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  • Mission Impossible?

    First of all - don't be afraid of telling me this simply isn't possible!

    We've got a small front garden. It consists of a retaining wall at the front which is about 2ft tall and the area is about 1.5m deep x 3m wide. It's all concreted apart from a small bed at the back of it, under the window which is approx. 2m x 60cm.

    It's in partial shade (gets sun from sunrise to about midday in summer).

    So far I've planted edges the bed with bricks and put stone shippings down over the concrete. I've planted up the small bed with a lavender which is meant to be okay in partial shade and some Ajuga Rosea in front of that and, although, they've both only been in for a few months they seem to be doing well!

    The front wall is horrid! At some point in the past it's been badly rendered and painted. We've tried making it good and re-painting it but it's still as ugly as sin and I really don't like it!

    I'd really like something that I can grow to trail over the wall to hide it as best as possible. I don't want to dig out the concrete behind the wall and there is only approx. 4" from the top of the wall to where the concrete starts. I'm thinking that I could build a small 'raised bed' of sorts but the soil depth would only be approx. 3 1/2" and incredibly dry. It's a terraced house so watering is tricky so something that could cope with very dry conditions once established would be ideal.

    I'd rather avoid ivy as I don't think the wall can take much of a physical assort before it just crumbles!

  • #2
    Would it not pay to remove the wall & put up some kind of picket fencing?
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    • #3
      Sorry! I haven't described it very well!

      Unfortunately it's a retaining wall so it's not possible to remove it as we'd be excavating below the level of the house!

      When I get home I'll take a picture!

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      • #4
        Will the raised bed be on concrete?

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        • #5
          Originally posted by Scarlet View Post
          Will the raised bed be on concrete?
          Yep, pretty much desert like conditions when it comes to moisture.

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          • #6
            Aubretia?
            Puts on a lovely show (although only in spring, early summer) of vivid purple...you can get a red variety too now but I found it didn't do well in my garden and was generally much weaker than the purple.
            Aubretia thrives in dry, poor soils and in little cracks in walls so should be okay with only 3 or 4 inches of soil.

            You could pair it with 'creeping Jenny'...sorry, I don't know the proper name! A lime green ground cover plant, I think it's evergreen but not sure....certainly it's around most of the year. It doesn't really flower but provides a stunning contrast to other plants and will hide your wall quite quickly.
            I have some here so if you can't find it, in October (you have to be a member three months to swap) and make your fifty posts, remind me and I'll send you cuttings.

            The other thing that springs to mind is nasturtiums. Again, they thrive in poor soils and dry conditions. They flower though til late summer/early autumn in a range of flame colours....the trailing ones will tumble down and cover the wall, they self seed and come back year after year but best of all? They taste delicious!
            http://goneplotterin.blogspot.co.uk/

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            • #7
              Originally posted by muddled View Post
              Aubretia?
              Puts on a lovely show (although only in spring, early summer) of vivid purple...you can get a red variety too now but I found it didn't do well in my garden and was generally much weaker than the purple.
              Aubretia thrives in dry, poor soils and in little cracks in walls so should be okay with only 3 or 4 inches of soil.

              You could pair it with 'creeping Jenny'...sorry, I don't know the proper name! A lime green ground cover plant, I think it's evergreen but not sure....certainly it's around most of the year. It doesn't really flower but provides a stunning contrast to other plants and will hide your wall quite quickly.
              I have some here so if you can't find it, in October (you have to be a member three months to swap) and make your fifty posts, remind me and I'll send you cuttings.

              The other thing that springs to mind is nasturtiums. Again, they thrive in poor soils and dry conditions. They flower though til late summer/early autumn in a range of flame colours....the trailing ones will tumble down and cover the wall, they self seed and come back year after year but best of all? They taste delicious!

              Ooooooh! Some lovely ideas, thank you Muddled!

              I don't usually do annuals but I love the idea of Nasturtiums, maybe some red one's to match our front door! Especially if they self seed... always a bonus!

              Thank you!

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