Creating a garden in the desert.

I've been gardening in Dubai for 3 years, growing a variety of things in the sand, from plants to fruit and vegetables from seed with varying successes. You can read more about my efforts at gardening and places I visit, in the Gardening tab by clicking here.

We moved house in December 2017 and all we had was a sand pit, patio and 2 steps down. Part of our rental agreement was to landscape the garden.

A couple of weeks after moving in and unpacking, I started paying attention to the neighbours gardens and I knocked on a few doors to ask if I could have a closer look. Everyone was keen to show me their designs, share their experiences and pass on contact numbers.

Once we'd settled on a contractor we were happy with I provided him with a simple design, agreed on a price, paid half up front for materials and he promised the job would be done in 5 days. 3 days later the work was complete and we were happy with it, so we opted to contract him to erect a fence as we were concerned that Bob may be able to jump the wall and to date we'd been unable to leave him unsupervised in the garden.

I explored the options for fencing, I wasn't keen with what the neighbours had erected, the full fence panels aren't actually permitted, the bamboo looks tacky as does the garden canes with artificial flowers and the other style of fencing wasn't that much cheaper than what we opted for.

Having priced up fence panels (there aren't many options in Dubai and they've very pricey) the contractor said he would make, paint and install them in a week and I'm pleased to say not only did he stick to price, design and deadline, but all the mess was cleaned up and all I had left to do was put the plants in we'd brought from the previous house and purchased from a local nursery.

The garden is finished now, plants are in, the grass is suffering a bit with Bob using it to pee on and the water pressure is low making watering a longer job than need be.

The cat has enjoyed her time in the garden on a lead with her new dog harness (she's a big cat).

Wildlife and Plants in the desert with HDYGG and Animal Tales

Winter in Dubai is similar to summer in the UK except for the sand storms. It's summer now at time of posting and way too hot to be going out into the desert right now, I'm just about managing to walk Bob at 5am and again at 9pm.

Driving into the desert through a sandstorm, that cleared up about 30km inland.

 My mother was visiting in December and we wanted to share with her the places we go on a regular basis as well as the usual tourist destinations, one expects to visit in Dubai.

 She tried to climb a sand dune or two, but wasn't defeated, nor did she do it gracefully. She's 72 you know.

 We saw cranes and a variety of other birds as well as in the distance a new lake that was home to quite a few flamingos, which took us by surprise.

 Bob as usual loved his run out and swim in the lakes.

 We visit the lakes in the desert every weekend when the weather is cool enough and I've started taking Bob out on a Tuesday morning, since I've stopped working, taking my camera, laptop and a picnic to spend a few hours in peace and quiet, writing up blog posts. In February and March we had rain so waterproofs and warm clothing were required.

There are numerous plants out in the desert, whilst there is a lot of water and irrigation systems in place, I can't wait to see what else springs into life after the recent rainfall and spend some time identifying the different plants that grow naturally out in the desert.

Gardening and workmen don't mix with HDYGG

Gardening plans were put on hold in December due to painting work that had to be carried out on the house. I got as far as weeding the sandpit, when the decorators arrived and had to gather up all the newly bought plants and seedlings and leave them until the workmen finished.

You can see why we had to move all the plants as this was the state they left the others in.

And there is quite a bit of repair work to carry out as well as junk to remove from the garden. I've asked them to come back and sort these things, but they're really not bothered.

 The lawn has suffered quite a bit after having 2 dogs over christmas, hopefully it will right itself soon enough.

 In the local garden centre they were selling christmas reefs between £28 and £44 and real trees were retailing at around £160 for a 6ft tall one.

There has been a lot of artficial ground coverings for sale in various locations at around £15 for a square meter and of course artificial turf. Neither appeals to me, but it seems very popular over here.

 Down on the beach near the new canal, planting has taken place to try and restore some of the area.

 There's a bit more weeding to be done in the sandpit, which has to be carried out in the evenings as it's still too hot for manual labour in the garden. Peter has rigged up some LED strips under the sun umbrella and the table has been decorated to add a bit more colour to the garden and we are enjoying evenings sitting outside enjoying the cooler weather.

How does you Garden Glow with Dubai Garden Glow and HDYGG

We should've entered Za'abeel park through gate 6, but I find the roads a little complicated around that part of town and at 5pm, the Sheikh Zayed Road is a little busy and I really didn't want to negate the traffic. We were able to access the Garden Glow via a foot bridge, but sign posting wasn't too good and it took a while to find it. Just remember to turn at the Chinese Pagoda and all will be ok. You can buy tickets at any of the gates and they cost AED 60 each.

 Upon exiting the footbridge you are greeted by the dinosaurs, I wasn't too impressed with this part of the attraction, we walked through quickly and took few photo's, although I'm sure if I'd gone with small children it would've held more excitement. 

Colour changing trees

Interactive musical lights.

 Back into Za'abeel park and home. There were many families having picnics and BBQ's in designated areas, there was even a wedding party, with tables and chairs and caterers.

Dubai Garden Glow is only open during the winter months.