Overgrown garden in new house


The first picture is looking straight and there is a wall behind all the overgrowth looking straight and to the left. The second picture is the same area but taken from the right hand side.
I basically wish to clear the whole area and start with blank canvas so to speak. I do not have a great deal of money, but not afraid of hard work and getting my hands dirty.
All help and ideas would be very much appreciated. Thanks in advance
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That's a wonderful project you have there and when you have cleared the plot you can see exactly what you have and exactly what you would like from the garden.
I'm sure we would all enjoy your progress with you.
If they’re robust enough to cope with your jungle, they’ll probably be robust enough to be lifted, divided and replanted. In truth, lifting and division is best done earlier in Spring or in early Autumn so try to take I.D. photos sooner if you can.
To get you underway on your project you’ll need thorn proof gloves, loppers and, I suggest, a mattock. A fork, spade, secateurs can come later. As you’re on a tight budget you could even put a cheeky request on Nextdoor.com, Freecycle etc explaining your mission and asking if people have suitable tools they might donate.
Without doubt, take photos every step of the way. When the project is completed it is so satisfying to look back to see what a mess it was and how you have transformed it. Why not formalise the photography and, once a week for a full year, take a full photo of the garden from the same spot?
An early task in your garden will be to create compost bins. This is best done by utilising wooden pallets so, when/if you ask for donated tools, ask for seven pallets as well. I’m sure there are loads of YouTube videos advising how to construct compost bins this way. Where to put the compost bins depends on your garden plan, a design best drawn up once the brambles and detritus are moved. Return to the forum at that point with photos and a sketch plan of the garden showing dimensions, orientation, levels, trees and shrubs, features to keep, features to obscure and a list of features to build and your planting preferences. Several people on this forum are adept at garden planning.
Good luck. You’ll soon be proud of what you have achieved.
It looks like it will be an amazing space for you. Good luck with the project.
I would suggest carefully clearing as much of the top growth as you can by hand, (watch out for flailing brambles near your eyes)., and piling it up for a day or two.
That will give any wildlife a chance to escape.
Should you come across any hibernating hedgehogs, contact a local hedgehog or wildlife rescue for advice.
Once that's gone you can then start digging or mattocking out the roots. You may possibly find a few treasures hidden in amongst it all, any queries take a photo and hopefully it can be identified on here.
It may well be that once the top growth is cleared and light gets in, all sorts of plants may start to appear !
In 2016 I needed to clear a space at the end of my garden that I'd ignored for 30ish years and was completely overgrown with brambles/nettles/ivy etc etc
A wildlife haven, but I did want to use the area for a new greenhouse and veg plots.
I decided to use a spray.
I bought 5L Glyphosate 360 (a strong form of glyphosate) and sprayed everything (using a pump-action pressure sprayer) in early April once growth was well underway. I sprayed again about 3 weeks later and again 3 weeks after that. Shortly thereafter everything was dead and I raked it up and burned it.
It's not the most eco-friendly method and digging it all out by hand is, but that was too much for me!
Plants must be growing strongly before using the spray (so between April-Sept). It will not work if the plants are not growing.
Be careful of over-spray as it will kill any plant that gets it on its leaves - turn the nozzle for small droplets rather than a fine spray.
Glyphosate is broken down on contact with soil, so you can replant immediately.
Whichever route you decide to take - Good luck with your project!
before-
after-
all done
Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad.