Blog: it’s all changing in the garden as I get the professionals in!
After years of making raised beds from all sorts of unsuitable materials, I’ve bitten the bullet and hired landscapers to do the job properly. It’s taken a lot of soul-searching, but I realise I have to make the garden safer for me as my joints and balance get worse (more on coping with hEDS).
After several cack-handed attempts by me to make cut-price raised beds that have fallen apart, it’s time to spend some savings. After all, Gary has pointed out that the ‘cheap’ beds have all had to be replaced, and it would have been more cost-effective to buy decent materials in the first place.
Cheap doesn’t save money in the long run
The big failures have been the 30cm high thick bamboo canes threaded onto wire. The original bed I made is still intact, as that was made of better-quality bamboo and thicker wire. However, the other two collapsed within three years, with the thin wire rusting away in a few seasons. I’ve saved some of the stouter bits with sharpened ends to do running repairs on the remaining bed. The five sacks of bamboo are going to landscaper Garry McCabe, from ReNew Landscapes & Driveways, who loves to recycle materials.
That’s a big point when you’re hiring someone to do a job for you. Make sure you get on with them, and you’re singing from the same hymn sheet. I did speak to one other landscaper, and we were poles apart. Luckily, Garry McCabe and I hit it off – as soon as he mentioned hating artificial grass!
Making raised beds – Bounce ideas off a craftsman
I originally wanted brick beds, but the price has soared, at about £1 a brick at the moment. Garry and I chatted about what I wanted, could afford, and what would work with the other hard landscaping. We settled on using high-quality larch sleepers, sourced from sustainable, managed woodland. it was supplied by Graham’s Logs of West Auckland, County Durham.
Another problem area is the path by the raised beds, which is gravel on a slope – like walking on marbles! We’re using recycled bricks to put in a couple of shallow steps. This will also break up the long expanse of the path. There’s a high step up from the greenhouse to the tropical bed level, so a small brick step will make that easier to access.
One of the beds is being built around the apple tree, Red Falstaff, which was in a very rotten barrel, so that’s saved. I’m planting a Lady of Shalott rose next to it. Experts at David Austin Roses advised me that it can be grown as a short climber. I wanted intense apricot colour with a strong fragrance, so that’s perfect.
The lovely compost that was made in the old bamboo raised beds has been spread around the garden as mulch. From the overflowing compost bins at the top of the garden, I’ll fill the new raised beds. This means that the grotty, underused, shady area will be getting a revamp later on in the year.
My dream is to level the area under the whitebeam, replace the fence at that end and… wait for it… Invest in a small summerhouse/shed. Again, I’ll be diving into the savings, but I really can’t wait!
