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The decline of the British front garden

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boatbuilder
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The decline of the British front garden

Post by boatbuilder » Tue May 19, 2015 1:39 pm

An interesting article from the BBC Website:

The decline of the British front garden

The Royal Horticultural Society says British front gardens are disappearing. Why are people paving over their lawns?
When people imagine a classic British front garden, they may first think of a small slice of well-tended grass. Perhaps with a box hedge.
But over the past 10 years the number of front gardens with gravel or paving instead of grass has tripled, now making up a quarter of all houses, a survey for the RHS shows.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-32780242
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by Suffolkboy » Tue May 19, 2015 2:10 pm

I had to smile at this particular sentence of the article above,

"There may be a sense in which we are less concerned about keeping up with the Joneses - what the neighbours think - as we don't know them as well."

It seems to me that the emphasis has changed from having pride by displaying a nice neat front garden containing greenery,plants etc to displaying ones vehicles with so called personalized number plates and using the garage to store ones rubbish etc. Oh well,what ever gives people a buzz - could it be a "Look at me thing"? :? :roll: ;)
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by boatbuilder » Tue May 19, 2015 2:20 pm

I also think a lot of it is down to laziness as well, SB. One of my neighbour's front AND back gardens are both 90% paved or graveled. And I don't think it is anything to with the flashy soft-top sports car either - that's kept in the garage. I wonder why people buy houses with gardens in the first place if they don't want to keep them that way.
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by funkychick » Tue May 19, 2015 2:58 pm

I love my little gardens front and back and do my daughters as well as she genuinely doesnt have time to do much to it
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by MEG » Tue May 19, 2015 3:36 pm

That is so sad.I always think that the English gardens are so pretty and colorful.Wish we had them here!

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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by boatbuilder » Tue May 19, 2015 3:48 pm

There are still plenty of them Meg. However, the paving over, etc., of them is happening too much.
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by funkychick » Tue May 19, 2015 4:11 pm

There are still plenty Meg but there are some that are concreting over and I hate it Maybe its young people without time or old people who cant manage or cars that cant find a space on the road or just plain laziness whatever it is I dont like it
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by boatbuilder » Tue May 19, 2015 4:31 pm

Here is an 'add-on' on the same subject.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32781166
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by funkychick » Tue May 19, 2015 5:06 pm

My gardens a little bit wild ......like me LOL I have a plum tree, a cordyline, bluebells crocus daffs violets miniature tulips followed by lupins lily of the valley grape hyacinths, anemones, poppies lavender bushes forget me nots orange blossom and a few other shrubs that I dont know the names of a little grass pathway and a rockery and its only small
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by Trigger » Tue May 19, 2015 6:57 pm

My back and front gardens have been “concreted” over - and am delighted with the results. I am not a “gardener” by any stretch of the imagination - and have no interest in gardening whatsoever. The back area was an eyesore - too much for me to maintain; mainly serving as a lavatory for neighbouring cats. And I’m not here to provide that service for them - so it’s now covered in 18” concrete slabs. However, it is occasionally “decorated” by low-flying gulls! Modern art for free! :D
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by Suffolkboy » Tue May 19, 2015 7:39 pm

I appreciate we are all different and have different interests in life,of course if we are lucky and become older gardening becomes difficult and we look to make it simpler and less hard work and I suppose some would take measures to reduce the work load unless you enjoy gardening as a hobby or a way of life.
We find gardening at present a pleasure,it is something we can both participate together although there is sometimes disagreements about positioning a plant or the absence of SWMBO Lily of the Valley which have not as yet appeared. I always think sitting in a garden surrounded by flowers,shrubs and flowering trees listening to the birds singing,the bees buzzing and butter flies flitting about is my kind of pleasure especially with the occasional glass of wine. drinker6
Mind you with it hissing down with rain yesterday I wasn't so keen to sit in the garden :roll: :D
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by Mel » Tue May 19, 2015 8:04 pm

Like Trigger I have no garden as such but I do appreciate other people's well tended gardens. I too also don't like the way so many gardens are being used as driveways and parking spaces but I can understand why people do it. The car is such an integral part of peoples life-style now and so many households are two car families that the vehicles have to go somewhere, but it certainly makes our streets less environmentally friendly.
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Re: The decline of the British front garden

Post by Trigger » Tue May 19, 2015 9:26 pm

Mel wrote:Like Trigger I have no garden as such but I do appreciate other people's well tended gardens.
Thanks for making that point, Mel - I also like to see gardens (not the overgrown variety, though!. And love to wander through gardens at Stately Homes that I visit very occasionally. Happiness this week would be a day (preferably a fine, sunny one!) at the Chelsea Flower Show - did visit it once - many years ago.

Years ago I worked with a very clever botanist - and our boss had said he'd tried growing Alpine Strawberry plants from seed - but, no matter how he tried, they all failed. So, I bought a packet of the seeds (Thompson & Morgan!), planted them in small pots, put a little poly-bag over each one and a rubber band round it. When the plants were a couple of inches tall, I picked out the best - and gave one to Peter - and one to my boss and said "There - that's how easy it is to grow them! " Perhaps I've got green fingers after all!!
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PS I used to grown Alpine plants - and had a Bonsai tree! :roll:
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