OK
Let's hear some ideas and see some plans from everyone.....if you have a totally blank area that has to be reworked...the only thing you have to consider is there has to be room for the tractor to get thru.
Here' the area.....
Full sun
25' wide and 40' long with the fence gate at the top left corner
Let's get those creative juices flowing!!!!
Well maybe not what you are thinking of but if I had an area this size, 20'x40', in full sun I would make a berry patch. First I would place four arbors, one at each corner. Make paths from top L corner to bottom Rt corner and top Rt corner to bottom L corner to form a X. A circle at the center intersection about 4 or 5 ft round with three tiers for ever bearing strawberries. The top and bottom triangle created by the paths would be red and black thornless raspberries. The two side triangle beds would have a combination of high and low bush blueberries. A perimeter of 1' square terra cotta stepping stones just inside the fence for access for picking. Alternating red and white grapes on the arbors and middle of each side of the garden to grow on the fence.
You would have to leave a space on the left side for your tractor to go through and put a fence around the patch.
This message was edited Jun 20, 2010 8:37 AM
I would put in a water garden....always wanted one.
I agree - water garden.
Cool idea, Patti
Ok Robin, Victor...details, please...path??? with what? flowers? colors? etc
Start with the pond/stream/fountain, or whatever. That's big enough for now. Once it's working, then get going on the plants and other elements.
Jeez, I have no idea, because I wouldn't know what to do with full sun. The first thing that comes to mind for me is daylilies- mine would kill for full sun! But I think DL's are so unappealing, foliage wise, when not in bloom... So I vote for water garden, too!
ngam, I didn't know you could get thornless raspberries! I have the thorny, weedy ones that are a royal pain.
Come on, Victor you're not playing fair...I want DETAILS....photos, plans, drawings...work with me here.
Do you have a large nursery nearby, Jen? They could show you many different designs for a water garden....friends had one with a waterfall tumbling down a rocky slope...the pond was kidney shaped, flat rocks lining the sides...it was in the shade, so they had ferns along the sides, water hyacinths floating (pots were on the bottom), & the birds loved it all!
I'm really surprised with our talkative bunch there are not more ideas flowing.
Fruit tree orchard?
The heat has gotten to our brains! How about granite curved bench with small trees like magnolias in the back, & perennials in front? We donated a granite bench to my SIL's school when she passed away, & a mother from the school designed the garden around it.
No swimming pool??
Swimming pool will be going in the back yard.
Big Lots has those big blow up ones on sale this coming week for only $69 I may have to go get one...at least it's something!!!
Is the blank slate area near where you hang, or close to a window? If not, don't do a water feature there.
Nope just the garage windows, those don't get opened
Ditto on a water feature with a luvly sitting area under some largish trees (maybe one big speciman tree) on the north side of the feature where you can relax and sip refreshing beverages or a gazebo covered in clemmies and climbing roses. Water feature could be a series of pools that cascade down into each other with the little falls to the sides so there are quiet pools for water plants. Big falls are too noisy so little burbling falls would be my choice. The lowest level should have some form of comfy shelf/seat so you can sit and paddle your feet in the lower pool. Also I would have a small spray/bubbler in one of the pools for the birds. I think the access to the water feature should meander through beds of your favorite plants flowerjen. A rose bed and a dahlia bed would be in there if it was my blank slate. This is VERY exciting and I am GREEEN that you have so much space in your blank slate. Can't wait to see what you decide to do ^_^
See D-Nut that's what I'm talking about!!! Details, dream a little...make pretend it's YOUR blank slate.
And a guy named Turk giving you a massage...
Oh YEAH!!! Make it Andre.
or Sven.
I think one is enough.
oooh, what fun reading all of these ideas! I like them all, but I think I'd take Pat's idea and instead of all berries, I'd configure it like she describes, but I'd have colorful sections of perennials and annuals to walk through. I'd have a blue & white garden section with a mix of blues (tall delphs, blue iris's, blue geraniums, salvia, lots of low lobelia - all mixed in with whites (lupines, roses, geraniums, shastas, moonflowers) and a hot colors section with magentas, hot pinks, purples and a few oranges (coneflowers, blanket flowers, hardy geranium, spirea, astilbe, clems, tall salvia, annual petunias and spreading million bells); The center section could have Pat's berries in tiers or it could have a couple of lovely foliage shade trees (JMs?) with a comfy garden bench in between to look out over the colors; another section would be all daylilies and iris's and the other section would have bright reds, deep purples and whites (scarlet monarda, shastas, butterfly bushes and roses perhaps). If you've been to Elizabeth Park in Hartford......that's what I'm talking about! Whatever you do, make it a place that fills your soul!!
