How does a complete beginner turn her garden into something beautiful for summer?
Start by looking at what others in the neighbourhood have planted – what looks good? Have a chat to your local nursery people as well – they’ll have a good idea as to what is doable. Plan out what you want. Sit on the deck and look around. What parts of the view do you want to keep, what do you want to hide? What would look good- a stand of trees here (ie 3 silver birches, or 3 plums or whatever) – some wild undergrowth there. Vary the height of the garden – even with a wild garden you want some focal points, like a lovely tree, with bulbs and groundcover planted underneath. There are quite of lot of plants that are easy propogatable – see if you have friends or family that will let you take cuttings (rosemary or pigface is divine for this) or divide roots. A no dig garden might be a good option – you can then spend your money on the garden not the muscle. http://www.abc.net.
