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I have a small town garden (L-shaped, approx 13 metres x 10 metres with a side bit tacked on, and a small bit of front garden) and a 6x6 foot greenhouse, with a lean-to wardrobe-sized greenhouse. And a brick shed and a workshop. This doesn't stop me from trying to grow wildly unsuitable things like gunneras, tree dahlias, rheums and pawlonias. I like to think of my garden as being like the Tardis, with a lot more in it than would appear possible from the outside. Some of it is laid down to patio, but I dug up the scruffy lawn years ago so it is mostly flowerbed. Last spring I built 3 canal-shaped ponds which total about 20 square feet of water surface. I hate dreary conifers and love anything with big, luscious leaves. I've collected a lot of salvias because they're so easy to propagate and they flower late; I don't find that they flower very profusely, however, so I've gone off them a bit. I enjoy ordering seeds from the RHS seed-list and other sources and have raised some interesting plants from them. My focus at the moment has been on big-leaved plants and fragrant plants. I also try to raise less common annuals, but get frustrated by my lack of success with this. I find taking cuttings a magical and fascinating process.
I like my garden to be absolutely packed with no bare earth visible. When there's no room for anything new I take out an old lemon balm or a clump of yellow lysimachia to make way for it. The downside is that plants are jostling for light and nutrients so although the overall effect is good, individuals don't do as well as they could.
I'll happily take on tender plants and am prepared to make a lot of effort to overwinter them by means of greenhouse, paraffin and bubblewrap!

I live in: United Kingdom

My zone is: UK Central

My favorite forum 1 is Fragrant Plants.

First registered on April 26,2003.