Hi Martin, it's coming along great so far, it will be fun to see what you do for the Gazebo and to watch the stages of the water garden evolving!

Should make for a nice summertime out there.

- Michael

Martin:
Please excuse the state of the decking as this winter has been a long and very wet winter with some frosts and it has lifted the stain preserver, so I guess it was not a very good preserver But it will get redone this year with something hopefully better. If it does not work again, then the decking boards will be removed and replaced with larch

--------------


Hi Martin,forgive my English limitations:
I think you're talking about wooden floor's planks..you should use "autoclave-impregnating-pine planks" for outdoor(chrome free)..it's cheap and polishable
or "composite eco-wood" (a mix of sawings wood and PET)



anyway..if i have misunderstood you:enjoy your garden !

M

The garden is a tranquil spot, and we are fortunate to live in a reasonably quiet spot that is kind of rural but within 2 miles of a market town. We imported frogspawn last year and some 3 spine stickle bags. The stickle backs have mated this year and we now have a pond full of baby fish. The local birds like the garden too, using the pond for washing and drinking. It's a long slow process that evolves at its own pace.

Martin Spencer-Ford

Thanks Michael - The gazebo design is rough started at the moment trying to work out dimensions as well as shape. I have already decided it will be an octagon based design, but the size requirements for wheelchair access and enough room for two carers and personal space requirements are good fun to figure out and then to position the base for maximum effect whilst maintaining a sense of privacy too, so it's like decisions decisions decisions all the time.

The pond still has a few bits left to do. I am still deciding wether to keep the local 'Bulwell Sandstone' or to have the rocks replaced with beach rolled boulders, granite boulders would look good too and comply more with the Japanese style with it being a volcanic eco system. There are also two 400 litre water buckets here that are to be utilised in creating water feature but again what I want and what is achievable are two different things, I was hoping to use one of the buckets as a giant gravel filter but I am not sure if the water will exit that one fast enough to prevent overflow as the pump is a 5000 ltr ph one which will effectively recycle the ponds water every hour.

Hopefully in the next few weeks the Patio area will be going down, but before that happens the sleepers need to go in place. Nice big chunks of natural oak 2400x100x200 - I am tempted to surface scorch these to get that black burnt timber look, again to comply with Japanese style.

Martin Spencer-Ford

Thanks for the suggestion Mauro, I prefer natural products that can be recycled, but I am also a realist, I will look into those decking boards and the materials and see how they fit, I also have to take into account of the finish and how slippery they may become.

Many thanks

Martin Spencer-Ford

A question to anyone who reads this ...

Does moss grow on burnt/scorched timber - I don't recall ever seeing moss growing on it. ?

Martin Spencer-Ford

I think it depends.

Moss likes acidic, low pH. Wood ash is potash, and is higher pH, alkaline.

Looked on Google:

How to grow moss: http://www.mossandstonegardens.com/blog/how-to-grow-moss/

Then I came upon how to grow morel mushrooms...

- Brian

The composite decking on my little porch is deteriorating, and does get slick.

Came across a free texture site, with commercial use allowed. Daily download limit.

http://texturelib.com/#!/category/?path=/Textures/wood/burnt

- Brian

shou-sugi-ban

Prepping the ground for the patio base - More work to be done to the pond so it will have a larger area away from the fish so frogs can breed and have a chance of producing off-spring, this will also allow an area for water plants that will encourage Dragon and Damsel flies. The sandstone rocks will eventually be piled in such a way as to work as a winter hotel for the frogs and other insect wildlife.

Once the base is down, then it will be time to design the summer house proper (gulp).

Martin Spencer-Ford

Some good progress Martin!

- Michael

Thanks Michael - It's been a pain in the backside to get the area ready, weed-killing the ground, then having to wait for all the weeds/grass to be killed off, then the garden slopes in two directions so the retaining wall needs to be modified a little so we can have a true level for the slabbing ... I have them ordered but have forgotten what brand they are, the slabs look like granite but are cast concrete and are a blue-grey slate like colour and are heavily textured for a hopefully non slip finish. The colour should also match with that of the glacial boulders that are in the plan but not ordered yet .... It just seems to go on and on and on ...

