Project privacy has started

I should have added that tall trees would be ideal but the garden is dissected with telephone lines so that can't be an option!

It looks lovely already but I agree it will work better divided.
If it where me I would have 3 lots of trellis, and would not put them straight across the garden I would put one section on the right 1/2 before the gravel and one on the left after the gravel and one before the decking on the right with the arch on the left of the decking.This will mean you zig zag through the garden between the trellis and it will not only give you more room to pass through but will give a different perspective and increase the privacy?

Whatever you do Scotish, I hope it will work for you. I like to walk through the garden in PJs too :-)

I totally agree with rooms, I have 7 of them and I am not overlooked, it takes a while to find me when I am out there! :)))). Good luck!

looks nice as is,perhaps your new neighbours are not realy watching you it maybe they are just in the wrong place at the wrong time,i live in a semi detached house with open fields all around our new neighbours moved in just over 12 months ago there is a fence between us at the back of the house ,but when we are in the kitchen at the sink we will see them in the back we are not purposely looking it,s just that it happens that way,and we wave at each other just to say hello maybe the same thing with you the lady next door goes out in her night gown or a onesy <makes me smile>funny things aren,t they no harm meant either way just make sure your wearing knickers incase the wind turns a bit blustery :):):) xxx steve

PS would it be more expensive to have a taller fence on the right i assume that is direction of problem i think 6 foot is allowed but not sure,and i also take it that the fence is yours

Trellis always looks attractive Angie, and I love Denise's idea (Drc726) of 3 sections . . . presumably each the width of half the garden? Instead of at right-angles to the fences, I would put each at 45 degrees pointing down the garden to lead the eye that way. Plenty to ponder!

Btw, you could always attach a strip of 18" deep trellis to the top of the far RH fence.

Your garden is lovely and neat Scottish, I love trellis and 'rooms' so I would always go for the trellis:-))

When in the garden I can only be overlooked from the bedroom windows of my immediate neighbour, except on the yard which is the side of our house but that is purposely low so as too not shut out my neighbour completely and leads down to the dogrun and washing line, I'm like you and would hate the feeling that I was being watched, there is one window whereby a person can see into my garden at the back of us, in the summer the leaves on our apple tree stop most of the view and at this time of the year the fronds on my pampas grass act as a screen so problem solved..
My garden is separated into sections on one side by the pond and its backdrop then my bottom shed and g'house and on the other by my top g'house with an archway down the centre, so even we cannot see all the garden without actually walking down there, from the house even we cannot see the bottom pond, or my veggie plots or cubby for my compost bins etc... so in actual fact I can hide away even from the family ,lol....
BTW. Lovely shot of your garden..

Hi Scottish, as I was reading this I was planning what to suggest, then I read the comments, and realized that Drc had already said what I was going to say, so in other words I agree with Drc, Derek.

My immediate thought was not a solid block and at an angle and that is what others have already mentioned. Are you on speaking terms with your neighbours? If you are why not have a natter over the garden fence and see if they feel the same but are too afraid to mention it in case they upset you. you might have a common aim on raising the height of the back fence and splitting the costs possibly.

Always difficult, the privacy question isnt it? but Drc has my vote, we use a lot of trellis, it needs to be heavy duty and close gauge to take the weight of climbers etc....you do have a lovely garden, l hope you manage to get it sorted out, good luck.

Thanks all ever so much for your input - I didn't envisage creating rooms. You have all given me food for thought there.
Drc - inspiring! I had already thought about creating a little secret sort of woodland area where the shed had been moved from - you suggestion takes it one step further. I need to keep some of the middle section free from structure and planting as the whirly for the washing will need to be moved there.
Klahanie - I'm nearly always out the first thing in my pjs, not at this time of the year obviously!
Jent - I've an Euonymus marked out for the shadier side to grow up the trellis, great minds ;)
Michaela - I do love all the rooms you have created in your garden - not finding me out there sounds perfect :)
Snoop - They probably are thinking the same. In fact they are probably wondering why a lunatic is outdoors in the tipping rain gardening! It's not the fence to the right, which as you mentioned does belong to me but the fence along the back and it doesn't belong to me! Even though I re-erected it after the storm in 2012 the guy who lived there (still owns it) was a lazy so and so and he'd happily left it horizontal! I've tried chatting to them but conversation didn't come back the way! I've always had my knickers on, I'd hate too offend ;)
Sheila - angles, now there's another I hadn't thought of. I'm so pleased I asked for input. The fence on the right hand side is fine height wise - further down out of shot where the windows overlook, the city planners insisted I erect a 2.1m closed board fence at the time of building my extension. It's the back fence, where it joins me and Jim who gardens over the right hand fence and none of those belong to me. Hence I need to use plants for height.
BA - Seems you are not alone with the rooms option, great minds, eh ;)
Lincs - I can see now why the man who lives to the left of them has an apple tree that no one in their right mind would grow in a garden the size of ours but it certainly does the job he obviously wants! I think whatever I choose MUST involve not being able to see the garden as a whole but in sections.
Derek - it's obvious that everyone else could see what I couldn't which is why I'm pleased to have posted this - I need to get out a pad and do little drawings and take it from there.
SBG - I'm on talking terms with all the other neighbours - I even water all their plants when they are on holiday. This family are not very sociable and their, what appears to be the youngest daughter, has been giving the local kids grief on the school bus! I've tried chatting - even offering their little dog a wee treat but was met with deaf ears. Although it doesn't look it but on my side of the fence it's already nearing the 8ft height - they are a good couple of feet above me. It fell down in storms New Year 2012 and I replaced/re-erected it even though it doesn't belong to me. I can't see into their garden unless I'm right up against the fence or looking out the upstairs windows. There is a bonus in being a short arse sometimes ;)
I will keep you all informed on what I intend to do - there's plenty time for more feedback as it's too wet to get much done!
Thanks again everyone :)

