Last week we moved into our new house. It is exciting, wonderful and somewhat overwhelming. Regular readers will have heard me mention (just a few times) how much work needs to be done to the house! But, I haven’t yet talked much about the garden…
Our garden. Well, it’s big.
It’s 1.2 acres big… *panics a little bit*
This is unheard of in the town we live in; gardens are fairly small and often not very private. There generally isn’t much to divide one garden from another, and fences/hedges are the exception rather than the rule. We had no idea when we first looked at the property that the land around it belonged to the house!
It is beautiful and wild and full of rock. It’s completely overgrown. I have no idea what most of the plants are. We have grapes…!
I don’t really know where to start, so for now I will simply give you a first peek.
This random selection of photos sums up how I feel about it at the moment. A bit random!
Our first task is to create a ‘back garden’! A safe space for the kids, especially the wee girl…
We will be removing the old play structure and other dangerous (!) items from the area of garden that is accessed directly from the kitchen. After we have cleared the big items, we will install a new (gated and secure!) fence and level the area. This will become the ‘play’ garden, with swing set, water table and paddling pool etc. We also plan to put in a deck to ‘extend’ the kitchen and give us an outdoor dining area (on next years list!).
The rest of the garden… I honestly have no idea at the moment! But, I am certainly going to have fun working it out. I think my first port of call is someone who can tell me the names of all the plants!
I am however thrilled that we have this wild garden for the kids. What a fantastic opportunity for them; a wood and rocks and wildlife, literally at their back door. There are rabbits and chipmunks and squirrels. Our neighbours showed them where the groundhog lives. There are so many birds. I am sure we will get racoons and skunks too :)
So, it may be a bit overwhelming, but it is amazing, and I can’t wait to get started.
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I think it looks beautiful! Yes, it’s a great idea to have play garden. And I can imagine the kids will love to run around freely in the greenery and explore. You have a lovely house too :)
Thank you! It’s all very exciting, but a little overwhelming! The boys love the garden :)
I think the pink one might be an azalea? I’m really not good at flower names! It looks gorgeous though, and full of promise for amazing times running around in so much lovely space!
Hmm… I’m going to have to get a gardener to give me a tour :)
I’m literally green with envy right now :) What an amazing garden!!! So much space and it looks like somewhere your kids will have lots of adventures in. You can anything with a garden this size. Perhaps part of it could be used for a mini wildflower meadow?
Thank you! I think wildflowers are a must, parts of the garden will have to remain wild! And, I want a proper veggie patch. And, a safe contained ‘back’ garden… I think it may all take me a while :)
congratulations on the move! the new house and garden look beautiful. the garden is huge! and i hear you, i would be totally overwhelmed and a bit intimidated by its size as well.
Thank you Claudia x The garden is ridiculously massive, but such potential… And, the boys love it!
Beautiful gardens! What a special place! I nominated you for the Sunshine Award on my blog today. You can read about it here. http://www.normaleverydaylife.com/2014/07/the-sunshine-award.html Thanks for being a blogging inspiration to me! And now I get to be inspired by your new house adventures, too! :)
Thank you! Oh, that really has made my day, was in real need of a little boost, so thank you so much xx
Gorgeous photos. How big is your garden? wow it looks enormous
Thank you! The garden is just over an acre… but a lot of that is rock :)
I wish I had a garden sometimes. You are lucky ;) It looks so peaceful too. enjoy!
Thank you, I’m looking forward to sorting a small area that we can sit in soon – it’s all a bit wild at the moment :)
What a brilliant garden – I’m so envious! Such room and like you say, scope. You could even incorporate on of those rocks into some sort of handmade climbing frame or awesome slide!
What a beautiful house too – you are going to be the envy of the town by the sounds of it!
Thanks for joining in again lovely x
Thank you Annie. My husband already has plans for a climbing wall… People will either envy us or think we’re mad for taking it all on :)
What an amazing garden space to have! Lot of work but so much fun transforming it into a space you all can enjoy. Great idea having a secure safe play area and love the thought of some of it remaining wild so that it continues as a natural habitat for all the wildlife.
