forum advice please

[its hilly]

At very long last we are renting a house with a garden
HANDSTANDS, CARTWHEELS ETC not that I can do them It has a large area which is sort of lawn, very bumpy and full of weeds. And bits which have been borders but grown over, and lots of extremely overgrown rhodies. Which overshadow the other beds. And steep banks outside the patio doors and at the side of the patio.
And anywhere there is what was a bed, is empty of anything but daffys, snowdrops or weeds.
I'm going to test the soil..and the back is south/southwest and sheltered at the patio but open at the lawn. The front is north east and half open and windy/half overgrown rhodies...but..
which bits of the forum are best to post on?
I want to plan the overall garden layout, including a lawn, and veggie beds and flower borders. And curb all the overgrown stuff.
And I'm so excited I'm squeeking

[taff]

wait and see what it's actually like before you do anything permanent...
and any bit of the forum that relates to what you're interested in :P

[Two_Sheds]

Is your landlord happy for you to remove those rhodies? and do other work?

[Bigmallly]

Don't worry IH, post where you think best. The Mods are very good at moving threads to the relevant section. I do however echo TS's concerns, get permission first.

[Snadger]

I inherited large rhodies and decided to leave them and work with them. Rhodies thrive on acidity so grow plants that enjoy acidity.............simples!

[di]

I never really know either, so just guess and move about a bit, that way I hope I get it right at least sometimes
As BM says, the mods will move if need be.

Enjoy xx

[Nicos]

Hilly- here is fine!
You'll get more Grapes reading it on this forum.
Maybe you'll want to split off the veggie bit later on- but here is also OK!

Sounds an exciting plan...have fun!

( oh- and buy lots of Radox!!!!)

[Florence Fennel]

Congratulations Hilly, that's lovely news. Don't overdo it!

[its hilly]

The landlady is very reclusive aparently. The agent said if we need to sort anything out talk to her gardener, Nick, and he will check if it's ok. It's him who organises any repairs etc.
We've already asked about the garden and the answer was 'do what you like' I'm not wanting to get rid of all the rhodies..but 10ft by 7/8ft spread is a bit excessive. But they do provide shelter. I was worried about killing them if they were cut back too hard, but one which the last tenant reduced to a stump is still alive and sprouting nicely so they must be tough beggers. And as there is at least 6ft of ground behind the side of the house ones they will have to be cut back enough to allow access.
I was thinking cut some back, take a couple out totally. If I do manage to kill off big ones we will replace with smaller varieties.
The lawn.
The patio doors in the background go in to the kitchen/diner, you can see how much lower the patio bit is than the lawn.
Dog spends all her time sunbathing down there, lol.

[its hilly]

PS Thanks everyone...and I now have shares in both Radox and paracetamol...ooooow.

[Glutton4...]

Looks like an excellent 'blank canvas' for you to work on. We have just started renting a similar plot. No Rhodies here (alcy/neutral clay), and I think we have a reclusive Landlord too! My only advice is to live with it, and see what appears over the summer. Take loads of piccies, too. If you're planning on staying, the first year's planning will be well spent. Just do the rest on a smaller scale until you get a feel for what's right. Good luck!

[Snadger]

A decent sized plot to keep you busy.............

[Hilary B]

If the soil is right for them (acid), rhodies are very hard to kill, but you might want to see what colour flowers they produce before choosing which to thin out. The purple ones are the 'wild type' and as tough as it gets (hence naturalising and becoming a bit of a nuisance in some parts of the country).
If you want rid of them from an area, I'd get sneaky with the lime bag.....

[its hilly]

Had a chat with Nick today, he confirmed my thoughts. The rhodies are Ponticum. Yes HB The wild sort which spread like stink and will resprout if you cut them down. There really is no problem whatever I do with them.
Today I dug over the banking on the patio. There really is nothing in it except a clump of daffs and three little heathers and three little euonymous bushes. Oh yes and some blooming ground elder..

[Hilary B]

Ground elder is a spinach substitute. If you can't get rid of it, eat it!