DD2 - your garden was one that gave me the idea/inspiration as I have been browsing GOYpedia for weeks now. All my other trellis is heavy duty as I know some of the cheaper stuff can be quite flimsy. I haven't done final measurements yet and depending on what I've got to work with, I might consider making my own!

I don't know how to advise you. I've never had that problem.
However, I hope your plans are successful :o)

Hi, they could just be looking at your garden with envy!!
Derek.

I totally sympathise with your need to get your 'privacy' back and wish I felt confident enough to give advice to help. I shall look with interest at the advice from others and hope that you find the perfect solution to something that has obviously begun to bother you.

Your garden is a really lovely one. New trellis with attractive climbers seems to be well recommended here and I too like to see trellis in a garden with an arch way perhaps?

I was fascinated by all the brilliant suggestions - whichever you choose will be great. Please could you tell me what king of arch you chose? We had a metal one a few years ago and it has completely had it already.

Thanks for your encouragement Hywel and Chris :)
Derek - you've hit the nail on the head ;)
Stera - I chose a wooden one. It's a Forest Ultima Pergola Arch. I wanted wooden and shopped around various stores. I wanted one that could be sunk into the ground and cemented in. Lots of those in stores didn't have the extra post length to allow for this. I don't like using those metapost thingies - they are quite unsightly, in my opinion. I found the Forest Ultima at Dobbies and Homebase. At a cost of £190 pounds I had a look online and managed to source it for £160 with free delivery, which took just under over a week. Mind you - the fixings were poor and it cost me £20 to replace the hardware supplied. It's solid and well constructed and was easily enough put together. The putting it in the ground however was another matter - the bloody thing weighs a ton! Luckily mummy's little soldier (my son) was off work to help me!

Just have to say that I also think Drc's idea is very good.
Brilliant for anyone with a long rectangular gdn. Whatever you decide upon I hope it's a success.(I bet the neighbours aren't really watching), but it is nice to feel enclosed in one's own private world when outside pottering around. Keep us posted.

I find that traipsing around the back court in my horsehair longjohns works as a deterent to nosy neighbours. ;-)

Feverfew - I too think Drc's idea is by far much better than anything I had in my head. What I can't achieve with structure - I'm going to attempt with plants. I keep telling myself they aren't really watching.
HB - thanks for the compliment. I've never bothered about privacy before and as I said, often out in pj's especially when I get up in the morning. Im hoping to break the back of the work before spring begins.
Mouldy - I got rid of the horsehair longjohns - far too itchy ;)

Scottish just catching up.......we have the Ultima Pergola Arch, and you are right it is heavy, but solid, and looks great with our climbing roses and clematis, we also shopped around for a good price, Peter also made some trellis, quite simple really (with the right equipment) and really solid.
Flattered you should use our garden as an inspiration, we must be doing something right lol x

Angela - I'd be interest on you or Peter's thoughts on the fixings that came with the arch. As I said above I found them very poor quality considering the weight of the thing.
I've not measured up for the trellis yet - depending on sizes it might be more practical to make them myself.

Scottish we did not have a problem with the fixings, they were quite solid, perhaps the quality has changed since we purchased our arch....!! we did pay particular attention to the wood that goes in to the ground we used a strong preservative , it took 3 men to lift and position it, remember it well! ..…also tamp it in well, ours shifted in all the wet weather, very difficult to lift when covered with plants.
Good luck with it, ours looked enormous when we first put it in, and now, especially in the summer looks just right, with the size of your garden it will be a stunning feature.....

I had a short piece left over, when I put my trellising in, which was just as well, as I was able to use that as a brace, following last years high winds about late March, early April.
Re: tamping...any old rubble is useful to wedge the posts in place, as it's less prone to shifting, due to seepage.
Just a thought.

Thanks both of you. I was taking no chances - it's cemented in! I don't intend to move it or want it anywhere else in the garden as it's going to be part of a privacy screen to shut out Mrs Nosey et al!

You becoming a hermit now? ;-)

Goo idea Scottish, looking forward to seeing the pics...

Goo, DD2?
Go on, admit it...you're addicted to creme eggs! Lol.

Using my tablet Mouldy, if I do not check what I have typed, all sorts of rubbish comes up!! well, that's my excuse.....and I actually hate creme eggs, along with Mars bars, anything else in the chocolate line, hold me back!!

Lol.

That is really fantastic and lovely garden Angie! How I wish to see that !!!!