Garden improvement advice

Below are our top tips for improving your garden:

• Start small
  Don’t be daunted by the whole project – you can start with a small flower bed or even just some containers by the door. Once things are growing – and they will – you can gradually feel more confident about stuff like weed and pest control, watering and planning, and start expanding your operations.
• Do it every day
  If you aim to spend just ten minutes a day wandering round your garden – maybe early in the morning with a cup of tea, or after you get home from work before you cook or crash out – you’ll form an invaluable bond with your garden. Along the way, you might pull up a few weeds, spot slugs or aphids on the move, or see a plant that needs watering. That way, it won’t become such a major operation at the weekend!
• Minimise maintenance
  You want to enjoy your garden, not work in it, so leave it to nature as much as possible. If you choose the right plants in the first place, they shouldn’t need extra fertilising and feeding – they’ll grow at their own pace. And keep pruning to a minimum too – it encourages new, tender growth, which is vulnerable to pests and diseases.
• Go native
  Exotic plants can be spectacular, but may need more care and work. Our traditional garden plants and shrubs will put on a splendid show, and can often be left to their own devices for years.
• Be waterwise
  Water in the morning, preferably before the sun is on the plants. And don’t just give plants a sprinkle – deep soak each time to encourage roots to grow down into the soil. That way you won’t have to do it so often!
• Get composting
  Use a purpose built bin, or just start a pile in a corner, and add green kitchen waste (uncooked), lawn clippings, prunings, dead leaves, etc. And be sure to use it – spread it as top dressing on beds and lawns, mix it with soil in pots, dig it in wherever possible – it improves the soil every time.

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