Looking for inspiration

[freddy]

Hi folks. As you may have read, I plan to start building the tropical part of the garden. The thing is, I can't quite find the inspiration I'm looking for. The size of the plot is 32ft x 14ft with an arch at each end. I need to clear the ground but nothing drastic. I guess what I'd like are pictures/plans to give me some ideas. It's not so much the planting, but the layout(including hard landscaping) I'm having trouble with. Any help appreciated. Cheers...freddy. BTW, I hope this is the right place for this posting

[ChrisG]

Hi Freddy, definitely the correct place to post. Are you totally stuck or do you know you what type of plants you are thinking of, i.e jungle, spikie, rose garden . Is this your whole garden or just one part of it? Do you need a lawn, seating area, pond?

One great place to start is GOTEs members photos of their gardens. You will see picture of different styles etc.

I am sure someone on here posted a drawing of her garden and what she had planned and asked people to scribble what they would do. I am not sure if she used it but I find it really helpful to let other people put their designs on and then choose the best bits You would need to include answers to the questions above to get people going, but i would be surprised if you didn't get some ideas out of it. If you want to be very brave let people start from scratch and do whatever they want

[darran]

Freddy,

First thing before you can really start to make any plans/designs is to work out the fundamentals!

What features do you want? ie patio, seating, waterfeature, etc

You need to think about minimum sizes for these features, for example if you want a seating area, how many people will it need to accomodate? A bench, table, hammock, etc will all require a certain amount of space. These features may also need to be placed in certain areas to make the most of the sun or shade.

Will this area be visible from other areas of the garden, if so do you want it to connect with these spaces? You may want to use the same hard landscaping materials as used elsewhere, or you may want to match it in with the architecture of the house. Alternatively you may want it to contrast with other spaces.

This should help with narrowing down what you want, then a design should be easy to work out.

[Mark]

And most important of all if you are going tropical..........A greenhouse to overwinter it all

You will need heat . So maybe think about running Cable to the end of your garden( as no one has a greenhouse at the top of the garden). This is best done before any planting.

14ft Wide is not much to play with so maybe a winding path through curved beds to give the garden more depth. You don't want to be able to see the whole garden in one look. You want to make people wonder whats around the next bend.

Getting some large evergreen plants will help it look a bit more interesting during the winter too!

I liked Sarahs secret garden and its something I am looking to make for next year.

Like I said the garden has to look good thru all the seasons if possible.

[bodster]

did you like my jungle Mark? thats made in quite a small space

[freddy]

Hi Chris. At the moment, I foresee jungle-ish plants although the way I see it the plants aren't a big issue.This is just part of my garden which I have set aside for this theme. I don't think I have room for a pond and the logistics of having one make it very difficult. I'm not really looking for a lawn but I would need SOME seating. I had envisaged something tucked away ? Hi darran. I'd planned for this part of the garden to be hidden from the others as far as possible, which is why I have an arch at each end already. One is a rose arch and the other is a pergola. It is bordered by a 6ft fence down each side (down the length). Once the other parts of the garden have matured, it will be totally enclosed. Hope this helps. Cheers...freddy.

[Gaz]

As its not a huge area, I would go for a curved path way though it, so you cant see one end from the other. Then at some point a little cut into the planting for a seating area- is it to be for a bench, chairs, table?

The planting really depends on how much work you want in terms of over wintering. I know you have the big wooden greenhouse down the end - can that be used over winter for some plants, can it be heated?

The obvious plants to start off with are

Bamboos - one like aurea and nigra are the cheapest options for biggish ones in a back garden. Vivax would be nice too, but these sensbible should all be barriered. Some of the new borindas or fargesias are clumpers and are more attractive in many peoples eyes.

fatsia japonica is easy and tropical looking.

T rex really gives a tropical feel

Bananas- to start off with basjoo is a safe bet, but then as you get into it you may want to go for some of the more interesting but tender ones

Palms, good old trachycarpus fortunei is the staple, dead hardy and reasonably quick. Butias are rising in popularity. Phoenix canariensis_CIDP are very tropical looking but only really borderline hardy. Cordylines, whilst not a palm would work well and grow very quickly, even from seed.

Lots of other plant help with the jungle look, grasses, hostas and various perenials all can give the look with minimum of fuss.

Then whilst things get going, there are loads of annuals to fill the gaps.

As you discover more and different plants some of the old ones may go and new trickier ones come in.

Take some time to plan the look, but often the look can be acheived with hardier plants than you may have thought.

[Petefree]

Hi Freddy
What is the aspect of the section you want to turn into jungle? (sorry if I've missed it in your other posts, but if it's south-facing and sunny the feel of it, and the planting, would be different to if it was more cool and shady).
If you are going for the 'jungle' look and want some sort of seating area, my vote would go to a timber decked area. Using wood in jungle planting gives a nice 'colonial' feel. You could have the deck raised up, or only just above ground level.
If it is a shadier area, in addition to some of the plants, Gaz mentioned, I'd suggest a few tree ferns and ground ferns and, even though you've said there's not enough room for a pond, ferns look great with some kind of water feature, even if only a little un.
Sounds like an exciting project.
Pete

[freddy]

Hi folks. Thanks for the replies. In answer to your question Pete, it's south facing, and I had thought about some decking. Although I'm not really a fan of it, I think it could work well in this aspect. Hi Gaz. Lots of suggestions with regard to plantings, thanks. Although the greenhouse is a good size, I wouldn't want it stacked out with stuff because come sprintime, it's one hell of a busy place, bearing in mind it has to service the other parts of my garden. Thanks again. Cheers...freddy.

[Frank]

You could always go for spikies and give that dated jungle look a miss altogether

From my view:- Work out a budget you want to spend on hard landscaping and get this done ......
As I found out it's really frustrating having to keep digging up plants because fundamentals of the garden keep changing. Therefore think about what you want out of the space and others who may live with you and build that into the design. Get yourself a pad and start drawing and post the results here for others to input. Go and visit other people's gardens, there's enough members on here you will invite you for a snoop round. Read some books or have a look at the internet to draw inspiration from. And as I doubt it'll be the last garden/ change you'll make enjoy the process. The end result may turn out crappe but at least you learn from your mistakes and move on to do better next time. Personally I can't wait to do my garden again somewhere else
Once you know what you want and how much you can afford you can think about cost of materials etc. This in turn will either change your budget or the design. Once the hard landscaping is done you can go into more detail for the planting scheme.
And if you have any money left afters, you can invite everyone round for sponge cake and tea

[MarkD]

Not much else I can add, you've got really good responses already.

Don't forget to browse through different photos of other peoples garden. You can browse on here although you'll have to search for them as they're scattered on different pages.

And then there are the books. One of the many books that are fantastic in getting ideas is Courtyard Gardens and Terraces by Joan Clifton, especially as you'll only be dedicating a certain area to exotic gardening.

Goodluck and keep us updated

[freddy]

Hi Frank. There's no set budget and there's only me and the mrs to worry about, so it only has to please us. What I'd LIKE to do is try to hide the fences either side, if I can. To this end, would spikies do the job ? If I can, I'd LIKE to get it right first time, but sure, I know it will evolve or have to be modified. Hmm, so much input here, doing my head in already ! Cheers...freddy

[Don]

Hello Freddy--Just forget what Frank says about spikies, as he has done for Gardening what the A-Bomb did for Hiroshima.
You could not do much better than getting hold of any of the Books written by Myles Chalis (Regardless of title they all have the same content). A few very good designs and a nice selection of suggested plants-furthermore you can read it in an hour and become an expert.

[Frank]

as he has done for Gardening what the A-Bomb did for Hiroshima

Make history
Well thank you Don, perhaps not how I would have put it but in some strange way charming coming from you old git

[Don]

as he has done for Gardening what the A-Bomb did for Hiroshima

Make history
Well thank you Don, perhaps not how I would have put it but in some strange way charming coming from you old git

Sorry Frank my comment was totally out of order. You are to Gardening what Mcdonald's is to Haute cuisine
Perhaps we should persuade Freddy to erect a small ring in his garden in which we could mud wrestle.