You may look at some of the pictures of my garden before I started this project and wonder what possessed me to purchase the property in the first place. There was actually no garden to speak of, just a long yard with an outbuilding which was the garage/workshop but as usual I had the foresight to see the potential.
As you can see there was a lot of work to be done. I came to an agreement with my neighbours to demolish the brick wall and recycle the bricks to make block paving and in it's place we installed some nice wooden fencing with concrete posts and base. The cleaning of the bricks was painstakingly slow but well worth it in the end.So I set to with the help of my father every weekend to chip the mortar and paint from the bricks. I decided that because the garden was long and narrow the pathway leading to the top needed to be curved to add interest and detract from the length. This made the job more complicated because the bricks had to be cut to adapt to the required shape.
The pictures below show the site once the garage was demolished and the block paving work had begun. I was already excited at the transformation. Once the block paving was completed I painted the brickwork cream to match the rear of the property.The garden is still evolving and there is still further work required to bring it to completion but I have a nice collection of containers for my herbs and plants purchased on my travels including an old tin bucket, bath and belfast sink and I am always on the lookout for items that will add interest. I can honestly say it was worth all the hard work because I now have a garden to enjoy during the summer months, a far cry from the dingy back yard inherited with the purchase of the property.