Martin Spencer-Ford

** Edit **

Found the slabbing stones to be used.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3eoDfh_ZXrg

We did it on dirt, but did use 1" sand, concrete pavers touching, no mortar. (Not the proper way to do it.)
http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/design/msg0515001422114.html

A proper way to do it:
http://www.ehow.com/how_7980660_making-patio-concrete-blocks.html
On This Old House show, they use about 6 inches of special crushed "gravel."

= Brian

Hey thanks for reply Brian, there are several ways of putting down slabs, in this case it will be load stone and sharp sand (sandy grit) whacked down and then the slabs will be laid with a mortar bed. They won't be going anywhere soon with that method and it should be weather proof for years.

Martin Spencer-Ford

A long time since an update here, but it's not a dead project. Got new computer equipment here that has taken an age to set up and get running smoothly, but forcing something to play with OS X is not always an easy task. There has also been legal matters that needed attention including a court appeals process thanks to the "Bedroom Tax" imposed by our ever so friendly government.

So the slabs are down and the ground has been soft-scaped. The nice Japanese Maple did not make it through last summer(2014), where the prolonged high temperatures scorched its leaves and dried out the thin spindly branches leaving nothing to power the root system. Effectively fried alive! So having the new plants added to the garden has cheered things up a little, but now the new puppy has had a good chew on them and has an insatiable appetite for compost. As he has grown he can now get inside the planters and eats the compost, leaving plant roots exposed etc etc.

Here's the slabs down waiting for the gazebo, which I am happy to say I have finally gotten a start on. This project has to be done with some haste now, but the pond re-build will now have to wait as the frogs have left us with several large clumps of spawn, so once the baby frogs have left the pond then it will get reshaped and extended. Been waiting seven years for frogs to breed in the pond and we even resorted to importing spawn and tadpoles from other areas, so this seems to have finally paid off.









If the weather gets decent as predicted for this afternoon i will take some other pictures of the planting, and the gravel (that's exciting isn't it!?).
Finally here is where i am now with the Gazebo/Pergola. Needs some profiling work on the rafters and the decking subframe needs to be added along with a Buddha Gong and some bamboo wind chimes, but all is going well, and the design should be completed over this week-end. Then I can cost it up, purchase the timbers and get it built hopefully before May 21st, the wife's birthday. Would be a nice birthday gift i feel. If not then by end of June ready for those long balmy sunny days of British summer-time (yeah right).



Wishing everybody all the best ...

Martin Spencer-Ford

@Martin:Finally here is where i am now with the Gazebo/Pergola

Now i learned can say "Pergola" in English too :)
We use to grow up the "Isabella grape" on the Pergola,but your garden is Japanese-stlyle,not Mediterranean


Good job Martin :)

M

It's coming along nicely Martin, the Gazebo will be great when it is finished up!

- Michael

It's certainly easier with Moi in the tool-box. Sadly the octagonal design had to be scrapped because there was not enough ground space and local planning regulations to keep it looking aesthetically good. So back to 'square n blocky' - shame really, but hey ho, that's the way it sometimes happens.

The costing plan is now complete, so just need to enter the numbers to cost it up. As for the drawing, it needs trimming and filleting work to finish it off along with some strings for hanging elements and of course the hammer for the gong.







Martin Spencer-Ford

Quick visualise session to see how things look. Still need to do the subframe, but finding UK timber suppliers that do ready cut for the dimensions has taken more time than it has to model it - Such is life. Still need to do the bamboo wind-chime ties too.

Height from slabbing to the decking top is just 90mm and I am struggling with making up my mind whether to ramp it or leave it as a mini step. What do you guys thing i should do ? (keep it sensible please) :)



Martin Spencer-Ford.

Hi Martin,

> Height from slabbing to the decking top is just 90mm and I am struggling with making
> up my mind whether to ramp it or leave it as a mini step. What do you guys thing
> i should do ?

Hmmm yeah that's a pretty short step but you will be bringing a wheelchair up there, right? I guess a ramp would maybe make it just a bit easier...

- Michael

Hi Michael ...

>> Hmmm yeah that's a pretty short step but you will be bringing a wheelchair up there, right? I guess a ramp would maybe make it just a bit easier...

Yes, my wife is in a wheelchair. Ramp could be a little easier for access (and i ain't getting any younger) plus it does not increase the expense, just wastage and i always struggle with that. I think the simplest thing to do is to design both, see which looks the finest :)

Martin Spencer-Ford