Hi guys and girls, Just looking for some help. Need to buy some bulbs that will grow in a rockery and really dont know where to look. no luck with my local B&Q. The closer to NW-London the better. Im told i need Alpines. Also any last minute help/tips for building my rockery? Thanks in advance, MB p.s. Thanks for all the past help for those that know me. I haven't worked on my garden much for the past year- too busy at uni but hoping to have it all done by end of summer. - hopefully will post pics soon. Take care. Thanks again! MB
Hiya, i had a rockery.I was given a great tip and that was to use cocunut compost.Its not easy to get hold of,i managed to get some from a local gardener.The alpine plants loved it and grew rampant.Unfortunately i let it go over a period of time and ended up taking it out.Would love to see a pic, when you finally get it done. The B&Q where i live, have a great selection of alpines, for about 99p each, try having another look.If not a garden centre will give you some advice. Hope that helps.
Thanks for the tip, got a ton of compost already however and its not me paying as it's really my aunts garden im doing for her so she wants her money's worth. I keep reading on some of the shrub - use peat free compost - is this important?? Ill try at my local homebase but B&Q were pretty poor - a big garden centre and not one person working in that area - had the manager help me but he seemed in a rush - they had about a selection of 3 bulbs. If anyone knows any other places i could try it'd be a great help just a few Q's: 1. should i put bits of compost/soil etc in the lower layers as i build up? (planning a rockery about 1.5mx2.5m and about .7m in height) 2. How do you plant once the rocks are there? 3. I have 3 dwarf cornifers soo far, any tips on how to treat these? 4. How many bulbs do i put in the rockery to start with and how high/low down? 5. How long does a bulb keep for? Thanks in advance. MB
You have asked a huge question. There are books after books on rock garden construction and planting up. What type of rocks have you? Different kinds need slightly different treatment. As to sources of decent plants why not Google for Alpine Nurseries in your area. At least from a specialist nursery you would get suitable plants and good advice. There are dozens of small bulbs for rock gardens, but most of them sold only by specialist nurseries.
Other question springs to mind too. Is it to be viewed from all round or????. Is it on the 'flat' or is there already an existing slope? What is the drainage like? How much sun will the site get? All these affect the way you go about your construction. Probably will think of more things as I go about too.
Thanks for the feedback, googling the nurserys as we speak. Viewed from one side, it is up against a wall. Rocks - oops - i really don't know. I'll get a picture and bring it to the nursery and post it here. Drainage is good as its on a slop and will be on rocks. Will get sun for most of the day as it is against the side that catches most of the sun at midday. For those who don't know - very new to gardening and have a big task - completely re-building a garden. So everything I do I want to be pretty basic as long as it looks 'OK' and it will be tweaked to perfection at a later date . still any help on the questions would be great... 1. should i put bits of compost/soil etc in the lower layers as i build up? 2. How do you plant once the rocks are there? 3. I have 3 dwarf cornifers soo far, any tips on how to treat these? 4. How many bulbs do i put in the rockery to start with and how high/low down? 5. How long does a bulb keep for? *slight change, im now going to have a LONG rockery, approx 5mx1m at a height of approx .5m.** 6. Also curious do i NEED bulbs or can i just put the ready plants in? 7. Should I leave the compost that surrounds the roots in the pot. 8. How important is peat free compost? i got some that was advised by the guy at HomeBase, not peat free but drains well, will also mix this with sharp sand, top soil and gravel. 9. Lastly... How many plants should i put in in relation to the size. I have 3 dwarf cornifers, 10 medium size alpines and 7 small alpines. Please help with ANYTHING as i'm probably going to build this on monday or tuesday. I will google lots and read lots and will try the nursery but I think i'll still be guessing a lot so any advice would be Greeeeat! Anyway thanks for everything to date I'll let you know how its all progressing! MB
1. should i put bits of compost/soil etc in the lower layers as i build up? Yes, the best way to begin is to use the biggest rocks as a sort of raised bed in the shape you want. They don't have to touch each other but obviously you don't want soil to be able to fall out either. You could actually chuck in any old bits of brick etc. in this layer as long as you put a reasonable amount of compost behind the first layer of rocks. Then put the next layer of rocks in and so on, packing in compost as you go. The rocks should be firm enough to walk on. If you leaves a space btween rocks about the size of the plantpots in which your plants come then planting is easy. Conifers (hope they are true dwarfs though) should be planted about half way up a rock garden. You dont see trees on the skyline in mountains now do you? Dwarf bulbs can be planted either in front of the base rocks or in between the next layer, depending on how tall they eventually grow. About 50 mixed sorts for a garden that size. Buy either bulbs or pots of them whichever is easiest. If happy they will last for years. Never use peat based compost myself, too much risk of vine weevil. Decent garden soil (if weed free) or sterile top soil and equal amounts of grit and sharp sand. NO fertiliser, alpines prefer a lean diet. Number of plants depends on style, Cottage garden style, one plant for every square foot, less and less for natural style. Hope this helps.
