What would you do with this garden?

[Smellz714]

I have about £100 I can spend on plants. Have a few ferns and shrubs in pots that I can put out. I have minimal knowledge but a lot of enthusiasm! Everything in there has been put in by me over the past 3 years or so. It's north west ish facing and clay soil. Just patched up some bare pits of lawn - planning on mowing it soon!

As you have young children, how about a small vegetable patch that they can tend? I think salad veg grow quite quickly so they won’t have to wait too long for results. It’s fun, they’ll be learning about nature and you get to eat whatever grows.

You could get a couple of climbers in a planter to soften the fences, clematis are meant to be pretty easy going.

It really depends what you want? A low maintenance garden with some interest that stays green all year round or a garden you have to do a bit to and have brightly coloured flowers in the summer etc? Do you have anything in mind? With £100 I'd get creative and look for plug plants on offer online or at local plant sales. Also very large car boot sale events usually have lots of cheap plants. Salvia is good for filling space and being quite robust and so are things like camellia and rhododendron. But both need some shade / not full on sun and can grow quite large. Have a look on Instagram using hashtags and then look at any accounts with gardens similar to your own and see what plants they're using / have grown well. Also I recommend propagating from other people's plants if you have any friends into gardening? It's free and you can get some amazing plants that way. I have a new build garden that's east facing with 1/3 of it in lots of shade so had to get creative. But I've managed to create quite a nice space over the last 5 years. It's all a learning curve too. There's a lot to be said for doing what you like and using plants just because you like the look of them (check what light / position they need first though). Have fun with it

I'd spend the money you have on perennials and flowering shrubs. Garden centres have different stock depending on the time of year, so if you go every couple of months for a look around, there will always be something different.

Doing it that way means that there will something looking good in the garden all year round. If you buy it all in one go, you can end up with a few weeks of brilliance and 10 months of not a lot!

Save some money to buy bulbs. They are usually on sale in the early autumn to plant straight away, so you will have daffodils etc in the spring.

You need some height in there.

I have lots of different coloured Buddleja's but my favourite is white.

They grow tall very quickly and are easily
Controlled by pruning and grow anywhere!

Fatsia Japonica are quiet for a year and they get large quickly but agin, easily managed.

Flamingo willow, not the standard, also grows quickly and is very pretty. That also grows anywhere.

I think you need something tall to provide interest along that back fence. Have a look at honeysuckle, climbing roses, jasmine, clematis etc

Does that brick garage wall get any sun? If so, it would be the perfect place to grow some peach trees. If not, you could put on some apple trees on dwarf root stock. Bare rooted trees are much cheaper so you'd need to look at autumn or spring planting for those.

Don't discount the shrubs in the "bargain corner" of the garden centre. Unless they actually look dead. Quite often they put things on there once they have stopped looking their best but they will be great for next year.

Buddlia is a great idea. Really easy to grow, gets big and lots of nice flowers for insects. If you are on clay a rose would work too. They need a bit more tlc but not much, just a once a year prune.

Plant a tree! Very easy to maintain, in fact most are happy to be left alone. I really love silver birch. They are stunning and will give you privacy, a lovely rustling sound and stunning trunks in winter. If you plant one now just be careful you water it through summer (better to plant them in Autumn). You could also plant a fruit tree. It isn’t long before you will get fruit from it so choose a fruit you like. Trees get bad press for some reason but you can’t beat them and in a few years they will be providing much needed shade as our climate gets hotter.

Like other people said, I think it's best to concentrate on height and impact. Either climbers or small trees will do for height. For impact, sometimes it's better to focus your energy on one large bed / area rather than a few small scattered bits. Agree with perennials to make the most of your budget, or flowering shrubs. Anything that's an annual or too delicate could end up looking nice for a short time but won't last.

Thank you all for the ideas! I love the idea of climbers and climbing roses, always assumed they'd be difficult to grow so didn't want to risk the cost. Love the idea of a tree for a bit of interest. The left hand side where the garage wall is only gets morning sun, the lawn is quite mossy so will look for shade loving shrubs. I agree that concentrating on one section this year will be better than scattering a few bits about. Bulbs are a great idea too, I really like tulips no idea if I have the conditions to grow them but as @littlekiplingsays it should be trial and error!

