Stable Barrow

Author: katie

  • Securing your garden ornaments and furniture

    It is a sad fact that in some areas in particular, you have to be very careful about leaving your garden ornaments and furniture on display. Theft is in the increase and lots of people are looking for a way to make a quick buck. Sometimes criminals will steal items to order or to sell on to others but other times you may just fall victim to vandalism.

    If you have items in your garden that you want to protect them you may wish to anchor them down using a chain or bolting them into the ground. Having items of value in easy reach of the kerb is never a good idea. Ideally you should try and put them in the back garden or as close to your house as possible.  

    Make hanging baskets harder to steal by hanging them on lockable brackets or by threading chain through the basket rim and attaching it to the wall. Marking your items with a UV pen or smart water can often allow you to get them back should they become stolen. CCTV systems are another way to add extra security to the outside of your property. You can often set up alerts on the CCTV system to notify you if movement is picked up within your property boundaries.

  • Looking after your garden during a heatwave

    It is important that when we experience hot weather in the UK, you think about your garden and what you need to do to look after it. If you only have patios and grass then investing in a cheap sprinkler that attaches to the hose pipe or watering your garden with a hose at the end of the day may be enough to keep on top of it. If you have lots of plants in your garden then you should water these on a daily basis. It is important to only water your plants in the evening time or very early morning. If you water the plants in the day then they may get scorched by the sun.

    If you are not great at remembering to water your plants then you could put water bulbs in that slowly release water to the roots over a few days, although this may not be enough if the weather is really hot.

    If you are going away and the weather is going to be hot then you could ask a friend or neighbour if they would mind popping in to water them. If your plants are all in pots you could even put them on the front of your house and ask your neighbour to water them when they are doing their own.

  • Have you got the right sort of grass for your garden?

    When it comes to choosing turf or grass seed you need to ensure that you pick the right sort for your garden. Not all gardens are the same and therefore the type of grass that you plant needs to be specific to the conditions found in your garden. Some grass is better in bright sunlight and requires little water. Other grass is more suitable for shady areas and those with little sunlight. It is important to chose correctly as this can have a huge impact on whether the grass grows successfully or not.

    You may even have to plant different sorts of grass seed in different areas to combat this issue if parts of your garden are exposed to the sun for long period of time and others are not.

    A good turfing company will be able to advise you on what sort of grass would be most suitable. You also need to consider how hard wearing it needs to be. If you have children that are often running around on the grass or using paddling pools etc then it will need to be able to withstand this.

    When planting any new grass seed be sure to protect it from the birds and also to water it often.

  • Is your garden getting out of control?

    It is so easy to leave your garden to grow and before you know it, it has gotten out of control. As we have been having a lot of rain and some nice sunny days in between, it is likely that the grass and plants have been growing super fast and so no soon had you mowed it, it needed doing again. If you leave it until it is too long it becomes a much bigger job and you may find that your lawn mower struggles to cut it properly. If you can adjust the height you may have to cut it in the highest setting first then drop it down and cut it again.

    Weeding is another job that often needs doing regular, but if you are not a keen gardener then you will probably not take much enjoyment from this job. The best time to do weeding is when the ground is a bit wet as the weeds will pull out easier and the ground will be softer to dig in. Don’t try and mow your lawn when it wet, especially with an electric lawn mower as it will clog up quickly and cut out. It is also not a good idea to use an electric lawn mower in the wet!

  • Working as a gardener

    If you enjoy a bit of gardening an like being outdoors then you may decide to take your hobby a bit further and start to do gardening as a job. If you can combine your hobby and your job then you are on to a winner as it is very important if you can find a job that you love to do. There are a number of different types of gardening jobs that you can apply for. If you are happy to go self employed then you may decide to set up your own gardening business. You can then start to advertise your business in local papers, on social media sites such as Facebook or Twitter or often through word of mouth. It may not take long for you to build up a number of repeat customers. If you prove that you are good at what you do and reliable then you will often find you get weekly, fortnightly, or monthly work off the same people. This is great as it will allow you to have a steady income.

    You may need to spend a bit of money when first setting up your business investing in gardening equipment. Some people may not have any gardening equipment or even if they do, they may not want you to use it. It looks more professional if you can go to someone’s house with your own equipment. You will also need to have your own transport, unless you are only going to be working very locally.

    If you do not want to be self-employed then you will need to find a company that is looking to take on gardeners. You may decide to work for a company that subcontracts out gardeners to the council for example or sometimes local councils employ their own. You may choose to work in a garden centre where you can interact with customers whilst looking after the plants and shrubs. This is idea if you want to find out more about the different sorts of plants and plant care.

    Some schools employ gardeners to maintain the school grounds. The job may also be listed as a ground’s keeper. You may be required to do other tasks that fall under maintenance as well. This job can often be very rewarding and quite enjoyable. Often you are left to your own devices to get the work done.