I suspect quite a bit of it will remain wild, but I’m going to enjoy creating some more specific areas within it :)
Gorgeous!! For a nominal sum, Mahoney’s (located in Winchester) can send a garden landscaper to your house and put together a design that you can build upon through the years. They will also help you name current plants, trees, bushes and recommend varieties, etc. good luck!
Oh, thank you for the tip Amanda… adding them to our ‘to call’ list!
Aaah, I am so envious! It looks amazing. Yes, I can see overwhelming there, too, but how fantastic to have it there for when you get a spare second from the house project…! x
Thanks Jocelyn, I have so many of those spare seconds :)
The pink one is rhododendron, the small purply one is spiderwort. The garden looks fabulous. Really amazing. Would love a playdate soon but you must be bushed after all the moving and unpacking!
Thanks Jessica, I think I’ll be calling on you to identify a few others for me. I wouldn’t have known the purple one was spiderwort!
That is seriously cool! Having visited family in your part of the world I know where you’re coming from about the gardens, so mega impressed. I’m loving the rocks-soooo much potential :-)
The rocks are actually quite cool, hubby wants to make a climbing wall… :)
Wow – what an amazing space! I’d be daunted by that – we struggle with our tiny back garden as it is…!
Yeah… think I’ll stick to creating the ‘play’ garden for the moment, that’s manageable :)
Ohh you lucky lady, it looks wonderful, such great opportiunities for exploring and playing. My kids love living ina big plot of land and going off and getting lost! Mich x
That’s what I’m really excited about, such a great place for the kids to explore, make dens, play freely – but within our own garden!
Your house and garden look amazing! Very jealous right now lol x
Thank you!
What a wonderful opportunity to have such a big garden but I know just how daunting it can feel. When we built out house nearly 5 years ago we were left with 2000m2 of buiding site mud and lots of rock! We kept the rock because we felt it was part of the land and its identity and now we have plants all around and a thriving Mediterranean garden. It’s a lot of work but its so great to live like this. I think 1 acre is about 40000 m2 i.e. double what we have…good luck! The photos here look lovely. You’ve got a great base to start with. #hdygg
It is a fab opportunity, but definitely daunting! But, just like the house, we’ll take it slowly and just do a bit at a time :)
what an amazing space! And what a bonus to find all that land belonged to the house. Fantastic! I’m sure you will get a better feel for what you want to do soon, although i love the fact it looks like it is full of adventure already.
Thank you! It is a beautifully mature garden, just a bot overgrown at the moment!
How exciting, such a wonderful project to get stuck in to. I’m sure you’ll all have heaps of fun getting it just the way you want. I’m sure the kids will love exploring it all
The boys already love it! I’m looking forward to creating some spaces for us to use :)
Looks amazing and great to have all of that space. Sounds like chunking the work into smaller steps is a good idea.
Absolutely, tackle one bit at a time!
Sara this is the most amazing space. What lucky children to have this to enjoy and explore and I’m sure you are going to have hours of fun making just as you want it. for now I should enjoy the wildness it offers and let the children explore.
I completely agree Fiona, and I am thrilled to have found a space like this for them – a bit of freedom to explore and create!
I was thinking the pink one was an azalea too. It kind of looks like you now own a section of forest!! I’ll enjoy watching you tame and transform some of it! X
It does feel a little bit like that :)
congratulations on your new house and looking forward to seeing your new adventures unfold you have a beautiful house and garden there to play in
Thank you Helen x I have no excuse not to join in with #HDYGG now :)
WoW Sarah, this is amazing. You said it was a project, and it certainly is! But it means that you have free reign to create something your way for you and your family. How very exciting and thnx for giving us a peek – it sure is going to keep you busy! Love it & congratulations on the move xx
Yup, it’s definitely a project :) can’t wait to get stuck in though!
That looks an amazing garden! And a lot of work to! Looks like the kids will have hours and hours of fun in the garden!
They really will, I’m so excited for them :)