Whilst waiting for planning to be granted and honing the design of the house, we have spent time getting to know the garden as well. The previous occupants had enjoyed gardening but in the few years since they'd moved out, the garden had become very overgrown, plus an interim owner had chopped down all but one of the mature trees on site. 
The speciality of the garden seems to be snowdrops – thousands of them! Bluebells, daffodils and a lot of dandelions. The one big remaining tree is a walnut. Fruit-wise we’ve got currant bushes, gooseberries, rhubarb and a fine apple tree.
The lady who lived and gardened here for many years was keen on organic gardening from what we have heard. What we have dug up are sedimentary layers of the remains of weed suppressants used over the years.
Digging it out has felt like archaeology: layer upon layer of grass, soil, gravel, matting, more gravel… many many plastic bags, plastic pegs, plastic pots, semi-degraded plastic sacks falling to shreds as you pull them out, good-as-new plastic sacks from the 80s. Shards of plastic coating off metal poles for holding up fruit cages… Netting that once would’ve covered currant bushes since collapsed, grown over with more soil and grass…
… And in summer, nettles an brambles appearing everywhere.
By Summer the grass has grown very long - there isn't really a lawn to speak of and the ground is very lumpy. So rather than trying to mow we've only cut back grass paths with a strimmer.
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