To wish I didn't have a garden

[Wildernessgarden]

I know I am and just need reminding that I should be grateful. But my stomach lurches just looking out the window. Not sure I'll ever get it sorted.

I hate gardening and I don't know where to start. It's like a jungle. There is barely any lawn left, few patches of grass, mostly 2 foot high weeds. Huge out of control trees, overgrown hedges and some crazy vine that covers every thing. Several broken fence panels. Random raised bits. The concrete paths are cracked and mossy. Rotting falling apart sheds. Front and back.

Like this -

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I feel the same. We have a large front and back. I think we should have thought about this before we got the house. One side to us has tarnac and the other who often tells me how her garden is her pride has her dad come round twice a week to do it for her! We keep it mowed and tidy but I am sure a good gardener would be horrified at some of the bushes out the back. We work full time so hard to do esp if not a natural gardener

OP, even 20 minutes a day can make a difference, especially if the kids help. Being outside in the fresh air, getting your hands in the earth, smelling the fresh greenery - it does wonders for your sense of calm and well being.
Just mowing a rough grass area for the kids to play ball would be a great start. Don’t look at the whole thing and feel daunted, just tackle a small area at a time, and enjoy planning what you’d like to do with it. It will soon begin to look more attractive as each wee patch gets tamed!

Look on local FB groups there’s usually young lads with a petrol strimmer who’ll blast it fairly cheaply, round here they charge £20/30.
Go low maintenance; get it all cut back, chuck down grass seeds where needed(very cheap) bark chips on flower bed/earth areas and brighten up with tubs of flowers. Get a deck scrubber and clean up slabs. This can be done v.cheaply and get the DC stuck in.

Definitely have a go with the strimmer. Then try to mow the lawn regularly. The grass will respond well to regular cutting, whereas the weeds hate it. And it's one of those things that if you do it, the rest of the garden immediately looks better. My garden is a complete state, but my dad mows my lawn at least twice a week and it genuinely makes the whole thing look cared for.

I hate my garden too and think I’ve posted this exact same thread before.
I’ve accepted that I’m never going to have a stunning garden but I am happy with it neat and tidy and I keep on top of this by doing regular grass cutting/weeding. I pay someone for hedge trimming/more difficult things.
Just keep your expectations low and try to keep it neat and tidy, small amounts when you can so agree with pp that even 20 mins a day will help

If your neighbours have a lovely garden I’d honestly start with them. Ask their advice, they might even volunteer to help.

Can you have a gardener in as a one off for a big chop back? We have friends who have someone come in twice a year otherwise they can't keep on top of it.

Absolutely ask the neighbour for advice. Shame you’re not my neighbour, I love overgrown gardens to get stuck into. Can you post a picture to give us an idea of how it is ?

You might find a nice person who does not have a garden but wants to grow vegetables, they could dig it and plant things and give you some veg as rent!

If you tackle it and getting it looking decent you will feel great . It's nice to have a garden some place to sit in the sun and let dc play . Since my NDN moved in the garden has been left and it used to be lovely. It's like a jungle and their kids play in the road as the garden is a mess , I just think it's a shame.

OP, great suggestions above.

Use the strimmer.
Cut the grass.
Ask neighbours for advice as there garden is so lovely. You'd be amazed at how helpful people can be when flattered!

Check locally for cheap help.
Even a few teens might be able to help with a general clean up.
FB might indeed have some contacts for inexpensive help.

Check garden sites for budget decorating ideas.
Local second hand shops, furniture shops can be a great source of pieces that can be up-cycled.

I saw pictures of a before and after garden on a budget.
Old mix of wooden furniture, a huge mix of different pots, an old ladder, couple of mirrors all bought for next to nothing were utterly transformed with a couple of pots of paint.

The first thing is to do as big a clear out as you can.

The payback of a garden you love is simply priceless IMO.

The children will adore the space you create for them.

Best of luck.

When my kids were little the garden felt like a burden.

Now it’s my pride and joy - nothing special but some lovely trees and shrubs and a beautiful lawn.

Maybe if your neighbours make another comment, you could tell them you wish you had more time or someone to help tidy it up. You never know, they may offer to help!

Lovely as the neighbours seem I'm not sure they'd have time to help. They work and have children younger than mine. I think they have some parents who help with the gardening.

But I think maybe an hour a day would definitely be doable for a while. Will make a difference.

There's about 4m fence missing and the whole length really needs replacing. Can't tackle that but it could still look a lot better.

Eldest DC seemed quite up for helping. We have a BBQ we have never unpacked so that seemed like good motivation.

I'll see if I can get some pics once youngest asleep.

This shows the back garden. It's actually quite small. The concrete patio is ugly but just needs junk removing.

There is a paved area tucked away at the bottom that I need to clear old toys from.

People seem to wait years for an allotment patch and I think pay for them. How about offering it to someone as a veg garden if they do the work? I'm sure that'd be up someone's street.

Seen pics now. That's looks lovely to me - I hate tidy gardens.

That’s a good garden, if I was nearby Id whip it into shape over a weekend, lots of potential.

You have to see the garden as an extra room! I can only keep on top of mine by keeping it simple and sorting it out regularly at least once a week, 2 weeks max.

Maybe I've been too negative?

It was good to go and take photos. I've been avoiding going out back because I didn't want to see how bad it was.

I remembered correctly that there is virtually no grass though.

Honestly OP, that isn't too bad at all.

Going mental with a strimmer for an hour an evening would make a huge difference😄.

With all clean ups, it's the starting that's daunting.

I bet when you do, you'll get into and enjoy it.
A garden gives you back 10 times what you put into it.

That's why it's so addictive.

Most of it looks like bind weed - you can pull it out quite easily- you can strim the tops but you will need to dig out the roots at some point as it’ll come back - just don’t rotovate it it’ll make it worse. It really doesn’t look that bad

That vine thing you mention is bindweed, OP. It’s pretty invasive and a bugger to get rid of completely but also quite easy to pull off vast quantities of it quickly. If your neighbours are gardeners then they will want you to keep it under control because it’ll spread into their gardens if you don’t.

One of the reasons it’s so hard to get rid of is that it can re-grow from a really small piece of root, so when you pull it up put it into black bin bags or garden sacks and either a garden waste bin (if you have one) or down to the local recycling centre. If you just pile it up to compost it’ll start growing again.

I reckon if you pull a load of bindweed the whole garden will feel neater immediately . Once you’ve got it up once train your DC to spot and pick out any shoots.

OP, it's not that bad, a bit messy maybe, but wildlife/insects prefer this and its better than a pristine desert. It's got a lot going for it, mature shrubs and trees for birds/privacy and looks a nice size. It has real potential.
I love gardening and I get sick of it at times, it's an ongoing chore and can be hard work.
Just do a bit at a time every night, 20/30 minutes or so. It does make a real difference.

Agree with the posts about the bindweed too, it will make a massive difference getting rid of that.