Whatever you decide on, Jen, I would seriously consider some berms to get some elevation changes in your garden.
Yes, that's a great idea.
Yes....very good point!
I TOTALLY luv the new ideas but flowerjen methinks you should keep Sven in the plan (just my thoughts but methinks that whatever design you dcide on it should include a Sven ^_^) OK my outside voice is saying flowerjen you should create as you shoud and it will be wonderous ( ok just being silent on sven again) still luvin this whole idea...
I concur with the watergarden. My "vision" is similar to d-nut's. I would probably opt for a pondless stream meandering the entire length with a few small cascades. Make it curvy as well so that it crosses the entire 20 foot width once or twice. Incorporate a pathway that follows the stream (and, of course, bridges to cross over) and then arrange the plantings so that you cannot see the entire feature all at once. Each section is a mystery that must be explored. Add a bench or two (or stones) for sitting and contemplation along the way. Second thought, go with the bench since you've got the dual masseuse thing going! Now, if this was really MY blank slate the masseuse's name would be Shemar Moore, or something like that :)
Doesn't sound like an ideal location for a water garden. Can't see or hear it from inside.
I love the water/stream ideas, but most of the people I know who have ponds with liners think they are too much maintenance and eventually wish they had not done them. I'm still open to it at some point here, but I have people constantly trying to talk me out of it. The pondless stream is probably a better way to go.
Although I agree that it would be ideal to see/hear it from the inside, I would never be without a watergarden again, even if it means it goes in a less than ideal location. To me, the stream would be such a draw that the spot, no matter where it is, would become a destination.
As for the maintenance, I think the level of maintenance depends on how the feature is designed, along with a few other factors. My watergarden is very low maintenance. The rest of my garden, on the other hand, requires far more maintenance than my pond and stream!
With no fish now, my pond is not much maintenance at all.
Sure, blame the poor fish!
Funny. Well, I DO have fish and the maintenance is still minimal.
Keep telling me that!! You might convince me to take the path of reckless abandon! LOL
Koi, Christina?? With fish you have to watch the water quality/chemistry. Also have to feed them, watch the temperature, keep a hole in the ice... Goes on and on. Was another chore I did not need.
I have 3 small koi and about a dozen comets/goldfish. I have not tested the water once in 4 years. I toss the fish a small handful of food when I feel like it - maybe 2-3 times a week. (I let them eat bugs the rest of the time). My pond is shaded so the temperature almost never goes higher than the 70s. I use a small deicer to keep a hole in the ice during winter, but that's just a matter of dropping it in the pond as it starts to form a thin film of ice.
All that said, I know that ponds CAN be high maintenance and they are not for everyone so I don't mean to suggest that there are not potential challenges. My first year pond was terrible - I couldn't get the water chemistry right. Fish kept dying, water looked terrible and I was always messing with it to try to "fix it". I totally rebuilt it the following year and I vowed that I would just leave it alone and not stress over it. I've kept to that promise and it's been nothing but a source of joy. I think design is a huge part of determining how much maintenance is involved, but sometimes there are things outside of one's control too. I live on a lake so I do occasionally lose fish to a heron, but I have convinced myself that even that is okay. Honestly, I do get a little sad when I lose one, but it's all part of the circle of life and I enjoy seeing the heron up close. So I refuse to net the pond or go through all kinds of hassle to prevent the inevitable. I just think of it as population control - I don't have to worry that my pond will get overrun by goldfish!
Small is the operative word. Once the koi get big, and they get BIG, you have to check the water or they will be dead. All their poop creates lots of nitrates and other yuckies.
In general, the less done the better when no fish are involved. I don't care about crystal clear water, as many do. What pond in nature is?!!
