As you can see, this is what it looked like upon arrival. The border is fairly narrow in places, so we chose plants that wouldn’t become too wide, nor higher than the wall, as they wanted ease with maintenance. It is clear to see where the grass has died off due the trees that overshadowed this area.
We started by digging over the border, removing the bulbs that were no longer wanted, and removing some of the Vinca. We then started incorporating horse manure compost whilst we planted hardy shrubs. This well rotted and composted manure is a fantastic product. It is great for conditioning the soil and giving the plants a good start.
We delivered a dumpy bag of mulch, which we used to thickly dress the border, along with the back corner around the compost bin and border along the white wall.
Once the border was finished, we moved our attention to the lawn. We worked out a rough area to cut to, and started scalping the turf. Thankfully the weather was dry, after a fair amount of rain, so it was easy to remove.
Joe is the newest member of the Secret Garden team. He studied at Agricultural college, and took care of the grounds maintenance at Taunton College for five years. He is a welcome addition to the garden maintenance team, and is dedicated to working outdoors. It was lovely experiencing a double rainbow over the garden whilst we got to know each other.
By the end of day one, the border was complete and the lawn was prepared. RTF (Rhizomatous, Tall Fescue) turf arrived the following morning. We raked the soil again, whilst laying the new pieces, adding soil to any areas that were slightly low. We lay the turf horizontally to the house, using the back border was a starting point, which was the only straight edge.
Pieces were then cut to fit the sides as we went along. We overlapped the turf across the rock edging, cutting it to give better cohesion. It blends in very well.
New turf needs to be watered daily for three weeks, whilst it’s roots establish. We are experiencing a lot of rain at the moment, with an emergency declared in nearby Somerset, so the grass should get a good watering to start off it’s life here in this garden.
We are very pleased with the outcome of this garden. Our work here has certainly freshened it up, and made it look more appealing for the coming of spring. Check back in with us soon to see what else we are up to.
