Garden red flags?

[Mt563]

I'm looking at house to buy. A big draw is the garden. It's long, relatively narrow and slightly sloped, good views. It's faces northwest but is only overlooked by the house so most of the garden gets plenty of sun most of the day. It's currently just lawn end terrace so not much to go off.

Is there anything I should look out for that would make it a difficult garden to grow things in or any red flags I'm ignoring?

I know some would want to terrace the slope. I think we'll be OK without.

There is a patch of brambles at the bottom needs clearing.

There were previously a few small trees which the current owner seems to have removed.

I'd like to grow veg/fruit, some wildflowers, some grass for kids play, there's a terrace for seating/ eating.

MeadowMania do a wildflower mix for clay soils. Looks nice! hmeadowmania.co.uk/collections/british-native-wildflower-seed-100-mixes/products/wildflower-seed-for-clay-soils

I gardened successfully for 20 years in London clay. Some plants thrived and some didn't.

Never mind the plants, you need to look for a shady house

Oak trees! We have two and this year the acorns were enormous and there were thousands of them. An absolute bugger to pick up/sweep up if you have any slate or shingle paths or areas. The leaves are also such a lot of work to clear up. We can spend all day and then the next day it's back to square one! I love the trees but would now always choose paths/patios wisely if you have trees that are not evergreen.

This sounds similar to an old garden of mine, and I miss it dearly. Victorian semi, with a few fruit trees at the end of the garden.
I’d be thinking about privacy and if you’re overlooked in any way, and any large tress from neighbours gardens overhanging…other than that sounds like a potentially lovely garden for you 💚

Any lawn that’s in the shade a lot might get lots of moss. At one point parts of our lawn were more moss than grass! We now get it treated quarterly and no more moss, but it’s expensive.

Someone might have already said this, but you can build raised beds for veg if you have terrible soil. Can also make slug control, weeding and feeding easier.

We had a north-west facing garden in our last house and honestly it was fine for most things. The key is just accepting some parts will be shadier than others. Veg-wise, the sunny bits near the bottom did brilliantly for tomatoes and courgettes, and the shadier bit by the house was great for salads, brassicas, and soft fruit like blackcurrants.

One thing nobody mentioned yet - check for Japanese knotweed even if the sellers say there isn't any. It's rife at the moment and can completely tank a property's value. Also worth poking about to see how deep the soil is before you get too excited about plans. Some new-buildish gardens have barely 6 inches of topsoil over rubble.

The brambles at the bottom are actually a good sign - they mean the soil can support vigorous growth. Clear them, dig out the roots properly, and you'll have a nice spot for fruit bushes or a little wildlife area.

And beware of bindweed!