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Mike's ext'n & renovation (sunroom stone floor & plinth)

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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby StevieB » 09 Jul 2020, 07:34

That is going to look stunning when finished Mike - very impressive!
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 09 Jul 2020, 10:45

Thanks Steve.

So, to the collective mind.......what do we stick in the middle of the middle squares? Originally they were going to have an urn planter on a small plinth, but those are high maintenance, and look poor in the winter. We could do a feature small tree (a bay, for instance, or an ornamental willow), a piece of gentle topiary, a climber up a steel frame, or a bird bath/ fountain thingamejig. I've never done a formal garden before, so haven't a clear idea of how I want this to look. Whaddyareckon?
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby 9fingers » 09 Jul 2020, 10:51

SO is the plan to have a different surface/planting in each of the regions between the wall and the forms?
Any grass wanted in any region?
Canvas is a bit too blank to know what to suggest at the moment :lol:

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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby TrimTheKing » 09 Jul 2020, 11:06

I don't 'get' the steel. :eusa-think:

Won't that just rot away over time? Is it just there for the initial setting out of the garden for giving a boundary to work up to, with the view that it will disappear over time?
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 09 Jul 2020, 12:39

The steel differentiates a path from planting. The planting is outside the outer steel square, and inside the inner square, with a shingle path in between. Steel garden edging is pretty common, and should last decades (it's 3mm steel). The alternative was some bendy plastic, which we really didn't like and I couldn't be sure of getting straight, or wood, which would rot away quickly and I'd struggle with those curvy bits.

It's too muddy to do any work out there today, but tomorrow I'll locate everything and bash them down to the correct level, and the effect will then become pretty obvious. In the meantime, here is a clue as to what we are trying to achieve:

Image
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby TrimTheKing » 09 Jul 2020, 12:43

Ah okay, I get it now, thanks Mike.

So back to your original question, I suggest you commission someone to make a 2 life size fountain statues of me, replicating the Mannekin Pis, one for each side, facing each other.

The strength of the water jets could then be powered with pumps to create a Vegas style light and water show with my ‘urinations’ jetting across the central path from one side to the other.

That would be absolutely perfect!
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 09 Jul 2020, 13:00

:lol:

Thanks Mark. Clearly just what we needed. No idea why I didn't think of that. I'm not sure why "lifesize", though. These clearly should be at least twice life size. :lol:
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby TrimTheKing » 09 Jul 2020, 13:14

Mike G wrote::lol:

Thanks Mark. Clearly just what we needed. No idea why I didn't think of that. I'm not sure why "lifesize", though. These clearly should be at least twice life size. :lol:


:lol: At least!
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby firedfromthecircus » 09 Jul 2020, 14:23

Mike G wrote:Thanks Steve.

So, to the collective mind.......what do we stick in the middle of the middle squares? Originally they were going to have an urn planter on a small plinth, but those are high maintenance, and look poor in the winter. We could do a feature small tree (a bay, for instance, or an ornamental willow), a piece of gentle topiary, a climber up a steel frame, or a bird bath/ fountain thingamejig. I've never done a formal garden before, so haven't a clear idea of how I want this to look. Whaddyareckon?


What's the orientation?

Would a sundial, armillary, weather-vane, moondial work?
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 09 Jul 2020, 15:07

The front of the house faces due west, and with trees directly across the narrow lane it's quite shady. Good idea, but I don't think it's the answer.
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby chataigner » 09 Jul 2020, 15:47

Trees would need to be evergreen to look decent in the winter, how about conifers ? A slow growing naturally conical variety that could be trimmed if they get too exuberant.

This a quick prototype knocked up by LeNotre for the French monarch : Image
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Rod » 09 Jul 2020, 16:09

Bay trees grow quite large and are high maintenance.
How about box or yew?

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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby greeno » 09 Jul 2020, 16:45

These guys do some nice stuff.

One of their obelisks in each centre would look good. Although not a clue what to grow up it.

https://www.harrodhorticultural.com/gar ... id113.html
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby chataigner » 09 Jul 2020, 16:55

Rod wrote:Bay trees grow quite large and are high maintenance.
How about box or yew?

