structural plants for an empty garden

[Trustmeimadoctor]

since we have a totally blank canvas at the moment in the garden it is just mud i was wanting to start thinking about what to plant along the back fence as behind is some crappy looking sheds that we would like to see less of (can only see them from upstairs really)

the developer planted 3 silver birches in the mud and as far as i can tell they get BIG bit too big at 30m granted that will take decades but we certainly dont want 3 of them so may keep 1 and move it into the far corner out of the way.

i quite like the look of black bamboo but i gather its a feisty thing if you dont control it (how do you do that?)


i have never really gardened before so im a absolute beginner at best

any other ideas for what we could plant

oh and the garden is about 10m X 8m and its fully south facing

any help would be very greatly received

[FarringtonSmythe]

We were in a similar position when our next door neighbour dropped a mobile home in his garden for his ailing mother.

I fixed some trellis to the top of the fence and then planted jasmine and honeysuckle (but any other climber would do). I would be sure to get evergreen so that you don't lose your screen in winter!

We also have black stemmed bamboo in the same bed and find its not too invasive if you remove any unwanted runners when they poke their heads above ground. Also looks good i you remove all branches below 4-5ft exposing the black stems but maintaining the screen provided by the leafy-bits.

Hope that helps!!

[Trustmeimadoctor]

that does thankyou the wife mentioned about wanting jasmine too

[shimmey69]

Honey blossom clematis is a winner!
Evergreen
Grows like stink
Flowers with pretty White flowers 2-3 times a year and relatively cheap at about £10-15 per plant

[markjo]

TBH, you need to be very careful with the plants you pick in a smallish garden, otherwise they can take over and cause other issues...

[Mr GrimNasty]

Might be worth identifying what variety of birch it is - there are dozens and dozens and some of the ones that have become popular in recent years stay more compact. If they are multi-stemmed rather than standard, they will also stay more compact.

If it looks like they are the native slightly pendulous variety where the lower branches spontaneously die as it sky rockets, probably best dumped.

But they can be pollarded (main stem cut brutally back in winter) at any height from the ground up, then they will usually re-grow more compact and upright as a bush from the ground or as a head from higher up (or die!).

[Trustmeimadoctor]

you what ! i understood die thats about it

[Flintstone]

I have several varieties of bamboo ranging from dwarf, ground covering species through black (phyllostaccys nigra) to giant bamboo. All will spread but generally speaking the taller the variety the less it will spread.

For black bamboo I wouldn't rely on cutting off the rhizomes (runners) as they can stay underground for some distance before surfacing and if that's the other side of your fence the neighbours won't be pleased. If it's in your garden they'll be coming up in your lawn and flower beds. Far better to prepare the bed properly by fitting a purpose-made root barrier available from landscape suppliers. If you're thinking of compromising with wood, polythene or something you have lying around come and look at the clump of nigra I planted in an old concrete pond, it's drilled through the walls and is coming up 10 feet away.

[Trustmeimadoctor]

Christ so is the stuff just called root barrier ?

[Flintstone]

Don't sound so worried!

It's dead easy, you just need to prepare it properly and you'll have minimum maintenance later on. Here you go.


http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Bamboo-root-barrier-stop...

[Trustmeimadoctor]

crikey 260 for 20 meters of the 2mm stuff im sure it must be cheaper if its maybe not sold as root blocking material

[astroarcadia]

Do you know the variety the Birch is? Not all grow big. Himalayan Birches are much smaller and some such as Snow Queen and Grayswood Ghost are stunning and look great when planted in numbers.

Don't go to garden centres, they are so boring in what they sell. Specialist nurseries offer great variety and often better specimens.

Try these guys if you want to do something a bit different.

http://www.architecturalplants.com/

http://www.bluebellnursery.com/

[Trustmeimadoctor]

Betula pendula sounds familiar after a quick google the developers did tell us what they were

[astroarcadia]

http://www.barcham.co.uk/catalog/2722

[Beardy10]

This place is brilliant http://www.architecturalplants.com/ They really know what they're talking about and have everything you have heard of and plenty you haven't.

If you are anywhere in the South East I would pay them a visit...their nursery is stunning.

[Mr GrimNasty]

Trustmeimadoctor said:

Betula pendula sounds familiar after a quick google the developers did tell us what they were

Yeh, that's the **** one, that usually gets too big.

[scotal]

Beardy10 said:

This place is brilliant http://www.architecturalplants.com/ They really know what they're talking about and have everything you have heard of and plenty you haven't.

If you are anywhere in the South East I would pay them a visit...their nursery is stunning.

horsham or Chichester, or doesn't it matter?

[Beardy10]

scotal said:

Beardy10 said:

This place is brilliant http://www.architecturalplants.com/ They really know what they're talking about and have everything you have heard of and plenty you haven't.

If you are anywhere in the South East I would pay them a visit...their nursery is stunning.

horsham or Chichester, or doesn't it matter?

We went to Horsham as we were coming from London...no idea which one is best, ring and ask them! They have a lot of their plants planted int he grounds so you can get a good idea what they look like in situ. The Horsham setting is pretty nice...if you do go there there's also another shop on the "estate" selling paintings and fabrics. Go and have a look up there just to have a nose round...there's a stunning house up there with a lot of their plants in the grounds.