What would you do?

lovely curvacous beds but what would I put in them? no idea but I would love to dream.

Thanks Seaburn, I can picture that ..... with your lovely range of plants.

Hi Dawn ,i would sit down with sketch book & pen and spend time enjoying myself planning ..what a problem to have lol.

I think you probably have most of the things I would choose, Dawn, a pond, more trees, a veggie patch. It's always been a dream of mine to have a walled garden too (the wall built of old bricks with a round top!) - sorry not much help am I? :)

Think you know what I'd do Dawn, an excuse to buy even more daylilies and have another huge bed full,lol :-)

Wild flower meadow.....stumpery, prairie planting,knot garden, shall I go on lol

Dawn...I just wouldn't know where to start although DD seems to have some very good suggestions and also a walled garden would appeal.

Keep us posted as I assume this is a patch of good ground on your property. Lucky you. Have fun plotting and planning :)

Create yet more alpine/woodland beds with a pond - and hopefully running water. Not a straight line in sight!

Thanks everyone, all very interesting.
Oh Kathy, I know you're not joking about filling it with day lilies.
Dotty: A stumpery would be a good idea as funnily enough I have a huge tree root ball and lots of logs around and the prairie planting sounds lovely - didnt know what that was, had to google.
Hi MoonGrower, woodland beds would fit in although I have a pond already and running water as my brook runs along the side of this garden, maybe the stumpery would look good next to that? Don't know if I have the skill though for a stumpery or prairie to work.

Sorry not much help as all i can do is dream of a garden that big, but i'm sure what ever you do it will look great.

Aww, thanks Carol.

I'd be in heaven, knowing I could plant loads more stuff, create borders, beds, etc., and be occupied for a good while, lucky you.

Oh Bamboo, you dont fancy doing it for me do you? lol. I cannot consider covering it with grass, it would be sacrilege. I should grow veg and fruit trees on part of it really but I do love perennials.

spend some of the cold winter days as Joanella and others have suggested, decide what you Really want to grow, Gees idea probably won't work for you but with my open garden thats the one thing i'd love to have-- those lovely victorian walls with the fruit trees etc and the formal beds in the middle ( probably too much work now I think about it but its a lovely dream! ;0)))

Hi Pam, I would love a walled garden too, I can just picture that but a bit out of my budget :-( Like you say, I have all Winter to decide, I would like to grow some veg on part of it but would like to keep it neat and tidy.

must be nice to have a space to fill... my gardens rather full now.... how about a wild flower meadow.... id love one of these... if i had free space...

Hi Holly, I can't believe I dont know what to do with it, I think I'm frightened of making mistakes. I think I need to read some garden design books. Thanks for your suggestion but I have wild areas already, all a bit too wild in places, lol.

Whatever you do, please let us see the work in progress Dawn....

my french friend grows her veg in a parterre using wood as the edging for the beds( less maintenance) and growing some perennial veg as centrepoints and these days there are some really lovely looking veg to be had that taste good too

Knowing a little about your garden also the hard work you and John have put into it, it might be another room which would be comparable to the others, nothing formal. I would say with your knowledge of the surroundings you will set it to fit in with the rest, with some of your favourites to follow on with the walk round which we have already seen.

i cant believe you have this size spare Dawn, thought we had seen all of your wonderfull garden, what a big area to do and know what i would have, a lovely woodland garden, but you alredy have that Dawn so thats out for you, but im sure of one thing, whatever you decide i know will be beautifull like the rest, can i come and stay a few weeks and help lol but make it summer so i can relax by the pool on my time off ;o))x

Hi San, hope you're OK. Yep, pack your bag and come down for the Summer hols, I have a spare barrow and spade, fork etc. :-) and we'll pray for good weather so we can relax a bit. We've recently bought this piece of ground which adjoins us, owned by a builder which he held back after building 2 houses. Was an orchard so the soil is beautiful. Your words are kind :-) I really am perplexed as what to do.
Bob: You are so shrewd, you know its quite rural around here and you're right, you've highlighted that it needs to be in keeping with the surroundings. All I need is more time and more money, lol.

does it have lots of sun or is it shady? i think i would try to create a space that reminded me of somewhere i love to be eg: a scottish island or an italian lake ~ that may help you decide what sort of plants you want and what else you would like in the space. maybe a lovely summer house that looks onto the garden and gives you a quiet place to go ~ looking onto the landscape you always dreamed of?

Dawn i would love to come and may do one day ;o))
maybe you need to look through pics on google for large gardens and see if anything takes your eye or maybe will give you some ideas, there are some lovely pictures on there, i look through sometimes and dream lol

ps, forgot to say im fine thanx Dawn and missing joe, hope your ok and charlotte is doing alright to ;o)) x

Dawn unfortunately it wasn't me who won the 113million last week, if it had been I would have gladly sent on a fiver. LOL.

