HELP!!!!!! I AM IN URGENT NEED OF GARDENING ADVICE AND HELP

[msdevine]

Hi,

I moved into my house a year ago. Its the first time i have had a garden. The garden was the reason i chose this place, having two children I really was desperate for them to have a garden to play in.

However, the garden is not very practical for children, half the garden is covered in stones and the other half grass ( if you can call it that) and soil.

The weeds seem to grow again as soon as i pull them out, i just can not seem to get control of my garden. I rent the property so do not want to spend loads of money on it but i can not go on with it like this and really want to improve it so there will be better play space for the children to play.

The problem is I have no idea where to start. I would love someone to help me but do not have the finances to pay a gardener. I would love to talk to someone who knows a lot about gardening, loves gardening or has links with people who do gardening at an affordable rate. I am in west London

thanks

[casbie]

If you are in rented accomodation ask the landlord to sort out the garden and make it level/remove rocks as it is a health and safety issue with your young children running around.

If you have to do it yourself, it means a lot of backbreaking work, moving stones, creating beds and a lawn (?). And perhaps one to two years before plants etc establish themselves.

I could give you a plan of what to do, where, but the hard-work would have to be yours or a paid landscaper!

[LadyOfTheFlowers]

Agree, it does sound like a hard old slog - including loads of manual.

[notimetoshop]

By stones though, do you mean they've gravelled it? Rather than it's just stony soil.

[msdevine]

yes not stones in soil half the garden is gravel. The rest is grass but the grass is dead and then there are some really big areas of just soil where i have pulled out weeds.

My landlord lives abroad i took the flat on with the agreement that i would sort out things like that.

It would be good to turf the area that has the soil and grass and put paving stones where the gravel is.

I am just so clueless about gardening. I also want to plant a vegetable patch. I have already done green beans with the children. They were great for about 2 months but have died off now.

[msdevine]

I suppose what i am looking for is recomendation for someone who can help me out. I do not just want to search the phone book and end up with a dodgy gardener/landscaper it would be good to find someone that has already done good work for someone else.

[msdevine]

ok that sounds good i think i may look into that. Thanks mrsmagnolia

can i just scatter the seeds even on the soil area?

[msdevine]

thanks thats really helpful i think that sounds like the most sensible thing to do. I checked out some prices for laying turf and patio and I wont be doing that i have decided as i might move out of here next year and thats a lot of money to spend on someone elses garden.

DOES ANY ONE NEED SOIL??????

If i am going to put down the grass seeds I need to level the soil, there is a huge area at the back of the garden which is like a mountain of soil. I have nowhere to put it. So if anyone is in need of some they can have it.

There are two lawnmowers in the shed I got them out last summer to mow the lawn and neither of them work, they don't even look old. I've no idea what the problem is so i have been cutting the grass with a strimmer.

That book sounds like it could be good. I will have to order it, what a great price.