Front Garden after

You have a helicopter . How posh are you ? ...;0)

Looks like you have a huge clear up there Scot. wonderful, what a difference.

It looks pretty sheltered there. I hope your fuchsias will survive.
You've done a lot to it and it looks really nice now.

We're very posh, I thought everybody had a helicopter Pimpernel. LOL. We did this it was not the local garden designer. If I could afford a helicopter I would have missed out on all the fun. My OH was baptised in the church in 1929 and by the time we moved in to the former manse the church was in a severe state of neglect. It was so bad there was no option but to pull it down. My OH had a friend who was a flying instructor and he obliged by providing us with updates on our progress over several years. It has grown a lot since this was taken and we have an 8' x 6' greenhouse in the area bottom right where the original church entrance was. We could not refuse an offer of having it delivered and set up free but they turned up with it before we could arrange somewhere to put it. The only clear space was there. It actually works quite well because I can see visitors arrive when I'm working in it. I made a very basic mistake in not making the paths wider and in not making at least one sloping access instead of steps up to the top lawn area because it is not wheelchair accessible. All of the church was recycled on site except for the lath which was burned by our lovely old neighbour. We were going to offer it for a local bonfire and she asked if she could have it as kindling is expensive. I think some of the locals look on us the local version of Steptoe and Son.

I am still very impressed scotsgran, I do like the way you have kept the echo of the church in your plans. It is beautiful.....I actually thought the pics were from Google earth.

Before we could knock it down it had to be surveyed and catalogued by the Department of Ancient Monuments. (in Scotland the listed categories are A, B and C statutory) The church, our house and the row of cottages next door are listed as a group at "B" .
While we were in the process of building walls etc we had a number of overseas visitors and bits of the church have travelled to all corners of the earth where ex pats and their offspring who can trace their roots back to having a connection with the church now live. It was not an ancient building having been built inthe 1860's to house the congregation from the nearby Church of Scotland whose parishioners had deserted the church along with their minister at the Disruption in 1843. The minister eventually landed in a church in Bo'ness whose present minister is the Moderator designate of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland this coming year. It seemed fitting to keep something of the church so that future generations could remember and visit where their grandparents had married etc.

What a difference and how nice to have it recorded like that. Interesting to hear about the history too.

Thank you everybody.I like stories about my garden and others which is why I like this site. So many interesting gardeners out there.

What a difference, and obviously hard work...well done, looking great.....:))

Thank you. We are still at it. In the past two weeks we have laid and cut where necessary 115 of 120 x 18" slabs to finish off the wall which separates us from the field to the east of us and also topped off the raised beds on our side of the wall. To be honest I find it more satisfying than housework which never seems to be finished.

To be honest I find it more satisfying than housework which never seems to be finished.
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Is it ever lol...:)))