How to Inject Colour into your Garden

Your garden definitely deserves some colour this spring and it’s so easy to introduce it to your outdoor space – and you don’t need to churn up your lawn or dig up the borders! Here’s how to inject some colour into your garden quickly and easily.

Introduce seasonal plants 

As well as carrying out the usual seasonal tasks in your garden, introducing seasonal plants also ensures you get to enjoy colour all year round. Daffodils in spring will add a spirit lifting dash of yellow, while a butterfly bush (Buddleia) blooming in the summer will not only look stunning but attract the attention of colourful wildlife too, such as bumblebees and butterflies.

In autumn and winter either opt for bedding plants, such as pansies or sweet William that can withstand the cold, or opt for shrubbery and bushes that not only add texture but introduce gorgeous colours to the garden as their leaves change – scarlet willow is a good choice.

You can either nurture these plants from seedlings the season before, or pick up mature flowering shrubs from YouGarden to add a boost of vibrancy to your outside space.

Feature colourful planters 

If your plant life isn’t as colourful as it could be, make up for it with vibrant planters instead. You can introduce any hue to a garden and you don’t need to stick to a theme. DIY stores feature hardy plastic pots in every shade of the rainbow that you can transfer plants to, or you could get crafty with some paint and a stone planter. Here are some great ideas to get you started – the brighter the better!

Revamp your furniture… 

If your garden furniture is a sad brown tone or a faded version of something that was once bright and fun, book in some time this weekend to give it a revamp. Strip back a wooden bench and give it a new lease of life with a bright paint job and varnish it to seal the deal. Refrain from boring browns and blues, instead favouring an eye popping yellow or even a bold pink.

If you happen to have metal furniture, there’s paint or spray paint for such a job too, so anything can be instantly revamped after a trip to Hobbycraft or your local DIY store.

…and your shed 

While you’ve got the paint out, why not give the garden shed a makeover too? Choose a colour that isn’t going to give you a headache, but still makes a statement in your garden. Why not paint the slats in different colours? Or just coat the roof trim in a neon shade?

Accessorise 

Having guests over for a BBQ but haven’t had time to implement any of the above tips? Then introduce some vibrancy with your al fresco dining accessories: bright place mats, napkins and glassware will instantly add playfulness to your outdoor space.

Introducing colour to your garden needn’t be hard work… employ some of these tips and tricks and start enjoying your outdoor space now!

 

By Patrick Vernon.

 

Gardening Fun for the Kids

The Children's Garden

The Children’s Garden

There are two ways of getting your children into the garden and away from their Xboxes and Playstations. Either you can lock them outside and ignore their frenzied screams, or you can buy them a book like this.

The Children’s Garden is written with parents in mind. it has lots of great ideas and projects, so that youngsters can actually enjoy their time in the great oudoors. You can have a lot of great fun, with very little money if you do simple things such as pond-dipping or going on bug hunts to uncover beetles and woodlice and other creepy crawlies

The book has chapters devoted to simple things such as growing vegetables, including potatoes and spring onions, which can all be done in just about any container. And it makes the very valid point that children are more likely to eat things that they’ve grown themselves. And they can have lots of fun growing flowers from seed such as nasturtiums and sunflowers – which are really great because they are completely edible so even if the seeds end up in a toddler’s mouth, they won’t do any harm.

This book is a handy size – not too big – and has lots of great pictures. And if you want to inspire your child with a lifelong love of gardens and gardening, this is a great place to start.

The Children’s Garden by Matthew Appleby is published by Frances Lincoln, £14.99

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Lechuza Delta 20 Self-Watering Planters Review | Christmas Gift Guide

We love Lechuza self-watering planters because they are the perfect gift for stylish, busy people. They can be used indoors and outdoors and are easy to use. They can be used for herbs or flowers and if, like us, you tend to kill anything that is green, then they are the perfect present for any plant-killing friends or family.

We reviewed the Lechuza Delta 20. An outdoor self-watering planter with rain overflow function. This complete kit is gorgeous and handy. It makes a perfect present and is so easy to use that even we managed it. It looks perfect on windowsills.

selfwateringplanter

Lechuza DELTA 20

selfwateringplanterreview
The Lechuza Delta 20 is available here.

 

 

How To Create The Perfect All Year Round Garden

gardeningHaving the perfect garden all year round is something that many homeowners dream of, giving them an outside space that can be admired whatever the weather. Gardens created with the varying seasons in mind can be incredibly low maintenance once the initial planting has been done, and offer households a real haven that will attract a wide range of wildlife throughout the year.

