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Category: Gardens

  • How to attract birds into your garden

    There is something very peaceful about sitting in your garden or living room and watching birds flying around. You may want to attract more birds or other animals in to your garden but are not sure exactly how to go about it. If you have a cat or a dog which is good at catching animals then you may want to think carefully before trying to attract them. Most birds are quite used to having to contend with other animals but if you encourage them to nest then you may have baby birds around who are not quite as good at getting away!

    Firstly, a bird table is a great addition and the first step in welcoming in wildlife. There are a number of different types of bird tables you can opt for or if you don’t have room for a table then you may instead choose to hang bird feeders from the branches of a tree or from your fence.

    A bird bath is another item that can look beautiful in your garden but also gives birds another reason to come back. If you do opt for a bird table, be sure to try and top up / change the water often.

  • Create a stunning display of succulents in your garden

    Succulents can add a wonderful touch of the tropical to any garden whether in pots or rockeries and are very easy to grow and care for. They can be grown as an indoor plant or as an outdoor plant on a sunny patio.

    Choosing the right pot for your succulents will depend on the size of the plant and whether you want just one specimen plant in the pot or whether you want a few plants that complement each other in one shallow pot. Once planted, it is good to top the soil with fine gravel as this will make an impressive display and show off the succulent more effectively.

    Succulents come in a variety of colours, shapes and sizes and can create a wonderful display on a rockery in the garden. They need very little maintenance and can survive in dry conditions with very little water. These hardy plants can even be planted to grow on gravel paths where they spread rapidly to create a carpet of colour.

    Particular varieties to look out for are the deeply coloured Semponium “Destiny” which won plant of the year at this year’s Chelsea Flower Show and Houseleeks with their brightly coloured rosettes which change colour with the seasons.

  • How can I make my garden more low maintenance?

    Lots of people enjoy having a nice outdoor space to enjoy, especially as the weather starts to get warmer. However, with most people working many hours throughout the day it can be hard to find the time to put into maintaining your garden.

    So, how can you make the most of limited time and make your garden as low maintenance as possible? Large flower beds can take quite a lot of upkeep as you’ll get weeds growing in between your flowers and the soil needs to be regularly turned over and aerated to keep your plants growing well. An easier alternative would be plants in pots instead. These can be easily maintained and moved around to suit your outdoor space.

    Area’s of grass can be easily tidied up if you are able to mow it fairly regularly and can really soften an outdoor space making it more usable for all the family.

    For patio areas a super-low maintenance option would be poured resin either over your existing slabs or over concrete as this gives an attractive wet-look to the area and ensures that weeds cannot grow up between your slabs.  This option is very low maintenance but can be quite costly so you may want to shop around to ensure you get the best price.

  • Do you still need to maintain your garden during the winter months?

    With the colder, wet weather now upon us many people are wondering what level of gardening they need to maintain during the winter months. If you are not an avid gardener, you may well think that you can now leave everything as it is until next spring but if you really want to look after your lawn and flower beds then there are a few things that you should continue to do.

    This colder period of weather is the perfect opportunity to make good progress with building the garden you’ve always dreamt of. During the winter months, things grow a lot slower, lawns don’t need cutting as often and weeds are not coming back with vengeance like they do in the summer. This allows you more time to concentrate on the other elements of your garden hat you want to finish. Maybe you started a rockery a while back and never got to finish it, or you wanted to add edging to the lawn but could never find the time. Now may be the perfect opportunity to complete all these little projects that you have in mind and help you accomplish the garden of your dreams in time for you to enjoy next summer.

  • Creating a winter wonderland in your garden

    Although some people are still dubious to use the word Christmas, there is no hiding from the fact that it is now only a couple of months away and will soon come round.

    If you like to put up decorations at Christmas, you don’t just have to put them up inside. Why not let the rest of your community enjoy them but putting some decs up outside or that can be seen from outside. Lights around roof pitches or windows often look lovely at that time of year. You can opt or have multi coloured lights or you may decide to stick to a theme such as blue and white or red and green.

    You can often pick up some fantastic deals on Christmas outdoor decorations, if you are willing to buy early. Reindeer or Santa sleighs often pop up on roofs or in front gardens and can really look quite magical. You may need to think about the security of them if you are going to be leaving them on a front lawn. Some people even have to bolt them down to avoid them getting taken.

    It may be worth asking the neighbours if they are ok with you putting up lights if it is going to be seen from inside their property.