Dawn , I've got the best idea yet , how about a tennis court and a nice little holiday cottage to go with your pool , we will all be only to happy to take it in turns to come down for weekends to help you in the garden , we won't mind getting out hands dirty " honest " ... :o))

I don't know, but I would definately put a slabbed area in one sunny corner. Maybe even covered over, so that you can sit there even in the rain :o)) You have to have somewhere to sit and look at how it's all progressing - - and have a nice cuppa lol

Sticki: yes it has lots of sun and thanks for your ideas and would like to incorporate plants from my wish list. The only place I want to be is home :-) A nice brick gazebo would be nice, like Hywel says with a veranda.
Bob: you monkey you, thanks for nothing then!
San: That's a good idea about looking on google, thanks.
Oh Amy: You make me smile :-))))

Well i love grasses - bamboos - and some periwinkle or something for ground covers :):)

Hi Paul, sounds good. Looks like I'll be in poundland and home bargains alot trying to fill this.

Hi, Definately a raised area with bar-b-Q, and very large Rockery with a raised waterfall, maybe tumbling into the stream.A little wild corner with Thistles etc to attract the birds too.

Thanks Bob for your good ideas, weather too bad these last few days to do much.

I missed this blog DA...sorry! I wonder how work is progressing now on your new plot....would be good to see what you have done so far. Obviously that is a large space and you could make an entire garden in it. I don't know you well enough to know what to suggest, but I know you love woodland, so I'm thinking what about a 'forest garden' with productive plants but arranged as a woodland garden....strawberries and blueberries, herbs etc. at ground level, raspberries, blackberries etc. for the next level and then some lovely fruit trees.....would be lovely! And a nice wooden retreat in there somewhere for sitting and reading or thinking or just watching the birds!

You do know me well it seems Karen as Ive done something similar to what you suggest. Good idea about tne fruit trees under yrees, Ive done this under my native trees.
Ive actually started a woodland garden, first phase complete. Most of tne trees Ive chosen forntheir spring and autumn colours, here goes:

Acer davidii George Forest
Betula pendula, jacquemontii and Purpurea
Acer griseum
Arbutus unedo
Salix alba Britzensis x 2
Salix alba vitellina
Acer x conspicum Phoenix
Cornus controversa
Robinia pseudoacacia frisia
Amelchanchier asiatica
Sorbus joseph rock
Magnolia soulangeana
M stellata
Prunus mount figi
P cerasifera nigra
Pcheals weeping
P kanzan
P amanogawa
Styrax japonica
Hamamelis mollis
Malus tschonoskii
Malus profusion

Next will come camellia, rhoddies and herbs and bulbs etc etc

Not much grass, just a couple of lawned winding paths.

Sounds absolutely gorgeous! I thought you would like some trees, but wow, that's a lot of beauties you've got there!

Knew you'd like them Karen ;-) I have taken on board your ideas, watch this space.

Ah, I look forward to seeing DA, and I feel honoured to have helped in some small way. Your garden is so stunning....so natural and...well...just spacious and wonderful! I don't think I could cope with all that land myself, but perhaps I could if I did as you do and go for the 'natural' ideas.

You are very kind Karen. Yes, you have to look at things in a different light when you have a big area. I know I cannot possible keep it immaculate (not like your beautiful garden) so I compromise. Funnily enough, when its bigger, you dont tend to look at things as close up as a smaller garden, if you know what I mean, this way you can get away with alot more. I always have weeds.

Yes, I know what you mean D. And of course, because it is a larger space, a lot of it is much further away from the house, whereas when I am in the conservatory, I am in the middle of it and can see most of it clearly....and the weeds!

Exactly Karen, I would not be able to look out and see a weed without going out and extracting it. I can never sit in the garden without casting a critical eye ..... sadly.

Yes, it gets harder and harder for me to just sit and enjoy it. That is sad isn't it. We really need to learn to switch off the critical eye.

Agree Karen, we need an On/Off button, lol

A large glass of red seems to help!

Absolutely!!!

That's a lovely amount of spare ground Dawnsaunt. I would keep a few chickens on there to supply you with eggs and also there is plenty of space to plant a few veg in rows too..especially a row of runner beans....please let us now what you decide to do.

just seen this ............ wot have you done with it , i have chickens they are funny and follow you every were lol , mine are in my veg plot ................. you really are luky girl 2 have all this space ;0)))

Hi Richard. I have incorporated a veg plot, nothing in there too difficult to grow but I have: new potatoes, runner beans, radish, lettuce, courgettes, sweetcorn and tomatoes, toms spare as rest in greenhouse.
Chickens maybe one day, was brought up on a small holding. Would love some ducks on tne pond, mallards come and go, would loke mandarins .... One day when I have more time.

Yes Dawnsaunt go for it......you are only here once...lol :-)

Ha ha Richard, tis true.

If only I had the space you have , I would love to create some kind of folly with secret areas to explore and dream in, we recently went to Tatton park and their Japanese Gardens are an inspiration, they are just 100 yrs old but what a wonderful combination of water, islands Trees and plants fantastic waterlilies covering large areas of the pond areas. whatever you decide on Im sure it will be a truly magical space;0))

Oh Pansy, Tatton Park sounds wonderful. This area of mine needs at least ten years to establish.

I will do a blog of Tatton so you can see the fantastic gardens [when I get some spare time] lol

Look forward to it Pansy.