Help an incompetent please!

[seeker]

I have a very small (40ft by 40ft) garden. It has a tiny lawn (full of weeds) some beds (full of weeds) some pots (full of weeds) and a terrace (covered in weeds)

I want to make it presentable. By Easter Sunday. Where do I start and what do I do?

Mow lawn.

Take top 3 inches of compost out of pots. Buy some new copost and some plants like lavender, spring flowers (pansies, bulbs already coming up) etc and plant in tubs, infilling with the new compost.

Borders - more of a problem. Ideally dig out weeds and plant a few shrubs (eg hebes, etc) and put on mulch underneath. You might not have time for this. Worst case scenario, buy landscape fabric. cut down weeds, cover with landscape fabric and top with mulch - then if you have time carefully cut a hole in the fabric to plant any plants. otherwise, just leave mulched and tidy for the moment.

Thank you. Will go next door to borrow lawn mower and hope that kindly neighbour will offer to do it for me. Good idea about pots-will go any buy some plants tomorrow as a reward for gardening all day today. Have dug about 2 square feet of bed. Feel like Alan Titchmarch!

When buying for your pots, be careful about going for 'summer bedding' plants - things like geraniums, fuchsias and lobelia look lovely in the summer, but they are not hardy and if there is a frost it is likely that they will be killed off. You might even want to cover newly planted more hardy plants with a light sheet if there is a frost (ie if its going to be a clear night and its cold) as if they are straight from the garden centre they can be a bit tender sometimes. Have fun and good luck!

Terrace: you could use weedkiller but you might not want to. Just pulling them out by hand probably or depending on what kind of materials it is you might be able to use a hoe (ie to clip the tops off quickly)

Better on the whole to pull out weeds gently though so you get all the root system out too.

Second the membrane and mulch idea on your beds. Woodchips or leafmould good. Or gravel depending on how big a bed. And put in some herbs!

You could possibly just about make a difference to your lawn in that time by chucking on some lawn feed mix but not much time for it to work. You can actually buy in people who look after lawns for you (Lawn doctor or somesuch?) but no idea how much it costs.

If I WAS (under cover of darkness and without telling anyone hypothetically) to use weed killer, what should I hypothetically use and how?

Roundup is pretty good - neutralises when it goes into the ground, just kills what it hits - but use during the day, not at night, and make sure you don't then walk over what you've sprayed then wander round places that you don't want to kill - you could end up with yellow foot-print shaped patches in your lawn

BUT, if you were to use weedkiller (under the cover of darkness and without telling anyone hypothetically of course) by Easter Sunday everything would probably be looking pretty sick but not dead yet so people might guess! In which case you might be best pulling out the worst offenders, sorting out the lawn and waiting until after Easter for your killing frenzy!

What is happening on Easter Sunday????
(other than Easter, of course )

i would membrane and bark chip borders if you are in a REAL hurry

Mistle's plan is excellent.

Could you borrow a weed gun (miniature flame thrower for gardeners) from your neighbour? The weeds would be dead and wilted instantly and easier to pull up. But beware of sheds, fences and other fire hazards!

interested in this too as a novice gardener . i ahve cleared my borders now and am thinking about what to put in them .. notanotter - what do you mean membrane and bark chip ? do you put a membrane ( what sort ) under the top layer of soli or on top of the soil? do you put the chip on top of the membrane? if so , do you then cut a hole in it for a plant? presume the idea is to stop weeds but really clueless here .can you help?

Are there any students home for the holidays who might be willing and available to do a few hours' work for you?

Pipsqueak - Yes, landscaping membrane (lets water and air through, so not standard plastic) goes on top of soil and bark chips go on top of that. It can be left as it is or holes can be cut in it, for planting through.

Really, Mistlethrush, have we been introduced?

Hijack over.

Can you afford to pay a jobbing gardener to come in and blitz it for you? It makes such a difference to get it done by someone who knows what they are doing and is strong and quick.
need not be wildy expensive.
I think a heat weed guns is much better idea than using eg Roundup, you may end up killing off lawn/other plants and its not very eco friendly.
I think making the terrace and pots look fantastic woudl make the most impact, if you dont have time to do everything.
If you are keen to get into gardening, even low-key, perhaps worth getting a decent all roudn book from your local library.

agree pannacotta

I am in the process of having a bit a patio laid where there was a drive - ( i like to LOWER the saleability of a house so have done away with the off street parking in order to put the house back to former glory!)

ANYWAY I have been nosying into each and every garden I have passed by in the last few weeks and have come to the conclusion that it does not matter what a patio or terrace consists of - ( stone/aggregate) what matters is - what order it is in ( clean well looked after) nce pots and some pleasant seating go a HUGE way towards making a place look great!