A year round garden is also ideal for those who are looking to sell their home; a low maintenance, but attractive, outdoor space can be tempting to prospective buyers, and homeowners will be assured of a great-looking garden, no matter how long their house takes to sell. The perfect garden can be a deal breaker when it comes to real estate; a badly kept outdoor space risks putting buyers off while a well-kept plot, which they can imagine themselves using and enjoying, can sell a whole house.

Planting a year round garden

The key to a year round garden is maintainability; it should make the most of plants and features that will look good in every season with very little upkeep, and it’s a great idea to bed flowers that will come back with the changing seasons without the need for constant replanting. This will give gardens a continual new lease of life and bring bursts of color no matter what the weather’s doing. Narcissi, or daffodils, can be planted in the fall and will bloom come spring. Once planted, narcissi will continue to flower each year, creating a beautiful display of white, orange, and yellow with little repeat effort. Similarly, crocuses, snowdrops, peonies, sedum, and the Siberian iris will return year after year. These blooms, known as perennials, are a dream come true for the year round garden.

Shrubs are a great addition to any garden, helping it to look lush and green whatever the season, while a well-kept lawn can also make a beautiful focal point, and will prove a huge selling point to any prospective buyers. Landscaping is another great way of ensuring a garden’s suitability all year round. Carefully planned rockeries, patio areas, water features, and themed beds can help homeowners to create their ideal gardens with very little effort, allowing them to keep to a strict, easily attainable, plan.

Maintaining a year round garden

It is essential for homeowners to keep on top of simple gardening chores such as pruning, weeding or using a weed eater to maintain the pests on the lawn (we personally use black and decker weed eater), and raking, ensuring that their gardens remain smart and attractive. Even low maintenance gardens require some effort, after all, but it really is worth it to create a space that families can enjoy day after day.

Another vital task is ensuring that garden tools are kept in good working order. This includes storing them properly and taking the time to clean them after every use, and will save money on costly repairs and replacements further down the line. Maintaining tools also means that they will be ready for use at any time – perfect for homeowners expecting prospective buyers. It is particularly essential that lawnmowers, which do the biggest job in the garden, are kept well maintained and in working order; they should be stored somewhere secure and dry, and gardeners should take care to replace parts as soon as they begin to wear.

Online retailers, such as Pat’s Small Engine, generally stock a ready supply of lawnmower parts, gardening tools, and special clothing, as well as advice for maintaining more complex equipment; it has never been simpler to keep a garden, and its tools, in fantastic shape. A year round garden needn’t, and shouldn’t, take all year to get right. However, with a little thought and general upkeep, it can be enjoyed whatever the season and will make a great selling point for any home.

 

 

Alan Titchmarsh shares his top tips to growing a sunflower:

B&Q celebrity ambassador Alan Titchmarsh shares his top tips to growing a sunflower:

“This is a fun way to get children inspired to garden and what better way than to start with everyone’s favourite flower, the sunflower:

1. Make sure you plant the sunflower in a spot where it’s sunny all day long, these plants love the sun

2. Ensure that the plant has enough space, roughly 30 inches apart from other plants.

3. Water the plant as soon as you’ve planted it and remember to water infrequently to encourage the roots to grow deep.

4. When it gets to roughly 30cm high, support the plant with a bamboo stick. Doing this will encourage the plant to grow as tall as it can with the support of the stick.

5. To protect the plant from animals, buy some netting to drape over the plant. That way the plant will produce lots of seeds which are a tasty snack for birds

To see how to grow your own sunflower just log onto www.youtube.com/bandq.

Free Interior Guide Book to Transform your Home

It is very rare to get anything free in life, but Frost has come across a free interior guide booklet.

1-2-3 Transform Your Home a FREE step-by-step interior guide showing how to bring the joy of spring/summer indoors in 2012

The Flower Council of Holland (FCH) has created a beautiful FREE online booklet demonstrating how to bring the joy of spring indoors with flowering bulbs in pots and cut bulb flowers.

Available exclusively from www.funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk, design and gardening enthusiasts can use the booklet to gather ideas on how to create attractive indoor displays with spring bulb flowers using a variety of vintage and contemporary containers and vases. As easy as 1-2-3, bulb flower displays around the home are guaranteed to bring happiness and brighten up any dark corner.

The 1-2-3 Transform Your Home booklet is a step-by-step guide focusing on five of the nation’s favourite flower bulbs: Tulip, Hyacinth, Iris, Narcissi and Calla Lily and explains how they can be used to transform different rooms in the home with diverse styles and scents.

Jacqueline Doornekamp from the Flower Council of Holland, says:

“Flower bulbs in pots and cut flower bulbs in vases are a simple yet stylish solution to refreshing tired interiors. This free step-by-step guide shows the easy and affordable way to lift your mood and transform your home.”