Hi,

Its my very first post to the forum.I am a beginner & know nothing about gardening but I am quite determined to become a respectable gardener.To begin with,I want to plant a hedge on one side of the garden.Can you please suggest me an economical,low maintainance evergreen hedge.My hubby loves flowers so it would be nice if i have a flowery one...will welcome any of your suggestions!

Another problem I am facing is that my ground has got all clay in it & no soil.Is there a way to get rid of it?I have used rotovator but it didn't help much.I want to lay down new grass & plants..will be grateful for your help!

Many thanx!
Tania.

The message
from taneys contains these words:

Its my very first post to the forum.I am a beginner & know nothing
about gardening but I am quite determined to become a respectable
gardener.To begin with,I want to plant a hedge on one side of the
garden.Can you please suggest me an economical,low maintainance
evergreen hedge.My hubby loves flowers so it would be nice if i have a
flowery one...will welcome any of your suggestions!

Does not compute.

You can get a fairly low maintenance evergreen hedge (but slowly) with
say, box, but the flowers are generally insignificant.

Holly would be faster, but need more maintenance, and I can't think of
anything which is evergreen, flowers nicely and is low-maintenance.
Berberis, possibly. However, Berberis vulgaris is a host plant of wheat
rust, so if you are anywhere near arable fields, you might be planting a
source of infection.

Another problem I am facing is that my ground has got all clay in it &
no soil.

Clay *IS* soil. ITYM 'loam'.

Is there a way to get rid of it?

JCB? Start a brickworks?

I have used rotovator but it
didn't help much.

It won't: it's rather like stirring the christmas pud mix.

I want to lay down new grass & plants..will be
grateful for your help!


You need to add compost, sand and powdered chalk to make the lawn happy,
drain well, and not get squishy when it rains. The more compost the
better. Peat would do, or mushroom compost.

Likewise with the beds, but the chalk is probably not important.

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig

You could try mixing in an organic amendment into your clay soils go to www.turfshop.co.uk they have something called neopeat for sale. Other wise dig it out put down some drainage in then wack some topsoil and turf on top of that. Don't put chalk down or you will just end up growing a weed patch!

Janet Baraclough wrote:

The message
from Rusty Hinge 2 contains these words:

The message
from taneys contains these words:

Its my very first post to the forum.I am a beginner & know nothing
about gardening but I am quite determined to become a respectable
gardener.To begin with,I want to plant a hedge on one side of the
garden.Can you please suggest me an economical,low maintainance
evergreen hedge.My hubby loves flowers so it would be nice if i have a
flowery one...will welcome any of your suggestions!

Does not compute.

You can get a fairly low maintenance evergreen hedge (but slowly) with
say, box, but the flowers are generally insignificant.

Holly would be faster, but need more maintenance, and I can't think of
anything which is evergreen, flowers nicely and is low-maintenance.

Escallonia, except in very cold areas. It will require clipping at
least once a year but so will any hedge.

Some of the cotoneasters might also qualify. I think pyracantha makes a
nice hedge. It is evergreen and you get both flowers and red berries for
the birds (orange or yellow some cultivars). Only trouble is it is
rather viciously armed with spines. It is definitely stock proof!

Most things with nice flowers and/or fruit are too vigorous to be a low
maintainence hedge. Cordonned apples will eventually make a nice but
fairly high maintenence hedge if trained properly. I share a boundary
with my neightbour planted to apples and pears.

Regards,
Martin Brown

On Thu, 16 Feb 2006 21:52:49 +0000, taneys
wrote:


Hi,

Its my very first post to the forum.I am a beginner & know nothing
about gardening but I am quite determined to become a respectable
gardener.

Welcome!

To begin with,I want to plant a hedge on one side of the
garden.Can you please suggest me an economical,low maintainance
evergreen hedge.My hubby loves flowers so it would be nice if i have a
flowery one...will welcome any of your suggestions!

Victoriana Nursery Gardens (www.victoriana.ws) are advertising Rosa
Rugosa plants for a hedge - can reach 6-7ft tall within 2 years with
red, pink and white flowers. 10 plants for £16. Is this expensive?
I've never bought hedge plants so I don't know. Perhaps you could mix
a few into a cheaper hedge.

Another problem I am facing is that my ground has got all clay in it &
no soil.Is there a way to get rid of it?I have used rotovator but it
didn't help much.I want to lay down new grass & plants..will be
grateful for your help!

A clay soil is a nuisance but not all bad news. It holds nutrients
well - they don't wash away quickly as they would in a sandy soil.
You need to get yourself a big compost heap going and keep digging the
compost into the clay, chopping the clay into tiny bits with your
spade as you dig the compost in (or rotovate it in). It will remind
you of plum cake when it's done (or it used to when I had a clay soil
in Cheshire) and your veggies and flowers will be wonderful!

In the meantime, grass won't be very happy on a clay soil because it
compacts so easily and water won't drain away. You could try mixing
into your rotovated clay as much sharp sand or grit (not builder's
sand, as this is too fine) as you can get hold of - this will help the
water drain through.

Many thanx!
Tania.

Best of luck!
Joan in Ayrshire
remove 'spam' from email to reply

The message
from turf doc contains these words:

You could try mixing in an organic amendment into your clay soils go to
www.turfshop.co.uk they have something called neopeat for sale. Other
wise dig it out put down some drainage in then wack some topsoil and
turf on top of that. Don't put chalk down or you will just end up
growing a weed patch!


Try putting some chalk down sometime - I don't think you know what
you're talking about.

--
Rusty
Direct reply to: horrid dot squeak snailything zetnet point co period uk
Separator in search of a sig

Many many thanx to all of you.Today I am on my way to garden center & I hope keeping in mind all your valuable views I would come to a solution...but i am really grateful to all of you & will bother you again in future for further suggestions...Thanx a lot!