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Having a garden to enjoy is great. Getting outside is a wonderful way to top up on vitamin D and enjoy the fresh air and as a result, reduce our stress levels. There are so many ways we can design our gardens to the fabulously floral, gravel and rock gardens, Mediterranean, low maintenance etc. The amount of work that is required in our gardens is up to us. We can opt to create something that requires regular attention or that is equally impressive yet not too labour intensive. Recently I wrote about extending your living area outdoors, so I thought it would be a good idea to follow up with a post about how you can create a low maintenance garden.
There are various ways to create a garden that doesn’t eat up to much of your free time. Here we’ll take a look at the various options that’ll help you reduce the time spent on maintaining your garden and give you more time to enjoy it.
Astroturf/Artificial Grass
Many of us appreciate the look of a nicely mown lawn. The flip side is that not everyone has the time, energy and in some cases the ability to maintain their lawn to keep it healthy and give it a regular trim. I know a few that have opted for an easier alternative that reduces their workload but looks equally impressive, Astroturf. As long as this is laid well with the necessary drainage etc this is a great grass substitute that is far easier to maintain. Once you have it you simply keep it tidy, removing dead leaves etc.
Simple Lawn Renovation/Repair
To keep your lawn looking healthy one of the things you’d need to consider is scarifying. This is an important maintenance technique that helps the grass look healthier and brighter in colour. The process involves removing dead organic matter and moss to allow the grass to grow into a lawn you can feel proud of. The process is normally done with a rake or scarifying machine. The best time to do this is between March and May or August to October, once a year.
Add Borders
Adding large borders to a garden can cut the amount of grass that needs cutting, although the previous suggestion will nip that issue in the bud. Borders can be a great addition to a garden although you need to be careful what you plant within them to ensure you do reduce your workload rather than increase it. It’s best to swap flowers for shrubs.
Reduce the Number of Plants
Gardens that don’t have too many or too much of a mix of plants don’t take as much effort to look after. Planting shrubs can be greatly beneficial in keeping your workload down. Evergreens work well so you have a gorgeous green in your garden all year around. Some simply fill borders with evergreens and shape them to look pretty. Shrubs like lavender, Daphne, Mahonia make great additions and add a splash of colour in the summer. Holly is great for adding colour with its gorgeous blood red berries and rich green leaves in the winter. A great tip is to cover the soil in bark. This reduces the number of weeds that grow through. Weeds aren’t just unsightly they can be a nuisance and spread fast so it’s best to minimise them as much as possible.
Minimise
A minimalist garden can work well. Not only can it have a simplistic design it can also look pretty impressive. Garden stones are a great option to create a minimalist look with shaped shrubs or just simple shrubs that are strategically placed. The stones also reduce the risk of weed growth. Many will have a layer of weed control fabric before putting the stones down. White stones can be a good contrast to plants and give a more Mediterranean look. Stones can transform your garden into one that doesn’t need much work but is visually stunning. All you need is a little creativity.
Paving
Decking
This is a great way to take up garden space in a way that is useful and doesn’t require much work. Once the decking is laid and a protector is added all you’ll need to do is sweep off leaves that may fall. The area can be used for children to play, entertaining etc. We had decking at our previous home and loved it. We barely had to do anything in terms of maintenance which suited our lifestyle very well.
What option would you choose for a low maintenance garden?
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What a great idea with boarder plants. I think I need to swap my flower plants to shrubs as currently I spent too much time tending to the flowers.
It can save a lot of time. Shrubs block out light so less weeds grow under/around them.
Unfortunately I am now finding out the problems that arise from not maintaining decking 🙁 I am all for low maintenance garden ideas though, anything that helps free up time! Sim x
Oh no. It may be a case of trying to fix it or removing it and rethinking options.
I need all these ideas our garden is a mess this year! It has grown so many weeds, I’m hoping I can get someone to come over and give it a good clear out at some point eek!
Good luck with that. Having the garden looking summer ready will be great. Perfect for relaxing and entertaining.
You garden tips are brilliant and I am loving you garden and the greenery. I really love decking and hopefully will have it one day, at the moment I need to do other renovations around the house.
Good luck with the renovations Afshan. I hope those and the garden all work out the way you want them to.
We have been tweaking our garden these last couple of months and have utilised many ideas that you have mentioned, Artificial grass is something we may be having to use on a stretch that gets the sun all the time and the grass struggles a lot with it.
It sounds like it will work well there. Good luck with the project Liam.
We have quite a lot of decking in our garden but we’re keen to re-do it at some point to make it better quality. As we’re not gardeners as such we’re going to go for minimal plants as I’d rather have a smaller area which is well cared for x
It sounds like you know what you want. I hope this post has helped with your decision making.
I really want artificial grass in my back garden, but have read some reviews that it can get too hot, so need to research it a bit more
It can warm up but not as much as paving, decking or stone.
We reduced the size of our borders as we felt it was preferable to mow a little bit more than trying to weed the concrete-like soil in those areas!
Lots of great ideas here, and most are pretty easy to implement. We’ve started doing a few bits on our garden, like updating our patio.
I’d love a pretty garden, I love the tips in this post. I think that decking can look great!
Decking can look great and be perfect for garden furniture to create an entertaining area.
We’ve been trying to do up our garden and driveway over the last few weeks. It’s looking good
You had me at the words low maintenance. At the moment the last thing we would want to be doing is major works so thanks for this x
Ha, I don’t blame you. It makes life easier when there is less to worry about having to do.
I don’t have a garden as I live in a flat but a couple of my friends do and I definitely recognise all the above! haha Smart way of sorting it out and making it look neat.
Thanks Kristina. I’m glad you liked the post. It might come in handy for your friends.
Decking for sure. My husband and I are not good gardeners and having a low maintenance garden is just what we want. We need to find someone to do the original layout before we can maintain it
That’s a good idea. Planning it out will help create a lovely garden you can enjoy and that doesn’t need too much attention.
Garden gives you a lot of pride and joy to its owner. I love to have a garden on my terrace as i dont have much space in my yard. Iam looking for a low maintenance variety that requires less water and pruning. Your article threw light on different low maintenance techniques, which I love to implement.