RAMPS

Older people, or those with physical disabilities, are unable to cope well with stairs or changes in level unlessvery well- designed paths are made for them. The beauty of ramps is that they can be attractively landscaped to snake around the garden, incorporating considerable height changes —without a steep gradient.

When designing ramps for access to different levels of the garden, remember that people in wheelchairs need enough room to manoeuvre comfortably. Find out the recommended dimensions and other standards for wheelchair facilities from your local authority. Read the rest of this entry »

A successful landscape needs a garden style which appeals to you, and this is often linked to the house design. It can also be influenced by the kind of plants you like, or by your garden site and its climate.

Garden styles

There is a variety of garden styles, from formal to cottage garden, each with its own atmosphere and character. A predominantly natural or wild garden might look best in the country, or, alternatively, it could turn a town garden into a green oasis and bird sanctuary. A Mediterranean courtyard style would suit a small garden or echo Spanish-style architecture. You may like a formal garden for its symmetry, or an oriental garden for its serenity. Read the rest of this entry »

It is a common mistake to enclose orchids in a mini-greenhouse made from bamboo canes and polythene which is barely large enough for the plants at their present size, and certainly allows no room for future growth. Like oversized fish in a small bowl, these plants are doomed to failure, through lack of the all important supply of fresh air. Equally disastrous can be the use of small propagators. These units are designed for germinating bedding plants and raising fast growing vegetable seedlings, as well as cuttings etc., but should not be considered as permanent homes for adult plants, still less a place to grow your orchids! The largest of the propagators may be suitable for the smaller growing orchids, although they hardly present an attractive feature for the home. Read the rest of this entry »

It probably comes as a surprise to learn that window boxes have been used for growing plants since Roman times. These were undoubtedly earthenware containers, but since then many other materials have been used for making them. In Medieval Europe, for instance, window boxes were made from wattle or strips of wood woven together, as well as from metal, and again clay, especially terracotta.

Choosing Boxes

Today it is possible to buy window boxes in various materials. Terracotta is still used, and these boxes look very nice, too, especially on older-style properties, including country houses. They often have ornate relief designs. But there is one drawback with terracotta window boxes. Being porous, the soil is inclined to dry out rapidly during warm weather. Read the rest of this entry »

Timber is ideal for many projects in the garden, and is particularly useful for decking and steps. Like a stone patio adjacent to a stone house, a wooden deck adjoining a timber building will make a strong link between inside and outside. Timber can be easily worked to shapes that would be extremely difficult to produce using paving. It is light, it warms up quickly and it needs little maintenance apart from a regular application of non-toxic preservative. Never use creosote, which is certain death to plants. Some wood can even be bought already pressure-treated with preservative, further reducing after-care. Remember, though, that timber means trees, and if those trees come from a non-managed source then you are contributing to the degradation of our environment. Please check with your supplier, particularly if you envisage using hardwood species from tropical rain forests. Read the rest of this entry »

As a lot of the goodness must seep into the ground from my compost heaps I have had the bottom of the compost enclosure concreted. Instead of having the ground quite level it slopes down very slightly, and along the lower side I have about a foot of vertical concrete (breeze blocks in fact). My compost enclosures are at the top of a ditch, so it has been easy for me to run out three small drains into the ditch. The rich ooze from the heaps drains into receptacles placed to receive it and gives me a constant supply of liquid manure. It is wonderful what a fillip this diluted goo water gives to a plant that is just coming into flower. In the summer the sweet corn particularly is the lucky recipient of this largesse. Read the rest of this entry »