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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2006 15:21:22 GMT
I don't like them at all - they seem to just be a breeding ground for slugs and woodlice  I haven't got a rockery at the moment and will never have one unless someone can say something good about them  So what do the rest of you think to them? |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2006 15:26:32 GMT
In theory - or in garden design books - they look nice, but the ones I've seen in reality always seem artificial (admittedly, gardens are inherently artificial) and the plants often seem out-of-place. They look particularly bad in small gardens ... cheers ...
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Post by andy on Sept 27, 2006 15:27:20 GMT
How can you say that....shame on you !!! ;D But i'm a bit biased so here's hopefully a small pic of the one i look after taken last spring  |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2006 15:31:31 GMT
That is lovely <green with envy smiley> ... cheers ...
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Post by andy on Sept 27, 2006 15:32:57 GMT
Here's my effort in my front garden which was constructed earlier on in the year Andy  |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2006 15:38:22 GMT
How can you say that....shame on you !!! ;D If only I could have one like that  The ones I tend to see are smallish piles of rock and no gravel - full of weeds too. Does the gravel keep the slugs away BTW - only joking ;D |
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Post by Plocket on Sept 27, 2006 15:48:44 GMT
Oh both those are beautiful!
My memory of our rockery (mum and dad's) was a small area piled up with rocks and planted with a few confiers that soon got overgrown. It was great for scambling up on to see the neighbours rabbits though!
We don't have a rockery here but I do have a rock wall. When we started on the garden nearly 5 years ago we found masses of beautiful natural stone buried under some huge shrubs. Rather than throw them away I created a low retaining wall with them.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2006 15:52:48 GMT
Could you post a photo of your wall Plocket please - it sounds wonderful |
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Post by Plocket on Sept 27, 2006 16:17:10 GMT
No sooner said than done! But not as wonderful as you might imagine Rita - it's probably a lot lower than you imagined! The wall serves a purpose though and is re-using what we found whilst digging. Right I've just taken these of the most visible bit - please forgive the grass that needs mowing!   |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 27, 2006 16:58:36 GMT
True Plocket how did you guess - I imagined a wall of about 2½ foot - looks good all the same  Could I see a couple of eyes looking at me from the top of the wall?  It's been far too wet for mowing lawns |
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Post by Plocket on Sept 27, 2006 17:46:05 GMT
PML Rita! And yes you could see a pair of eyes - that's Baby Grot. That bit of the wall is the most visible bit, but it goes round in almost a circle with the grass in the middle. There's a gap from the paving to the grass, and a step to the patio on the right. The worst problem I have with it is the allium triquetrum growing through it, but as the stones aren't fixed I can still weed and dig the bulbs out.
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Post by beejay on Sept 27, 2006 19:13:04 GMT
I think a proper rockery should look as if it is meant to be there & reflect the natural setting that rockery plants live in. There is a fantastic one at Wisley - fairly large, & the ones Andy has posted pics of are great. What I hate is when you see 2 or 3 lumps of rock stuck in the middle of a small bed with no thought whatsoever & it's called a rockery. (My sister had one in the middle of her front lawn!). I remember learning at college about getting the right rock type, how to place it & how much to bury & so on. It needs a lot of thought.
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Post by sweetleaf on Sept 28, 2006 14:44:42 GMT
My attempt at a rockery ended up looking a bit "twee"  and was taken over by just one type of sedum +grass....I ripped it out last year and I dont think I`ll ever try that again, its just toooo boring! The really big ones look ok, but if you cant provide the height it just doesnt work. |
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Post by madonplants on Sept 28, 2006 16:35:00 GMT
The right plants in the right place look far better than the wrong plants in the wrong place. That saying goes for all plants though. Who would put a purple beech in a minute garden. It would look out of place. I remember my first proper garden. It had a rockery, but it had not been looked after, had the wrong plants and the soil was solid clay with about 1/4 inch of gravel over the top. It was in the right place for the garden, but just not built properly. Main mistake was invasive creeping plants and conifers that obviously weren't dwarf enough. The house was only 4 years old, so they must have chosen badly. I tried to improve it but failed, miserably. I would have had to rip it all up to improve the soil and then to get the rocks back how they were. They were the only good thing there. I decided to dig it all up and build my first wildlife pond. It looked so much better, if I say so myself, and I used the original rocks to go around the pond. As with the previous pictures they can look great, just have to be sited right, built right and have the right plants growing in it.
Keith
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Post by Chuckles on Apr 14, 2007 19:32:47 GMT
Here's my effort in my front garden which was constructed earlier on in the year Andy Is it still looking as good AndyIf only I could have one like that The ones I tend to see are smallish piles of rock and no gravel - full of weeds too. Does the gravel keep the slugs away BTW - only joking ;D Have you thought about doing a rockery in your new garden How's your rockery wall looking P, I missed the pics you posted before  I gave up with my rockery it's to dry for anything but Ivy to grow and that comes through from next door It now has pots of Hostas, Fushias and Ferns on it. Anyone else got a nice rockery  my neighbour has just had one built. I it's south facing and all he has in it at the moment are a few little Hebes. Any suggestions ? ? ? |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 14, 2007 22:21:32 GMT
Andy your rockery looks lovely. OH wanted a rockery but having memories of the many 'brickeries' in the 70's i said no. I actually have a nice piece of sloping garden that would look nice with granite (local stone) but i'm just soo worried that it'll be a mess. A friend of mine who has a house on the West Coast near Plockton has the most wonderful rockery.....not one he made but one that nature made and it's perfect nature even planted it for him all he does is keep the grass at bay.....now why can't she do one for me!? |
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Post by andy on Apr 17, 2007 13:42:19 GMT
Looks a bit unruly at the moment due to the bulb leaves looking untidy. Just taken this pic  |
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Post by Chuckles on Apr 17, 2007 19:54:34 GMT
Looks fine to me Andy. Don't forget to plant whatever is in that pot on the wall ;D
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and was taken over by just one type of sedum +grass....I ripped it out last year and I dont think I`ll ever try that again, its just toooo boring! The really big ones look ok, but if you cant provide the height it just doesnt work. 
my neighbour has just had one built. I it's south facing and all he has in it at the moment are a few little Hebes. Any suggestions ? ? ?