It's Time To Start Treating Your Garden Better!*

*This is a collaborative post*

A lot of people tend to make the mistake of treating their garden as if it's little more than a piece of outdoor decoration. It's understandable why this happens, after all, most of the time people talk about gardens almost exclusively in terms of how they look. You might talk about keeping your home tidy in terms of being comfortable but generally, people talk about keeping their gardens tidy because they don't want to look at something overgrown and unkempt. Of course, making your garden into something that you actually enjoy looking at is incredibly important, but that shouldn't be your only priority. For one thing, if you only ever think about the way it looks then it's going to feel like much more of a chore to keep it tidy. However, if you think about your garden as yet another place for you to spend your time, then you're far more likely to want to keep it well cared for. In order to help you reach this stage, here are a few simple things that you can do to make your garden into the kind of space where you actually want to spend your time.

Keeping the lawn flat

No one likes an overgrown lawn. Often, keeping your lawn trimmed can take a yard from feeling messy and uncared for to looking neat and tidy. However, one of the biggest issues that people tend to run into is that, if you're letting your grass get too long then it can become clumpy. When this happens, you start to get lumps in the soil which means that, if you're trying to sit or lie down on your lawn to relax then you're pretty likely to end up with a lump of dirt poking into your back. By keeping your lawn neatly trimmed it will not only look better but will stay flat, allowing you to actually feel comfortable when it's time to get outside for a spot of sunbathing. It the kind of job that a lot of people put off because they associate it with a whole lot of hard work that they have to put in time and time again. However, the truth is that it would actually be a whole lot less of an annoying job if you were to make it a regular part of your home maintenance routine. Rather than having to fight with overgrown weeds all the time, just running the mower over the lawn once a week is incredibly easy and lets you actually enjoy a part of your garden that could otherwise be the source of a pretty hefty amount of stress.

Injecting some color

The biggest mistake that a lot of people make is that they don't think about color in their garden enough. After all, if every room in your home was the same color get bored of it pretty quickly, wouldn't you? Sure, having a garden that's full of greenery is wonderful, but why not make things a little more exciting? You don't need to become an expert gardener to do this; there are plenty of flowers that don't need huge amounts of care but can inject a huge amount of life and color into your garden. Similarly, why not throw a lick of paint on your garden furniture or your fence? That way you can bring even more excitement into your yard without much effort.

Making a space to relax

The very best thing about a garden is having a space where you can get out in the fresh air and just relax for a while. So much of modern life is so busy and fast-paced that it's important to take that time for yourself every once in a while. This is why it's so important to create a space in your garden that's dedicated to being able to kick back for a while. Something like a flat roof patio is perfect for creating this kind of space because you don't have to worry about keeping it maintained and you can often enjoy it regardless of the weather. High-quality patio roofing is often the best way to make sure that your garden is the kind of place where you actually want to spend your time all year round, not just when the weather is beautiful. Having a space where you, friends, and family can get together and enjoy each other's company while also enjoying the great outdoors is one of the very best things about a well kept back yard.   

Privacy

Of course, nothing brings that relaxation to an end faster than realizing that your neighbors are poking their heads over the fence to eavesdrop on what you're doing. Even if they're not doing it intentionally, knowing that they can see everything you're doing in your garden, even if you're just sitting down with a drink and a good book, can make things really awkward for you. Because of that think about fencing and hedges in your garden. Sure, you don't want to feel too closed in but having that extra layer around your garden is great for making it feel like a much more private and comfortable space.

Maintenance

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Of course, the problem with a garden compared to any other part of your home is that it's not just going to stay the same. Unless you're making a mess in your home, you can be sure that stuff isn't just going to end up out of place or all over the floor. However, if you leave it alone for too long, your garden is going to end up becoming overgrown and unruly. You need to make garden maintenance a regular part of your cleaning routine. By doing that you can turn it into a habit until you reach the point where trimming the weeds is no more of an effort than running the vacuum over the floors every week.

Storage

Of course, if you're going to keep your garden neat and tidy then you need the right tools. Just about everyone needs a lawnmower, a spade, a garden fork, and home hedge clippers at the very least. With those tools, you need somewhere to store them. After all, leaving them out in the garden not only makes it seem untidy but exposes them to the elements as well. It's a good idea to invest in a small garden shed so that you have somewhere dry to store your tools when you're not using them. If you want you can even at a coat of paint to the shed so that it can help to reinforce the pleasant personality of your garden.

Dealing with patio weeds first

Weeds are the bane of many gardeners' lives. They grow faster than you ever expected, they take over spaces that were once occupied by other, more desirable plants, and they can be a real pain to get rid of. However, if you really want to make a difference to the way your garden looks, you should focus on those weeds growing through the cracks in the patio. Weeds in your flower beds might be annoying, but they can often blend in with the rest of the garden. Clumps of weeds growing up through the patio can be a real eyesore. Don't assume that just yanking them up is going to do any good, especially if you can't get to the roots. There are plenty of weedkillers that you can spray on, leave for a few days, and then come back, able to pull them up with no problem at all. Not only that but many weedkillers prevent them from regrowing nearly as fast as they normally would. Weeds are always going to come back, but if you catch them quickly enough, you can stop them from becoming a major issue. 

The best thing to do in order to change the way that you think about your garden is to treat it like just another part of your home. That way, rather than seeing gardening as some extra task that you'd like to avoid, you can treat it as an extension of the tidying and cleaning that you do indoors on a regular basis. Not only will this take a lot of the stress out of keeping your garden looking nice, but it will give you even more of an incentive to get out and actually spend some time in it. After all, your garden isn't just the thing outside your home, it's a part of it. Not only that but you should remember that your front garden if you have one, deserves just as much attention. After all, it's often the first part of your home that you will see when you come home, so why wouldn't you want to make it as pleasant as possible?

*Contributed by Sam Jones. Header image source Pexels.

 

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