Put the lawn out to grass
It’s goodbye to my lawnmower and hello to fresh plants and decking
GARDENS are ever evolving but mine moves on too slowly for my liking. Lockdown has created unplanned time for me to tackle some of the areas for which I’ve had dreams, but which had been put on the long finger.
All the lawns in my garden are now gone and the lawnmower has been given away.
The smallest lawn on the top terrace nearest the house had never been effective anyway. It was always a pain dragging the mower up and down three sets of steps to keep it trim. It was the right time to replace it so last week I sent a WhatsApp message around the neighbours to see if anybody had some spare wood. I’d long intended to create a small deck surrounded by some luscious planting.
My friend Pete obliged and I took over his garden.
To create a circular deck, I laid his scaffolding planks side by side to form a rough rectangle. With a marker on a string, I drew the outline of a circle from the centre and cut the planks accordingly.
Once the lengths of wood were back at chez Gavin, I screwed in batons on the underside to keep the planks together and I rolled it into place. It’s just 2.5 metres in diameter and now forms a usable hard surface.
A circle shape is a simple and effective solution for a small, square-ish space.
It doesn’t need to be made of decking, it could be an area of gravel, old bricks, anything at all, as long as the shape you’re creating is well defined.
Next it was on to the fun bit, planting it up. Even the smallest of spaces can take trees so long as you choose carefully.
I planted two beautiful Japanese maples. I’ve learnt the hard way with these beauties – sheltering from east winds is key as well as a bit of shade.
These trees age gracefully and slowly, and won’t require any pruning to enhance their natural shape. An annual top dressing with a multi-purpose fertiliser will be the most maintenance they require. In small spaces these will also grow well in containers.
I’ve chosen ‘Orange Dream’ which has orange/yellow leaves with an orange margin in spring. The foliage will mature to a fresh lime green in summer and finally turn bright yellow in autumn.
In the other corner I planted ‘Dissectum’– this has beautiful lacy dissected leaves and will turn red and orange in autumn. Tree ferns complete the top storey – in a smallish space I think this fern can be a good alternative to a tree and injects a tropical feel to the garden.
Underplanting on the sunny side includes some agapanthus and old reliables, hardy geraniums. I’m using a relatively new variety – geranium ‘Sabani Blue’ which has the most gorgeous intensely big blue-violet flowers. It’s early flowering but if you cut back afterwards you will get a second flush later in the summer.
I’m also planting geranium ‘Rozanne,’ another hardworking blueflowered variety that blooms all summer long.
In keeping with the tropical-looking tree ferns, I’ve planted a banana, Musa basjoo. This will need winter protection, or if you’re in colder areas it’s probably best in a pot and taken indoors for the winter.
On the shadier side I’m using Ajuga, a great groundcover with beautiful blue flowers in spring. For some bold foliage I’m trying Podophyllum pleianthum, a perennial from Taiwan with large unusual shaped leaves which will also need protection in harsh winters.
There’s room in my circle for a comfy armchair or two, the perfect setting for cup of coffee and no more lawn mowing.