Ideas for small yard/courtyard gardens?

[Thora]

Does anyone have a small paved yard type outside space? What have you done to make it pleasant and usable?

 

[platinumsage]

How big is it?

This is the courtyard garden of someone I follow on Twitter:

 

[WouldBe]

Depends what you want to use it for.

Plants in pots would make it more colourful. You could even grow some up trellis to hide the walls.

 

[clicker]

Does anyone have a small paved yard type outside space? What have you done to make it pleasant and usable?

What are your essentials? Table and chairs? Shed or storage? Play things?

 

[Thora]

I was thinking table and chairs. No essentials really, washing can go elsewhere but space for a little paddling pool is good.
Just want to make it a bit less bleak
Bins are out there by the gate.

 

[Glitter]

Get some of those long pots and put some bedding plants in. Won’t take up as much space as round ones, easily moveable and not too expensive if you don’t like them

 

[Red Cat]

How big is it?

This is the courtyard garden of someone I follow on Twitter:

View attachment 332387

Lovely but that would cost a fortune.

 

[felixthecat]

Those fences are asking for trellises.
Personally I'd use pallets to build troughs and plant some climbers. Then pots. Stick some pots on upside down pots to vary the heights.

If you're not handy enough to build troughs get some long deep plastic ones

 

[maomao]

Home Bargain have had some very nice big wooden plant troughs lately. I got a three foot by one foot one for thirty quid and am growing tomatoes in it.

A rambling rose on trellises attached to the fence would add colour without wasting ground space.

Hard plastic sand pits/paddling pools are good for cooling down and don't get punctures sat in the shed over winter.

If you have kids resist the temptation to put too much in there and leave some running around space.

 

[Thora]

I'm going to look for some troughs and trellis

 

[killer b]

Mrs B stencilled her gloomy concrete yard floor and it looks great now - she painted it all beige, then stencilled patterns in a jolly blue on top.

 

[killer b]

B&M Bargains have half whisky casks to use as planters, would recommend those.

 

[cesare]

Is it all concrete Thora or are there some paving slabs too?

 

[Thora]

Is it all concrete Thora or are there some paving slabs too?

Top end is concrete and the bottom 2/3 is brick paving.

 

[Thora]

Mrs B stencilled her gloomy concrete yard floor and it looks great now - she painted it all beige, then stencilled patterns in a jolly blue on top.

Is there special paint for doing that? And would it withstand kids roller skating on it etc?

 

[killer b]

Is there special paint for doing that? And would it withstand kids roller skating on it etc?

I think it was this stuff: Everest Trade - Ultimate QD Concrete Floor Paint & Sealer - Internal & External - Anti-Slip5 Litre / Green / No

It's been down a year now and mrs b is always in the yard, dragging planters about and whatnot - I can't see any significant wear

 

[cesare]

Top end is concrete and the bottom 2/3 is brick paving.

If you haven't already done it, hiring a pressure cleaner and cleaning the paving might make a big difference to the feel of the courtyard.

 

[miss direct]

Does anyone have a small paved yard type outside space? What have you done to make it pleasant and usable?

That describes my outdoor space.

There's a lot more I want to do to it, but for now: I have colourful pots. I have some random shelves with pots and decorative things on like an insect house and colourful watering can. I have a bird feeder, and a table - on the table is a birdbath. On the fence I've hing a few things like painted ceramic tulips. I also have some jute bunting up from Poundland Actually, poundland/Home Bargains/B&M have some good bits for gardens, alongside some hideous things.

 

[miss direct]

Before:

Now: (not after, because there's still loads more to do...) Would be nice to have the fence all the same colour (someone crashed into it hence part of it being new), would like to repaint the wall, get the slabs cleaned, get some big pots, hanging baskets, etc. But might give you some very small ideas at least!

 

[felixthecat]

Second the B&M suggestion. Tons of garden stuff to suit any taste, good or bad

 

[killer b]

Mostly bad, but those whisky barrels are great

 

[nottsgirl]

Circular metal table and chairs.

 

[8ball]

Nothing to offer - just subscribing cos I have a tiny neglected paved backyard that I really should do something with.

 

[campanula]

My whole garden is a pot garden on block paving. The very best tip I can offer is to get the biggest containers you can find (worth looking in horticultural supply stores such as LBS). Tree containers or, I have been using old wicker laundry baskets (with a PVC lining) and old galvanised dustbins. You will need a LOT of potting mix so best to buy a tonne of topsoil from somewhere which supplies cricket grounds or golf courses. Not cheapo multipurpose stuff because it will simply degrade after a single season. Loam based is best. Having lots of smaller pots is a watering nightmare so even if you can only manage a couple of huge containers, it is way better than a load of smaller ones.
You can even grow a tree in a giant pot...and there is nothing nicer than having overhead greenery. My tiny garden supports 4 trees - a ceonothus, lilac, acer and indigofera...and thinking of elbowing in a sorbus. Then, enormous leafy plants such as a fig or a fatsia give more lushness than any mimsy bedding plants.

 

[moonsi til]

Bunting /Tibetan prayer flags , few planters, fairy lights & some seating.

 

[campanula]

My neighbour, who's garden is the same as mine (sizewise and soil-less), has got a grapevine on a sort of pergola type thingy and a massive fig in a pot. And fairy lights. It is a lushly shaded, delightful space with basically a coupla plants and sparkles. Has been a lot nicer than mine (with a trillion freaking pots and doodahs) but I never manage to take my own gardening advice.

 

[Epona]

My neighbour, who's garden is the same as mine (sizewise and soil-less), has got a grapevine on a sort of pergola type thingy and a massive fig in a pot. And fairy lights. It is a lushly shaded, delightful space with basically a coupla plants and sparkles. Has been a lot nicer than mine (with a trillion freaking pots and doodahs) but I never manage to take my own gardening advice.

I think that's what I'd want to do with a small courtyard/paved yard type area - it's possible to make it look quite magical - someone just up the road from me (the downstairs flats here have tiny little gardens that are like the width of the flat and only a couple of meters deep at most) has done up their tiny little south-facing garden absolutely gorgeously with a passion flower on a trellis along the top of the wall (which bees and wasps seem to love) and some solar-powered lighting - it's absolutely lovely.

 

[8ball]

Bunting /Tibetan prayer flags , few planters, fairy lights & some seating.

This looks like a lot less work than campanula’s very impressive post immediately above it.

 

[bellaozzydog]

My next project…….

A lot of vertical wall

 

[RubyToogood]

The great advantage of this sort of garden is that pretty much anything you do to it will be a plus, and you don't have the hassle of lawn mowing and weeding (or not much). My best garden ever was a North facing balcony. I grew runner beans and a clematis alpina in buckets.

It does look quite shady - which way does it face?