How to abandon a garden - let it go wild or take out all the plants?

Fionne

I started a flower bed several years back. It's about 30 feet long, ground level. A mixed border of shrubs, bulbs, annuals.

I have back trouble. Had surgery in October. I've been walking past the flower bed with my hands over my eyes so I don't see how awful it's looking. I never got to do the pre-winter prep I'd intended to do.

Spring is now upon us.

Options: Let it just go wild, unweeded, hope for the best.

Or remove the plants and let it revert back to grass (or the fuschia hedge that once covered it almost entirely could be left to grow back).

What would you do? I can't see myself being able to do things like planting & weeding as it's too much bending (I'm only 47 but crocked) and I can't afford to get the whole garden re-done to raised bed levels.

Baybay

It seems a pity to just let it go after all the hard work you put in & I’m sure the expense of it all too.

Crocked as you may be, would you still enjoy being able to see it from your patio or window? I think I’d get someone in to tidy it all up, trim the hedge back, put down a weed membrane & gravel it all.

A bit of extra expense but you’d still get to enjoy looking at your garden & someone in once or twice a year to tidy up would make a difference, I think.

magicbastarder

i suspect you don't live near anyone who doesn't have space for a veg garden, but would love one?

It would be a fascinating experiment to see what would happen if let run wild - I suspect some of those plants would still thrive against any weedy competition. That's what I would do, though I don't think many would agree. It would revert to fairly dense scrub with bramble and ivy among the fuchsia eventually, wonderful for wildlife, and could sustain a once a year whacking.

A few native semimature trees of species that don't grow to great heights - hawthorn, holly, spindle, hazel they will suppress undergrowth to some extent and can be left to their own devices - more or less.

But don't concrete or gravel the whole thing if you can do anything else at all.

looksee

I agree with Blaris, let it go and just ask someone to trim it back once a year. It has so much stuff in it, and doing very well, that weeds will not be a huge problem. Sorry about your dodgy back, you may eventually find you can potter a bit.

Fionne

I have a few raised beds I use for veg so I could keep those going. Don't think I can afford to pay someone to come in to do it and my other half has zero interest in gardening so if I can't do it, he won't.

I definitely won't be using concrete and if I had gravel I'd have redone the driveway which badly needs it. The garden is attached to a sheep farm so I'd already snatched about a quarter acre to allow go into meadow and have spindle, hawthorn, crab apple planted there as well as making a pond out of an old bath.

My flower bed might just have to be let go wild and see how it pans out. It's sad cos I find gardening so great, good for body and soul but while the mind is willing, my body just isn't. Hard to be having to give up a hobby at age 47 when there's folk in their 90's still gardening!

ttnov77

try to get a help but if your only 2 option are let is go or lawn, definitely please let it go wild.

you have some great pollinators and wildlife supporting plans and it would be great shame to replace them with sterile lawn :/