Help / ideas for a low / zero maintenance garden

[lovetolounge]

Hi all,

I bought my house a couple of months back, the back garden was very overgrown and the grass had reseeded in to that really ugly kind of tough grass (if that makes sense) .

I thought of laying new turf, but with my busy lifestyle I'm aiming for a very low maintenance garden.

My ideas so far include a railway sleeper seating area, ambient lighting, a fire pit and a small water feature, i want to be able to get home from a long day at work, crack open a bottle of red wine, light the fire and relax outside.

Has anyone took on a project like this before? can you post pictures if so, or post pictures of gardens you have seen that may give me ideas

Many Thanks

 

[Ian]

Welcome to the forums!

How about a nice concrete garden? A pressure wash once per year is about all it needs

I'm sure that you'll get some good ideas from here, but first it would help to know where you're from as we've got members all over the globe so something that may work in the UK may not be suitable for Texas weather. Have you got any photos of what it looks like so far, as that may inspire us too.

 

[lovetolounge]

Thanks

Sorry i should have stated that I'm from the UK, it's not too big and It's a mess at the moment, the shed is being ripped down soon and I'm hoping to start with a level square of mud to build upon.

Here's a pic :

 

[Shamom]

Just for lawn ideas, one i have seen that took some seeding but sounded lovely was an herbal lawn. There are many herbs that survive well being crushed underfoot and traditionally used to actually be used as lawns along with grass, a few hundred years ago. I believe some varieties of creeping thyme, i know at least one variety of chamomile, and others. They end up making a lawn that releases a beautiful fragrance whenever it is walked on.

This link is based on American grasses with herbal l ans but it gives a general idea: http://www.motherearthliving.com/gardening/herbal-lawns

 

[DeborahJane]

Thanks

Sorry i should have stated that I'm from the UK, it's not too big and It's a mess at the moment, the shed is being ripped down soon and I'm hoping to start with a level square of mud to build upon.

Here's a pic :

Welcome lovetolounge. Here in Australia we have a great gardening show called Gardenig Australia, funnily enough. Recently one of the presenters, Jane said "low maintenance is not no maintenance" and i keep telling myself just that. One of my favourite times of the day is to wander around my garden, secataurs in one hand and a glass of wine in the other so "you can have your cake and eat it too" i am lucky enough to be not working now so i am not under the same pressure as some of you guys. I'm sure you'll find inspiration and information to get your haven happening .

 

[Olynea Orginals]

First thing I think of when someone says low maintenance is "native." Start by using native plants that wont require much care.

I personally like railway ties but I've been swayed away from them due to their toxicity.

Looks like a yard with a lot of potential, and I noticed that you edited the picture (hiding something)

 

[Greenhorn]

Olynea has a good suggestion, plants of the area (or similar climate) would typically be best adapted to your soil, temperatures and moisture. You don't have to work at maintaining an artificial environment. Another key would be plant size, if you want low maintenance have a big enough space for the plant to grow into when it's full grown. You have to start small and be patient.

 

[Beth_B]

Nice responses but the original poster hasn't ever signed back to this site since Sept 15 2014, over two years ago. A day after he/she joined.

So I dont think the OP is much interested in responses here at this point.

The "similar threads" thingie is almost always very old ones, where the OP (original poster) is long, long gone and will surely never see, never mind be interested in, two-plus year old responses.