BEFORE you spend any money....
Find out if there is a gardening club in your area.. join for a small fee and you get 100s of years of knowledge, seed exchange, cuttings, seedlings and cheap plant sales... maybe discounts from local nurseries or shops...

I'll repeat what everybody else said: you need height.
Would it work to have something so that it also obscures that lamppost? - I think that I have calculated (but wouldn't swear!) that it won't cast much shade on the rest of the garden during the day.

I've actually found my roses pretty easy. I would recommend looking at the David Austen website for the planting / pruning / care tips. Everything is simply explained. All I do is prune in winter, put rose feed pellets and a light covering of compost around the base twice a year (early spring and midsummer), and deadhead the flowers / the flowering stem as they go over.

I'd recommend trying to find some varieties that are shade tolerant though to suit your garden. The DA roses are lovely but they can be quite expensive. I think worth it if you've got a focal point in mind (or as a treat!). If you can wait till winter you can plant bare root roses which are generally cheaper to order online.

Bulbs are great for spring colour, I love my daffs, but do some research as I'm not sure if they will love clay soil - I think most bulbs prefer free draining soil so they don't rot in winter.

@maslinpan you mentioned clematis in a planter, would that be advisable over planting in the ground? Is that a general rule or because of the position/soil?

Keep an eye on Facebook, there’s a garden swap fb page local to me that often has free,cheap, plants and pots on.

Following - I have a very similar garden and am considering clematis.

@Bonbon21 I don't know if any clubs but my local pub has a load of people with a wealth of knowledge, half the plants in the garden are from people I've chatted to! Gardeners are a lovely bunch!

If you’ve a clay soil and the garden has been used just for lawn. Spend more money than you want to on improving the soil.

is there a riding stables near you where can you get some free muck. Start composting the grass every time you mow. Than I agree with everything else above. It’s worth putting out a request on local sm. I have quite a few plants left over from my pots. You do need height. If you pass a nice honeysuckle ask if you can take cuttings etc.

What do you want to use your garden for OP?

Glass of wine last thing at night? Coffee & peace on fine mornings? Barbecuing with friends? Growing veg? Kids playing?

I'd work out where you will want to sit - the first and last sun of the day - and then plan around that.

I’d also suggest visiting some open gardens local to you. Check out the National Garden Scheme. This will give you a good idea of what grows in your local area and what people have done design wise. They usually have plant sales too.

I'd spend the money you have on perennials and flowering shrubs

Yes. Don’t waste a limited budget on annuals. Trees are too expensive. But a shrub bought small will give you the height in 2 or 3 years.

Look at your neighbours’ gardens to see what grows well in your area. Then buy small from a nursery (local or online) not a garden centre, and then be patient.

Maybe a few bulbs or packets of seeds to give you a bit of colour while you wait.

@Billybagpuss thanks. The lawn is shocking to be fair. I aerated it assuming it was drainage but it hasn't helped, I've seeded the empty patches every year to no avail, although the latest attempt might have worked. The back is dry and almost sandy. I do wonder if we are actually clay (I don't really know how theses things work) I've lived in this town all of my life and the house I grew up in was clay, assumed this one would be too as it's less than a mile away.

I would look for cheap climbers from your supermarket. The £2 Morrisons passionflower I planted last year is now 8m long and covering a pergola. They also usually have lots of clematis (very easy to grow, happy in clay soil) and honeysuckle (which I haven’t tried).

I also wouldn’t waste money on annuals, but if you want something that will grow immediately, consider sowing nasturtiums. They cost almost nothing and can get enormous in one season. Mine even flower in shaded borders. They self seed and come back year after year. Ignore the advice to sow two seeds together - they almost all germinate, so space them out and the packet goes further. One pack of seeds will do the whole garden.

if you have a local/street WhatsApp group, I would ask for free plants. I’d be delighted to give away some of my perennials. I gave a big climbing rose to a neighbour last year, and am now looking to rehome peonies, red hot pokers, crocosmia etc at the end of the summer. You may even find shrubs that way, especially if people are renovating/laying new patios etc.

Find out when your local allotments have plant sales

Thank you for all the suggestions, I've put a list together of recommendations. Finally feeling excited instead of daunted by it all.