CM CLUB - Changing my back garden - need inspiration........

[looneytune]

I'm trying to talk dh into letting me make changes to the garden to make it better for the children. Although the kids enjoy it atm, it has lots of toys and of course we have several local parks for swings, slides etc, I'm just not happy with mine. I like a pretty garden but I can't maintain it any more, so I'd prefer to get rid of borders and stuff and design it more with the children in mind. I'll have the pretty garden at the front instead

Soooooo.........as you can't see my garden and help me design it, I thought you might like to share some ideas like what works well for you or what you may have seen elsewhere that would be good?

TIA

Should have said, I don't have a big garden so am quite limited unfortunately.

Open space works well for me. The children can always add balls, hoops, tents made out of old sheets etc if they have a blank space. A few pots for growing some simple flowers or fruit/veg are always fun.

Well we have the open space which I add toys to and apart from that, we have the water table to the side. I'm just not happy with the layout of mine but I don't know what I want to do to change it. Suppose I could take a pic when the garden is empty of toys and put it on my profile and see if anyone has any ideas

HSMM - I've never seen your garden or playroom - would love to invite myself round for a nosey some time

Looneytune - don't forget the sand, as well as the water.

Come round today if you like. I am supposed to be writing an essay and I have a blank word document and I am reading mumsnet!

oh yeah, got the sand of course. what i think i would like is a seperate area where my large border currently is and for it to have an area for sand and water play and an area for something else but not sure what and then the main bit for extras but I really can't decide atm.

kids are just eating lunch then will be having naps so wouldn't be able to come until after school which won't be best for you so maybe I should arrange with you for another time? thanks for letting me be nosey

We are popping out after school, so maybe Monday? What time is best for you? I have a pre school run at 1200.

switching to MSN

hi Looney have put some pics on profile of my back garden, its not anything posh, but it does work well.

Cheers Shoshe my lovely Looks like you have a MUCH bigger garden though!

I'll take a pic in a bit and you'll see the chaos in mine

What about a big table/picnic bench with sunshade of somekind or arts/crafts etc? board/wall painted with blackboard paint?? if wood could attach big paper to it too for painting?

Oh, I'm liking that We love arts and crafts and all that. Yes, I could have that as part of the section thing I mentioned

Off to wipe my memory card and quickly charge battery as it died earlier then will post some pics (must get a bigger memory card - take nearly 150 pics some days and it's getting silly having to keep wiping it! lol)

p.s. I already have a plastic kids picnic table which we've used to painting and stuff but what you've just put has given me an idea now

shoshe - any chance you could msn me those pics so i can have a closer look?

Have you got room for a small shed? It can be a kitchen, an arts room, house a chalk board, store toys for the winter, etc, etc (must pop round and have a nose sometime).

We've got a shed and a summer house. The shed is strictly for dh as we agreed I'd have the conservatory as the playroom and the summer house as a playhouse with the big kitchen in etc etc. The summerhouse is also storage but I'm working on alternative storage for some of the things so that I don't have so much to get out each time they want to play in it.

I'm starting to upload pics so will talk through them to give idea of my garden set up. And you're more than welcome anytime, I have after all invited myself to yours for a nosey

Ok, pics uploaded.

Very quickly as got school run.....

Pic 1 - shows view from the back door. The playroom (conservatory) is on the left.

Pic 2 - shows the main part of the garden

Pic 3 - shows my overgrown area that used to look nice but I can't keep on top of it these days so planning on ripping it all up and this is where I was thinking of building sections i.e. sand/water etc

Pic 4 - view of main part of garden from the other side

Pic 5 - shows the layout from the back of the garden

Pic 6 - shows the side we don't use due to bins etc.....thinking of some storage thing down there and a stairgate type of setup for stopping kids going down (although no mindees go down there anyway as know not to)

Pic 7 - shows the side bit leading back to house

Right, got to rush to school and will be there playing til time to make dinner so may not be back til later tonight but any more ideas would be great

Quick bit to add.........sounds like neighbours maybe getting rid of the hedging on the right and putting fence panels along there so would be a little more room and may be able to do something along that side????

We had our garden professionally re-done a few years ago to make it child-friendly for my work, but taking into account that it had to be a "grown-up garden" for the rest of the time. We wanted something that needed minimal care, so the worst job is just mowing the lawn.

We have a shaped patio stretching across the length of the house, with access from patio doors, so it can be used the whole year round for minding. We have a garden shed at the far end for garden tools etc. The children plant flower seeds in plant pots, which live on the patio.

The climbing frame/swing is in the far corner and not visible from the house (bushes planted) - we had a large area dug out and filled with bark to make it safe.

We've got shaped borders around the garden, with a lawn in the middle, but all of the planting is trees and shrubs (lots of flowers on them in the summer), and the children can crawl and tunnel through it all. We have a hedgehog living in a little wooden house hidden amongst it! Bark was put across all the beds and we don't have to weed. We were careful to make sure that all the shrubs were non-poisonous.

All the sit'n'ride toys, sandpit, slide, water play table etc. are stored by the climbing frame and brought out onto the lawn during my working week.

I would describe our garden as "pretty" as we have ensured that we have flowering shrubs, trailing honesuckle and clematis, and try to have "smelly" flowers in pots.

We just done our garden, one half is grassed so can kick a footy around and the other half is barked and has sandpit, slides, little climbing frame, kitchen and toy chest which the kids absolutley love. We have flower beds which seperates the kids and adult space. Children are encourage to spend time in the adult space as in summer we eat most meals outside at the table. Recently inspected and Ofsted loved it (even though it was work in progess). I did ask the inspector about plants as we are buying loads at the mo, and was told what they are and if poisonous or not it's perfectly ok to plant whatever we wish.

Saz - sounds fab too. It's you talking about yours that got me thinking about mine!! lol Well, that and the fact my own crawling boy loves the garden but is into everything so want to change bits to make me less stressed when he's out there!!!

The kids will still have their little pots and I'll have some kind of flower arrangement but it might be in hanging baskets. The front is quite pretty in the spring and I'm going to add stuff there for us adults. It's where the patio set is as it's got a little paved area for it as the sun is better at the front of the house!

Next job is deciding what to grow at our new allotment!!!

Bumpity bump for more ideas