Sleepers with plants and moss

Angela.oneillwalker

Hi everyone I’m having the sleepers fitted today. I was thinking of having them brick design with small gaps so I can put trailing plants in. Do you guys n gals think this would be ok. I want to encourage moss and trailing plants. Thanks Angie 

Obelixx

We had sleeper retaining walls in our Belgian garden and moss and algae came by themselves as did self sown plantlets of aquilegia, lavender and so on from plants behind the wall.  I wouldn't deliberately leave planting pockets as they'll be a source of moisture and thus early rotting.

Dovefromabove

I am always open to new ideas and positively responsive to good contemporary design  but I really can't get my head around the idea of combining moss and trailing plants with outdoor art canvases and artificial grass ... especially in such a confined space.  

Have you a clear idea of the sort of garden you're aiming for?

Obelixx

A fake one by the sounds of it.  I can't see where all those sleepers are going to fit and wonder about backing soil up on those fence panels which will not support the weight and will rot quickly from all the damp.

Maybe try and find a DIY forum to advise as we do growing plants on here.

Dovefromabove

Apparently the fence is metal so won't rot ........... rust maybe? 

Nollie

Hello Angela,
I had to read all 4 of your recent posts on you garden design to get the full picture, but to summarise I think you wish to:

1. create raised beds around the edges with railway sleepers to fill with plants for privacy. I agree with others that once you have backfilled with soil your colourfence might not stand the combined weight of plants and soil, so you would be better to reinforce the beds by effectively creating large rectangular planters that sit in front of the fence. If this makes the beds too wide, substitute treated timber planks at the back and sides (scaffold planks maybe?) to reduce the overall amount of space they take up without sacrificing precious planting space. Screw firmly together with L brackets or affix to corner posts.
2. Lay artificial turf in the middle - fine by me, Not everyone wants to or has the time for lawn maintenance.
3. Hang large garden art on the fence - If you like them, go ahead, it’s your garden! However there are other options to consider that will look a bit more naturalistic. For example, as you plan to use real plants in your borders, you could use a large decorative mirror to break up the expanse of fence and reflect some of the real plants. If you positioned some large pots near the mirror, the pots and plants in those would also be reflected and create an illusion of depth, if that was your thinking behind the garden art. The obvious solution to boring fences is affixing wire supports and planting climbers against them but that does involve a bit of work setting it up and training and looking after the plants. Or position a garden bench, arbour, an abstract sculpture or a small table and chairs against it...any of the latter options would break up the expanse and be maintenance-free.

Please correct me me if I have the wrong end of the stick on any of the above, and good luck!