North Tyneside and the coast: Whitley Bay, Tynemouth and North Shields
Sea views come with salt wind. Gardens along this stretch of coast need tougher plants, sturdier fences and decks built for damp air, while gardens further inland around Wallsend and Killingworth face more ordinary clay-soil challenges.
Gardening near the coast
In Whitley Bay, Cullercoats and Tynemouth, the first job in an exposed garden is shelter. A hedge or a slatted screen that filters the wind often does better than a solid fence, which takes the full force of a gale and creates swirling eddies behind it. Plants with grey, waxy or leathery leaves usually cope with salt better than soft, lush growth.
Many homes here are Victorian and Edwardian terraces with long, narrow back gardens or yards, and parts of Tynemouth are conservation areas. Further inland the borough has larger suburban gardens and newer estates, where the problems are more often thin topsoil and poor drainage than salt.
For days out, Longsands at Tynemouth is the big beach, and the National Trust garden at Seaton Delaval Hall is just over the boundary in Northumberland. Garden waste is collected through North Tyneside Council; its website has the details.
Gardens to visit
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Seaton Delaval Hall
A garden close to the coast.
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National Garden Scheme
Private gardens that open on set days for charity.
Parks, beaches and outdoors
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Longsands Beach
Wildlife, community and allotments
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Northumberland Wildlife Trust
Across the region
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Eves and Lewis Landscape Design
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Groundwork North East and Cumbria
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North East Family Fun
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Living North
