garden about a year ago. It measures about 9m x 30m and is divided into three rooms or levels since there are some stairs to the next lol. As you can see on the photos it was really a dump. It hadn't been properly maintained for nearly a decade I think and some of the structures were really becoming dangerous.
So the house (and garden) passed from my father onto me and me and we started ripping it all out; totally levelling it. You wouldn't believe the amount of rubble and trash we cleared, not to mention what we dug out of the ground. All in all we cleared well over 100 tonnes and another 50 tonnes of heavy clay soil (and it ALL had to be CARRIED down some small stairs through the garage to the street 'cause there is no access anywhere else to the garden - I've never had so much muscle growth I'll tell you that haha :D )
Here's some photos of the transformation: we cleared everything, built a new shed, broke out and rebuilt the rotten retaining walls making them into raised beds and added a 3m long staircase to open op the garden, built a terrace for the jacuzzi, put up a new fence line, sowed grass only for it to be washed away by torrential rains that same evening (I nearly cried :p we learned from it though and laid turf on the middle level :p )
All these sacs also had to be carried up the stairs :p
As did all this rubble --'
Grass sprouting after we resowed it few days later after that torrential rain (gotta have a pic of that somewhere around here...)
And the garden as it stands now, pic taken few days ago
It's alot of photos to watch, but it's only a selection still, there are well over 120 :p Tell me what you think.
Wow! What a lot of work that was, especially just getting the place cleaned out. It looks much better now and it should be easy to care for. Congratulations on a job well done!
OMG--very impressive!
I think you should be proud of all your hard work and the results and I hope you enjoy the space you renovated for many decades to come
Yeah I am proud of what we've achieved so far :D But there's still lots to do: two more terraced on the middle level (one for dining and one for lounging), making more beds, planting a hedge along the left and trees, sort out the planting, putting a new roof on the kitchen (lower level) that will one day be transformed into a modern summer house or whatever you call it :p (so actually all the turf is gonna go someday, we just laid it down to stop weeds from taking all over again and because it's neater in the mean time)
Trouble is, all the sketches I made for the middle level regarding planting etc turned out to be larger than it really is, so that's quite a shock haha.
This is to scale. There's hardly any space for me left to plant and my partner isn't really keen on giving up some of 'his' space to me
--' Buuutt...I did some calculations, and if we made both terraces one row of tiles smaller, I'd gain another 1.2m to plant. And in a narrow garden like this that's a whole lot of space.
Well, I always vote for more room for planting
Containers are fun and maybe you would like a living wall--Chelle posted some neat links here http://garden.org/thread/view_...
I am just now seeing this thread for the first time! Wow! Lee-Roy, you have done an amazing job!!! It is beautiful. What a wonderful area for outdoor relaxation and gardening! Most impressive! I love the block work and the stairs very much. I have a sloping backyard and often thought of doing something similar to make a terrace. But we settled on several raised beds instead of a terrace. Looking at your photos, I wished we'd done the terrace! Excellent job!!!
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters, compared to what lies within us. Garden Rooms and Becky's Budget Garden
That's some accomplishment Lee-Roy--planning and implementing your vision.What will you do and plant on the steep shady slope, covered in ivy behind the shed.Will you terrace that, perhaps a few rhododendrons, ferns, galanthus and the like? Those siberian iris that you planted in a group, 4 or 5 ? beside the palm tree may be a bit too close.You may have planned it that way for a mass effect, but in a year each plant will be huge, given the heavy watering they need after flowering to induce bloom for the following year.By that time you will need an axe to separate them, they have a very dense fibrous root system.Here is a pic of some one year old divisions that most were about the size of your plants.Pretty big within a year.
There's 3 Siberian irises. Maybe they're planted a bit too close to the palm and each other indeed, but I didn't want to have them all the way against the side either...The look I'm after is of them sprouting out like a fountain from underneath the Cornus; a bit like this:
The slope at the very back is a whole project on tis own. My father used to have raspberries planted there, but they're long gone. Now it's just ivy, nettles, wild arums and the likes. I might plant it up with some ferns and maybe a few hostas, but not really 'scape' it as the rest of the garden. It'll house the composting bins and rainwater barrels and act as storage etc....it's not really part of the 'garden' garden :p
Lee-Roy - I think it looks marvelous and with each phase you finish, it will shine! I think that is remarkable that you have moved back into this place and are renovating it from the inside to the outside. The neighbors won't know what to think! It's definitely going to be a little paradise! So much work is going into this venture! Congrats on a job well done so far!
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters, compared to what lies within us. Garden Rooms and Becky's Budget Garden
3 days later and the wall is up, hole dug for another concrete foundation that'll hold the rainwater tank, made the slope less steep and cleard as much of the rubble from the soil as possible
Lee-Roy - I am beyond impressed with what you are creating! It is looking fabulous! You are doing an awesome DIY project ... which entails your entire yard! You and your partner could really inspire others to do their own garden projects! Fortunately, you are both young and can handle such physically intensive labor. It would probably kill me! I look forward to more photos as you continue your garden project.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters, compared to what lies within us. Garden Rooms and Becky's Budget Garden
Well Becky..'young'...I am :p I'm the fitter one of the two haha; but not nessecarily the stronger one We make a great team though and that's what got us this far. So yeah, people really can do it themselves if they put their back into it. I'll be posting more photos when we progress
All I can suggest is .... BE VERY CAREFUL that either of you don't get hurt doing this major renovation. That looks like quite the job for a contractor with a CREW of men doing the work.
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters, compared to what lies within us. Garden Rooms and Becky's Budget Garden
All I can say is--it is amazing what two young and ambitious guys can do
Yeah, be careful, be smart, be safe, and all that--but rock on, have fun, and keep sharing the tale!