Unsurprisingly nothing has really changed in the front garden since last month’s post. It is as drab as ever. Though to be honest the grass that is growing amongst the expanding moss is getting longer but it never dries out enough to be cut. I am very hopeful that the weather will start to warm up over the next couple of weeks so I can get on with all the plant moves I have planned for this area.
I started them yesterday morning by digging up three nondescript Cornus from in front of the Birch. They had been planted there probably 2 or 3 years ago and has just sat there. I suspect that it is just too dry for them and there is too much competition from the laurel hedge, birch and Grevillea. Instead I have some Phlomis russelina which I want to plant in front of the birch. I think their architectural leaves will look excellent against the birch especially in the winter when they are frosted and they will provide a nice contrast to the Grevillea.
When we had a slightly warmer spell, or should I say day, earlier in the month I did start to tidy the border by the driveway and mulch it. I have still to finish this but I need some more mulch and I didn’t think it would be a good idea to mulch on frozen soil! I have a small bay tree which is going into this border hopefully this weekend if I can get it out of its pot. This should add some height to what I see as a very flat area. The tulips, alliums and narcissus are all being to sprout so hopefully there will be some color soon. I am at the point where I need to see what I have planted, perennial and bulb wise, do their stuff before I can understand what else needs to be done.
Then there is bamboo corner, or the corner of doom, to deal with. I have to finish squaring off the lawn here (this is also apparent in the photo above) then I need to clear the bed and re-do the planting. I want to add some shrubs to provide structure with the bamboo and help to screen next door’s wall before adding the smaller perennials. The original intention was that the ‘lawn’ wouldn’t go as far as the path along the top of it and instead there would be a border with a stepping stone in the middle. I am now hesitating on this and wondering if that will make cutting the grass a nuisance, also its quite shady here so I need to come up with some low plants (I don’t want to block light to the living room) that will also be robust if they are accidentally stood on.
There is also the issue of moving the large Cistus from under the living room window. This is going towards the front of the front garden and again I think the evergreen foliage will provide a nice contrast to the Grevillea although I will need to so some cosmetic pruning first.
So there is my front garden this month which I am not very proud of but I really need to sort out as its embarrassing. Featuring it on the End of Month posts is shaming me into sorting it out – well that’s the plan – if the EOMV suddenly stop you will know I have failed!!
If you would like to join in with this meme you are very welcome – add a link to your post in the comments box and please link to this post from your blog so readers can find other EOMV posts. There are no rules about what you post. Maybe you want to focus on one area through the year or given a general tour, whatever suits you is fine with me.