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Gardening

Rural gardens with STPs

(9 Posts)
mollie Mon 15-May-17 16:29:35

All excellent suggestions, thank you. J52, I like the idea of potted bamboo for screening, it looks smashing and does the trick. Varian, oh yes, the 'perfume'. Lol! I need to be inventive I think... thank you all.

varian Mon 15-May-17 14:45:51

Ours is hidden behind a bush of cotoneaster and lavender. When we walk past we hope to smell the lavender, rather than anything else.

Jalima1108 Mon 15-May-17 14:36:52

DH made a couple of wooden boxes to fit the drain covers out of decking. They look attractive and you could have them as deep or as shallow as you like and fill with such things as heathers (which we can't grow in the garden as they like an acid soil annuals or whatever.

I think several places sell 'artificial stone' plant boxes to fit over drains too. Real stone ones could be too heavy to move.

Or pieces of artificial grass cut to fit - you can move them when cutting the rest of the lawn.

J52 Mon 15-May-17 13:09:57

Bamboo in pots is lovely. It screens eyesores and when it sways in the wind rustles beautifully.
You could also plant up ordinary pots with acers and shrubs, if you put them on wheeled stands they could be rolled away when the man hole needs to be accessed.

shysal Mon 15-May-17 12:56:06

Woh! Sorry, just noticed he price of above pots and nothing much to look at! You should be able to find some ordinary ones at a reasonable price that make a statement.

shysal Mon 15-May-17 12:51:52

I think pots would be the safest way to go. You can get them in the shape of manhole covers. With others, you could rotate them so that you always have a good show.
www.ebay.co.uk/itm/manhole-cover-planter-pot-/112389381141?hash=item1a2aeddc15:g:ndQAAOSw5cNYaz76

mollie Mon 15-May-17 12:49:15

Thank you, Nelliemoser. It's a bit different to a septic tank but, without going into details, it does the same thing. Seems my fear of roots and planting are valid. A septic tank is a smaller problem than our system which seems to fill the whole garden one way or another!

Still, I guess I have a different challenge now, how to make a smashing garden with pots and tubs.

Nelliemoser Mon 15-May-17 12:41:41

Is this a small rural septic tank set up? My friend had one and put in a small number of shrubs to make it less visible. You probably need to be careful of the sort of shrubs you plant, nothing too deep rooted.

Here you go! Advice at the click of a mouse.

ourdailygreenlife.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/the-dos-and-donts-of-hiding-your-septic.html

mollie Mon 15-May-17 12:24:04

Last year I left a sloped garden with heavy clay soil for a flat rectangle of new lawn and thought I had it made. The soil is chalky, just for a change. However half the garden (and the bit we see most, holds a sewage treatment plant with 4 manholes in the middle of the lawn and an electric pump in full view. How do others garden around these obvious eyesores? Should I forget the idea of planting and opt for big pots and tubs instead? I'm concerned that roots from shrubs and bushes may cause problems.