
Tranquil Rill
Location
Location
Slaithwaite
Build Date
2020
People often ask if I have a wonderful garden, and of course I do! However, it had it's problems when we moved in. As a 'new build' property, the garden lacked any personality and consisted of lawn, a raised composite patio and two long raised borders made from large boulders. The main problem came from the spring which became partially diverted into the garden during the construction, leading to a soggy lawn and 10cm of standing water after any significant rainfall. However, that wasn't the only problem...
Like most domestic gardens, it has been a work in progress over the past few years, as we've been busy living life as a family and of course we don't have infinite resources for professional builders.
The project has been broken down into several phases:
- Chicken coop and free-ranging orchard
- mini pottager veg plot
- Lower patio and steps
- Climbing frame area
- Planting throughout
I've kept chickens for over 15 years now, and when we moved they came with us. This is my third property with my hens, so I've been able to apply some of my experience to the new set up. We dug out and laid a concrete base for the hen house and enclosed run, which sits under a cage of wood-mesh panels to protect my hens from foxes. This cage has a small pop-door leading out to the orchard and compost bins, which is where the hens free-range.
I also love growing vegetables, so a small veg plot was an essential addition. The space is viewed from the upper patio, so laid the beds out in an attractive pottager style.
The kids play area has a climbing frame and slide set. Not attractive, but really important to our family as the boys have lots of energy and need to play. This is temporary. We are embracing the craziness of the play area and the plastic toys that come with kids, it's what is needed for this to be their garden as much as ours. We can see the kids from the kitchen window, which gives them confidence to relax. When they outgrow it, we'll use the space as another kitchen garden (my preference) or a garden music studio (husband's preference). We'll see :).
The biggest change has been the lower patio space. When we moved in it regularly flooded, with run-off from the agricultural land nearby. The water literally pours through the garden, down the boulders benheath the upper patio. Rather than try and hide it, we chose to make a feature of it, capturing the water in a reservous which feeds an open rill, through an aco channel and away to the drain. We also needed to rebuild the steps, as they were found to be unsafe adding to the cost, but we took the opportunity to re-shape the area and include a space for our pizza oven.
Another issue we discovered when we moved was that under the builder-planting we inherited a garden teaming with mares tail. It's an ancient plant species which has long regenerative roots and a tough waxy stem. It's almost impossible to eradicate. As the builder had fillled the garden with some uninspiring shrubs, we took the hard decision to empty the beds and embark on a rigourous spraying regime for a whole summer. Four years on, we have replanted all of the beds and have the situation under control. We selectively spray any small emerging mares tail in spring and autumn. We've used mixed planting, with trees, shrubs and low effort perennials, predominantly for foliage as the beds are large and hard to maintain as they are difficult to access.
We are still to replace the upper patio decking, which has bowed significantly. It's a large outlay, so it will have to wait.
Project Build