Softwood decking replaces the old rotting deckDo it yourself
Spending a total £1,000, Smyth and Delorme replaced rotting deck with treated softwood decking
(walthamforestfencing.co.uk) and made a new fence with timber from Wickes.
The close-board fence with a dark coat of Farrow & Ball Downpipe shows off foliage and seems to push
back the boundary.
A gravel path works well in small, narrow plotsDon’t overplant
Buy small plants, which will soon grow, and use any that you already have. Smyth and Delorme brought
potted Sago palms and two standard rosemary bushes from their old balcony. Left in their pots, the palms
add height and a focal point at the end of the path. Planted in the ground, the rosemary romped, giving the
planting structure all year.
All plants came from Northfields Nursery for about £400. Since bringing in bees, birds and butterflies was
the priority, Smyth chose verbena bonariensis, nepeta walker’s low, lavender hidcote, achillea moonshine
and cerise queen, echinacea cheyenne spirit and poppies, all pollinator magnets.