More or less answered it all, thankyou very much for your help. I owe you one. Feel kinda bad actually as I dont really know much so its not a case of sharing knowledge, just stealing yours . Hopefully I'll be able to pass it on and if your passing during summer, pop by and i'll give you a nice big bag of apples from one of my apple trees, we always have too many!! Will probably go ahead with the whole thing tommorow as its the only sunny day until friday, or should I wait until then do you think? I'm just worried as plants are sitting in pots and the turf is rolled up on a black bag, well watered, waiting to be used on the rockery. Will use compost with peat in it as I have tons of the stuff unless anyone thinks its a real bad idea. Also still not sure if I should leave the plants with the potted compost around them or brush all compost off roots and put them in fresh!? No fertilizer? hmmm, the guide definitly said to use some. you sure on this one? I've got a nice big pot, maybe use a little to get it started. not been able to get any 'grit' yet, will sharp sand not just do the job? Yes they are definitly dwarf cornifers, that would be funny! The guide said stick them in so the bulb just touches the top, i thought this was a bit silly too as it would simply poke out and look silly, so ill put it a little further down. Thanks again for all your help, will try to get some pics on here for you soon. How was your 'rockery' experience? would you reccomend it? I just cant think of a better way to get rid of all the rocks I have.
Peat based is ok, just not used it much myself. Sharp sand will do fine as long as it is sharp (should almost cut your fingers!) I always wash off the compost on plants, but that is because most of mine go into almost pure grit rather than grit/soil mix, but then most of my alpines are rather more specialised. Defintiely no fertiliser for true alpines, hey just grow very big and die quicker. Er, what bulb on a conifer? Plant them at the same depth as they are in the pot. If you bury the stem then you run the risk of it rotting. I would not bare root the conifers either, just pull out and loosen a few of the roots. We actuall have a fair number of alpine growing areas in the garden, but then I like growing alpines. 'tis the nearest I will ever get to going to the Alps or the Himalayas etc. Worry not, just hope your attempts are successful. You can always rip it apart at some future date when you have more experience. Love to see pics of it, Have fun.
Aha, ripping it apart is a possibility i suppose. yeh ill give it a try tommorrow, just worried that it might be a bit too wet for the next few days but dont want to leave it till friday as im worried plants will get eaten by squirrels and the turf will die. Will crack on with it anyway and let you know thanks for all the advice
Re: Rocj garden building Hi palustris, i gotta ask, is that your rockery?? looks very professional.If it is, i would love to see the rest of your garden.Ive already 'stolen' some ideas from toni
That is indeed one of our alpine areas. The full story of construction with pictures is due to appear in the Bulletin of the Alpine Garden Society before long.
These are our main alpine growing areas. They look empty because I took the pictures recently and this weather has delayed flowering of many things. At least this way you can see the structure.
Your stuff looks great. The rocks i have are more like paving slabs so im not sure how it will look. Are these sort of plants easy to grow or do they take a lot of work?
