garden Advice

[snash1039]

Hi All,
I am in the process of finishing up my garden. I'm at a loss of ideas when it comes to inspiration. I have attached an image. On the right side of the picture is where the soil part is what suggestions can you give to actually put there, I am not keen on having plants.
Any advice greatly appreciated.
Snash

Why are you not keen on plants? Is it because of maintenance? I am no expert but some plants take less looking after than others. Perhaps a row of potted plants would work for you?

Lol a garden with no plants. More a concrete yard than a garden. Anyway, you could put some pebbles down and paint the fence. AstroTurf the main section.

Maybe put some bark or gravel down then if you don't want to plant anything

You can put big planters there, fill with soil, then put a couple of shrubs - and then put weed membrane and gravel to prevent any future growth. Shrubs look after themselves, really, just the odd soak if there is a heatwave in the summer: Euonymus or Aucuba or box; for some height go for bamboo (just make sure it's not an invasive species, ask a nursery rather than buying online blindly). Or a grass like miscanthus, but that takes a bit more work.

Honestly, add some greenery, just something to break up and soften that fence and hard surfaces would do lots.
Add lighting too (solar powered lights on the fence facing down or spotlights in the ground facing upwards).

How about some lavender? Low maintenance and good for bees. You could mulch around it with gravel or bark to prevent weeds. And a few in pots on the patio to keep the theme going. Avoid the French lavenders, I have never had any luck with them, they don't seem to thrive in our climate. Lights would be lovely, painted fence with a few clematis to break it up, again low maintenance and you could choose varieties that flower at different times. Some have impressive flowers with minimal gardening effort.

If you don't want plants (not sure why not, given that is the definition of a garden!), then you could put some contrasting gravel or slate down? You can get slate in blue or purple which would contrast well with the slabs. Or you could put big cobbles and larger stones. If you don't want anything growing through, you will need to put weed resistant fabric down first before you lay the gravel/slate

I think you'd be surprised. I have a dozen plants in my small garden. Require 1 or 2 small trims per year. Absolutely bare minimum maintenance.

Thanks Guys. I will have plants but that will be on the left side not shown on picture.

Does anyone know how how many mm you need to dig soil to put gravel or slate?

I'm not clear what you mean? Why leave soil if you don't want to plant anything?

I'd be putting in a hedge of this www.best4hedging.co.uk/osmanthus-ã-burkwoodii-hedging-p76/s4235?vs_vat=inc&utm_term=&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4aT1t7zq5QIVV-J3Ch3M9QhkEAQYASABEgK0_vD_BwE

It smells absolutely gorgeous and is evergreen, you just keep it clipped to the size you want. It'd take the bareness off the length of wooden fence and it's good for birds and insects too.

You can put a weed membrane underneath but just be aware that if you put down bark the birds constantly throw it around and spread it so it looks untidy and gravel often attracts cats for toileting Broken slate underneath might be a low maintenance option?

You don’t need to dig deep at all. Maybe 5-10cm + stick the membrane down and then the gravel. That’s if it’s just decorative and not to be walked on.

You could google ‘modern gardens’ for more ideas. They tend to have only a few architectural plants + lots of hard landscaping and different textures.

Weedsuppressing membrane and a layer of gravel, slate or similar. Our neighbours have a similar strip and position pots of seasonal plants along it. You could put climbers along there or train fruit trees against the fence if the direction is suitable.

Thank you all for your advice.