Waaay back in February I wrote about some ideas I had for changing the layout of the back garden. I have finally got around to embarking on the process of turning this into a reality. I can’t do it all in one go so I have decided to do the work in stages.
I moved the climbing frame some weeks ago, so the main task for now was to change the line of the path. This previously ran straight down the middle of the garden, made of square paving slabs just cut into the lawn.
Using my previous drawings as a guide I used the long hose to mark out the new line of the path. After a few trips up and down to a bedroom window to check the line I was happy enough.
Although I had plans in my head to make the new path a more robust feature, properly laid, perhaps involving bricks, gravel or bark, in the end I decided to keep it simple. I just used the same paving slab approach as before, this time turning the stones through 45° so that they are a diamond in the line of the path rather than square. The longer diagonals will help with creating a feeling of bigger space than what is actually there. In theory.
As before, I laid the slabs on the lawn, cut around the edge and removed the turf. Having levelled out the soil I just placed the slab on top, firming it down with the Mark 1 boot. There are a couple that wobble a bit but they’ll settle down. I used the turf removed in this way to repair the holes left by moving the slabs from the old path line, adding some grass seed for good measure.
The new line of the path is longer than the old one, so I needed more slabs, liberated from the veg plot and the greenhouse.
I find I am repeatedly comparing the before and after photos. Whilst the actual shape and size of the garden is not altered, I could convince myself that it appears as though it is. The garden seems wider, for a start. It can only be an optical illusion, of course, but that is the point of the exercise: to make that which is small appear a little larger.
The next stage is to create a small seating area in the far left corner. I intend to surround this with new planting so will be extending the borders as part of that job.
I’ll be back in a month or two with an update on progress.
Looks brilliant. A great way to improve the layout of the garden.
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Thanks, it’s a start. Plenty more to do.
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Nice idea to place the slabs in a diamond shape. I’ll bear that in mind for my own garden!
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Thanks. Can’t claim credit for it,sure I read it somewhere.
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Nonetheless….
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That is an impressively neat job, with the turf recycled from where the pavers were installed into where the pavers were removed from. It looks like the lawn has had a season to recover from the patching. I think that setting the pavers with their corners together rather than their edges together gained enough length to compensate for the extra length of the curve.
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It’ll have made a bit of a difference but I still needed 5 or 6 additional slabs. Had some I could use so all good.
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Nice start! Already feels more relaxed.
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This looks fab! I love a curved path. It really does look wider.
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That’s a great curve. Looks great
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Thanks. Not entirely sure what to do next. But something will be done…
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I love the new path. The old one seems purely functional – a way to get from one end of the yard to the other. The new one seems more inviting … encouraging you to stroll and enjoy. Nice job.
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Thanks, I’m pleased with how it turned out. Plenty more to come…
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It’s amazing what a difference that made! I sure enjoy seeing the progress. Lovely.
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Thanks!
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Looking good
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Thanks, yes I’m pleased with the curve.
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It’s looking good. Just finished my garden makover and like you looking forward to getting more plants in
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I love that you turned the paving stones. And to my mind curving paths in a garden invite one to wander. I like the new plan!
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Thank you, well see how it turns out.
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As I scrolled through the pics before reading the text, I thought to myself that the garden looks a lot wider though a bit shorter. More accurately, it is the climbing frame that looks closer and so seems to change the focal length, so to speak, of the garden. In days gone by, lines had to be straight but these days curvy is far more pleasing to the eye (as I reduce my lawn I’m aiming for more curves). I’m looking forward to your progress reports.Though it you could speed things up a bit, that might help others with ideas as they go along (asking for a friend, you know!).
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At the rate I’ve been going I’ll be done in the 2020s. My ulterior motive,of course, is to make more room for plants, so that might help move things along.
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Far out. What a difference the shape of a path makes!! Garden definately looks wider. The only downside is I would love to see your two photos side by side to compare 😊.
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Not sure if you’ll be able to see this or not. Give it a try.
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Excellent! Thanks. Yep definately looks wider. Good job 😊
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