Gardening beginner

pebblesbrennan4PC0yPWI

Hello 
I just moved into my first home and I don't garden but want to get into it and planting. I just wondered what you guys would suggest doing with this little bit of soil (see pic). Obviously there is a hedge so when I need to trim that I have to stand on the soil bit. I just want to make it look pretty but neat and don't know what to plant/how to plan it. Also dont know whether to build the rockery up? As that little edge fence keeps falling over but think it's there to keep the soil spilling out. Thanks in advance 

AnniD

If you can, the first thing l'd advise is extending the bed out from the hedge. The hedge will take up a fair amount of moisture which means the plants will struggle.
Remember you don't have to keep to the same layout as the previous owner (unless you're in rented accommodation).  

If not, you could put in a couple of stepping stones to help gain access to the back of the hedge, perhaps. 
Is it a sunny or shady area ?

pebblesbrennan4PC0yPWI

Thank you for your reply. Abit if both really, it's fairly shaded but does get some sun. Stepping stones is a really good idea! How would I go about extending the bed out from the hedge? Many thanks😊

AnniD

Depending on whether you want to have a straight line or curves, you can use string or a hosepipe and mark out the new edge.
Then you can set out the level, rake out the soil to get the same or slightly lower level to the lawn .
Have a look at this.
https://www.gardenworld.co.uk/case-study/preparing-a-new-bed-or-border/

As you're new to it all, l'd suggest trying something like Freecyle to see if you can get tools such as spade, fork and maybe a trowel, wheelbarrow etc. Anything you think you might need.

You can buy soil testing kits from Amazon to check the type of soil you have, it helps when you're deciding which plants to grow. 

GardenerSuze

@pebblesbrennan4PC0yPWI Is your new garden  small? Is your lawn big enough to take a bigger border? If you could post a photo of your lawn that would be helpful.