Rod


That's a good idea, yew is slow growing and there are some great slim varieties like Taxus Baccata Standishii

Image
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 09 Jul 2020, 17:31

Yep, yew was my first choice. It could be easily clipped into a nice simple shape, say a tall thin pyramid.
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Andyp » 09 Jul 2020, 20:43

I
Mike G wrote:
Image


Is that box hedging in the plan? Hardly low maintenance
I do not think therefore I do not am.

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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 09 Jul 2020, 21:13

Yes, it is. It's only a quick clip now and then, and not for 4 or 5 years anyway.
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Andyp » 09 Jul 2020, 22:41

That’s what I thought. I’ve clipped mine 3 times this year already and they look untidy again and being low down is back breaking. Maybe I have a fast growing variety.
Make sure never to clip on a bright sunny day as the cut leaves will scorch and look dreadful.
I do not think therefore I do not am.

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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby RogerS » 10 Jul 2020, 07:12

If you do go down the box route, be very careful where you buy your box from as box blight is a fairly prevalent disease. There are alternatives :

(taken from the RHS site)

Berberis darwinii 'Compacta'
Berberis thunbergii ‘Atropurpurea Nana' AGM
Elaeagnus × submacrophylla 'Compacta'
Euonymus fortunei (various cultivars)
Ilex crenata
Lonicera nitida 'Maigrün'
L. nitida 'Baggesen's Gold' AGM
Luma apiculata 'Glanleam Gold'
Osmanthus delavayi AGM
Pittosporum 'Arundel Green' AGM
P. 'Collaig Silver'
P. 'Oliver Twist'
P. tenuifolium 'Golf Ball' (PBR)
Podocarpus 'Chocolate Box'
P. 'Young Rusty'
Rhododendron Bloombux ('Microhirs3'PBR)
Taxus baccata 'Repandens' AGM
Ugni molinae,U. molinae 'Butterball'

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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 10 Jul 2020, 07:56

Thanks Roger. We'll have a look at those.
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 10 Jul 2020, 07:56

Andyp wrote:That’s what I thought. I’ve clipped mine 3 times this year already and they look untidy again and being low down is back breaking. Maybe I have a fast growing variety.
Make sure never to clip on a bright sunny day as the cut leaves will scorch and look dreadful.


Good tip! Ta muchly.....
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Phil » 10 Jul 2020, 18:32

Mike, that wall really looks good. Not what I had visioned.

Any reason for going the formal garden route? Or is that out of your hands? :D :D
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Mike G » 10 Jul 2020, 21:10

Thanks Phil. Firstly, it is about low maintenance. We've got a big garden already, and don't want a high-upkeep addition at the front. Secondly, with the porch bang in the middle of the facade, it is hard to avoid symmetry, and there is nothing worse than near symmetry. So that pushed us in the direction of a formal garden, which has long roots in Britain anyway, and is something we haven't tried before. We'll see how it works out. Anyway, here are a few more photos:

Image

Image

Image

The other side needs a little digging tomorrow, but the steel is in:

Image
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby Malc2098 » 10 Jul 2020, 22:47

Nice.
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Re: Mike's extension & renovation (front garden)

Postby RogerS » 11 Jul 2020, 11:08

OK, Mike. Here's the 'skinny' from my missus (who has exceptionally green fingers and does a huge amount of research constantly before committing her time, money and emotion).

www.hedgenursery.co.uk are the only RHS endorsed nursery in England and based in Herefordshire. She has bought various types of hedging from them for a number of years - oak/maple/hornbeam etc. All excellent quality and she recommends them unreservedly. However, at the moment they only have one type of buxus but that is only because now is not the time to be planting - which, as I'm sure you know, is autumn. So the chances are that more varieties will become available closer to the time.

They grow their own hedging and trees which is vital ...see later.

She knows of one specialist nursery www.boxtrees.com but has never bought anything from them. However, their website has a lot of information on buxus. Growing height etc.

She says on no account (not that you would!) buy from DIY sheds/garden sheds or perhaps even smaller nurseries because they import from Holland and Italy. Along with a wide range of diseases and pathogens and unwanted livestock. Hence the importance of Hedgenursery growing their own.

Hope this helps.

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