The lass who neglected a cactus is no more...

[AllRoadsLeadBackToRadley]

Never did I EVER think I'd be browsing the gardening section!

We moved house in November, and, for the first time in my adult life I have a garden! Two, actually! Front and back!

One issue...I don't know how to garden!

I'm starting small. I've planted some spinach and rocket in planters, and some basil.

They. Will. Not. Be. Left. To. Die.

DH and the DC are pissing themselves- they know my history with house plants!

I actually own a gardening ebook now!

There are plants in the front garden already- lavender, and random ones which I have no clue of the species! Will I have to wait for the summer to identify them? Any experts out there fancy having a go if I post a few pics?

Oh, and I have three potatoes in an old box, which I'm waiting to sprout, before I plop them in an old sack and forget lovingly nurture them 😂

The tenants before me planted them. There's also lavender plante all the way around it. I'd love to keep them if I can rescue them! How?

The back garden, I'd like mostly edible, with a few flowers to attract the wildlife. I like roses, and I'm not a big fan of small flowers- the type in a bed that I always used to get torn a new one if I trampled or breathed on? 😂

DH suggested pampers grass. I had to explain...

Re: trees.

Can you see that wall? There's steps on the other side leading up to the garden. I'm petrified I'm going to fall off it one day while I'm on the lawn! What do you think of planting a few fruit trees along it, on the lawn side? It'll create a sort of barrier, won't it?

Posting from upstairs. As you can see, I'm no photographer, but you get the idea.

Excuse the dumping ground at the front!

Forgot the pic! Duh!

You are me 2 years ago....

4 things which helped:

1) Monty Don's weekend gardener breaks things down into small jobs, assuming you only want to spend 2 weekends a month keeping things ticking over

2) GardenAnswers app is amazing, take a picture of a plant/ flower and it looks up similar looking plants. Incredibly helpful if things pop up and you don't know what they are

3) leave things for a year and 4) map out what appears where - we had things popping up all over the place and only now do I have a grasp of what we have.

If I was to actually leave it for a year, what would you recommend I do until then?

Sorry- posted too soon. I mean:

Cut the grass?

Get some seating?

Sort out the lavender in the front garden?

Yes, that's what we did. Bit of maintenance, cutting things back as needed, cutting the grass, whipping out weeds. This year we're moving things around and getting the veg patch started.

That being said, we did move into a house with gardens full of mature plants. The previous owners had won gardening competitions. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing and was completely overwhelmed and worried I might kill off something really lovely...

Allroads, have a look at ballerina fruit trees. They're on dwarfing rootstocks and are very easy to manage. Probably a bit late to be planting them , or roses this spring. As a pp said, courgettes, beans (runner, dwarf french) are good croppers, and pretty easy to grow. Some runners also have quite decent flowers. Carrots are lovely, even eaten as thinnings. Onions are very simple. Grow from sets, same goes for shallots.

Fab ideas- thank you! We eat a fuckload of:

Onions
chips Potatoes
Tomatoes
Herbs- chives in particular
Apples
Berries (blueberries, raspberries)
Bell peppers
Oh and (this is gross!) I've been known to buy a bag of rocket from Tesco and eat it on the bus!

Which of these are feasable?

Onions, herbs, blueberries, raspberries, apples all quite simple. With blueberries and apples use a specialist grower who knows which varieties will do well in which areas. I used recovers, who are based in Pickering in north Yorkshire. They're brilliant for fruit and roses.
Potatoes are easy, but need a lot of water if the soil is well drained, or Sandy.

We are about two miles from Trentham Gardens. Looking on their website, they have dwarf thingies available. Silly question but, if they're showing as available to buy, does this mean they're ok to plant now? Would they sell them if it was too early/late to plant them?

Re-fruit trees and wall, it would be a good idea to plant dwarf fruit trees on the lawn side of your wall. They would make a lovely barrier, don’t plant too many too close together.
Your garden looks like a great blank canvas. The walls are ideal for growing climbers.
I don’t know about it’s asoect, but you could put a trellis over the top of the steps and grow a vine.

They may be left over from winter stock, but if you can get them in quickly with a decent compost and soak the hole before you plant, you should be ok. Don't allow the tree to fruit this year, as it will need to make root. Pick forming fruits off.

Rocket is super duper easy to- sprinkle seeds and cut leaves for months.