Firstly Thanks everyone for your comments Progress report. I have some things that could be used (after seeing the price of plants I thought at least I should try) ...they just don't go together?? I have a large 1m sq lavender in the bottom corner that I rescued before we dug the garden up. (not shown on pic and wasn't sure if its staying although its stunning in flower but doesn't have to stay) At the allotment I already have a lavender hedges that's have been growing for a couple of years round beds that could be moved? Hosta's love them I have 2 huge ones in pots at the minute but thought they hated the sun? I also have 2 bushy short bamboos and 4 big tall bamboos all in matching very plain, bronze colour, square fibreglass pots (4 big, 2 smaller) that are at the front of the house that could go round the back just not sure what plants would compliment them. Don't want to end up with something that resembles a meditation garden or panda rescue centre. Painting the fence is a great idea a new one would be even better when funds allow Worried about boxes a little as my pruning seems to get a little wild and I fear I would be left with off shaped balls but ordered my giant alliums already as I can either use them, grow in pots or brighten up the allotment beds Called at the garden centre on the way from work (quick rush round as it was closing) and saw Erica arborea 'Albert's Gold' lime green tall heather plant that had a really nice colour?

Hi there, a lovely climber that needs little or no attention is an evergreen honeysuckle called 'Fire cracker' which grows in sun or shade. One tip for more flowers is train the plants horizontally not vertically. White jasmine is another evergreen climber that smells wonderful and again needs only to be tied to the wall. It has white flowers that give off a heady scent at night from June to September and in winter the leaves turn a glorious red colour. Cotoneaster is also a great evergreen shrub that looks great all year round and the bees love it. Mine is now climbing a wall but started off as a standard shrub. White flowers in the summer and red berries in autumn. Good luck xx

It’s a jolly nice garden that just needs a few tweaks. Is the washing line retractable, if not, then swop it for one that is. That way it is tucked away against a wall or fence when not in use. Most supermarkets sell them as well as Dunelm etc. You have some wooden raised beds filled with wood chips which are crying out for low growing plants such as lavender, geraniums and aubretia. Your pots look a bit of a trip hazard as they are, so they would be better grouped together perhaps on the right of the steps? The best fence treatment is plants - climbing shrubs like honeysuckle, roses and jasmine are fast growing and stunning. Clematis are quite delicate so better grown up an obelisk or through other shrubs such as roses. My own garden is quite small and just a rectangle of sandstone paving, but I’ve surrounded it with plants to soften the edges. Here’s a couple of pics - one of today (raining!) and one last summer.

Hi Michelle These are both relatively tough spots for many plants as they are shaded and in the case of the one by the house will tend to not get much water as the house 'shades' it from the rain. Therefore the first thing I would recommend is improving the soil by digging in a lot of well rotted farmyard manure or similar. This not only feeds the soil and plants, but also helps hold water in the soil. In relation to the 2 beds - firstly the one by the wall. Lavender needs full sun to look good and quickly looks leggy and flowers poorly in spots like yours. The key message is 'right plant, right place'. Medium size shrubs like Pittosporums cope with shade and are evergreen and give year round interest and structure. One call 'Golf ball' stays a nice rounded shape for below a window. Flowering perennials that give good value in part sun are hardy Geraniums - one called 'Rozanne' flowers all summer and also Astrantias which give 2 rounds of flowers (spring and autumn) which last for a long time. The latter do prefer not to dry out though so they would need to be kept moist. It would be nice to screen the wall a bit, so a wall shrub that you can prune to keep in order like Pyracantha would serve well. Again it is evergreen and has spring flowers and autumn berries. The other perennials listed below would also work. On the second bed I am going to be annoying and say 'you don't want to do that', in relation to planting the common laurel hedge. These are big bully plants that will quickly fill nearly the whole depth of your bed and will really compete with any shrubs you put in front. Because of the big leaves they are also hard to clip to a narrow hedge that is more controllable. You might try Prunus lusitanicus, Yew or even just privet. Again as regards plants you want shrubs that can tolerate being in the shade. Good evergreen ones are Chiosya (white flowers twice a year), Viburnum tinus (white flowers in winter), Pittosporum Elizabeth. These shrubs do get big, so you could just use them and not plant the hedge at all. A good small shrub is Sarcococca confusa which has very scented flowers in February. Deciduous shrubs might be Viburnum plicatum 'Kilimanjaro' (white spring blossom and good autumn foliage), Viburnum opulus compactum (white blossom, berries and good autumn colour) or Fothergillia major. Consider using perennials like Hellebores, ferns, hardy geraniums, heucheras and euphorbias to underplant and fill in space at the front of the bed. Good luck with it!