The natural process of gardening can be a messy endeavor. As the sun shines, flowers bloom, and weeds grow in your garden, you are left picking up branches, leaves, and petals after every storm. The backyard garden is a space for relaxation and recreation. We spend countless hours in our gardens, but all that time can lead to a messy mess! The good news is that there are some simple steps to make this easier for yourself! With these quick tips on how to get your garden looking neat and organized, you will spend less time weeding and more time enjoying the outdoors.
1. Tackle the trimming: Trim all the overgrown plants and bushes, and Rather than letting your pruning clippings pile up in the corner of your yard, it is best to use them for compost or mulch. It not only keeps them out of sight but creates a more natural look when you are finished with your gardening project. Also, having a place to store things you cut allows them to dry out, essential for compost.
2. Lawn maintenance: Mow your lawn regularly to keep it looking tidy. Your property looks good and is growing well. However, the grass and leaves you raked up in your garden are probably still on your lawn! Make sure to get out of the house once a week to pick up any fallen organic materials around your property. It will keep it looking nice all year long!
3. Outdoor Furniture: After spending the entire Spring, Summer, and Autumn enjoying the great outdoors on your new patio furniture, make sure to give it a thorough cleaning before you store it away for winter. Clean off any debris that may be stuck on your chairs, tables, or cushions. Also, keep your garden room clean and all tidied up for you to sit and relax anytime.
4. Cut back any trees that are too close to the house or garden: This may seem like a no-brainer, but keeping trees from hanging over your garden or home is an easy step to take to keep your garden neat. In addition, you do not want branches falling on your head when working in your yard, so cut back any trees that could harm you.
5. Clear your Weeds: If weeds are at the top of your list of garden annoyances, try using a border edger around your flower beds and walkways; this will keep pesky weeds from spreading beyond where you want them to be! Also, make sure you keep up on weeding; if you keep weeding as soon as the weeds come up, they won’t have a chance to take over. Finally, remove weeds from flower beds with a weed killer. Weeds will start to pop up in your garden and, if left alone, can take over and choke out your flowers and vegetables. To keep the weeds under control, make sure to remove them before they go to seed and spread their roots throughout your garden. There are many ways to remove weeds from your garden, but one of the easiest ways is to pull them out by the roots.
6. Clean the paths: Keep leaves and other debris clear using a leaf blower or rake. For you to tend to your garden without stepping on the dirt, create paths by raking leaves and mulching grass from different areas of your yard. These pathways will keep you safe and allow you to do all sorts of gardening without damaging your precious plants.
7. Mulch for neatening: Use mulch around plants, flowers, and trees for nutrients and water retention. It can be a great way to keep your garden looking nice and neat. Use a layer of organic matter to cover the park’s surface after spreading fertilizer or seeds. It will also help retain water in the soil so that it does not run off too quickly, which means less work for you! A good rule to follow when mulching is about 2 inches deep, but different plants require different depths. There are many options for mulching, but some of the most popular include wood chips, bark mulch, grass clippings, and straw. You can purchase these at your local garden center, or you can make your own out of composted yard waste. Either way, this will not only keep weeds down but will also help your lawn retain moisture.
8. Perennials- The best thing you can do for your perennials is to cut them back as soon as possible after they bloom. Prune the stems and leaves like you would a shrub or tree that has finished blooming. If you don’t, all those dead flowers will make the once beautiful plant look weathered and old. Plant perennials in spring so they will grow throughout the year. Perennials include roses, lilies, lavender, irises, daylilies. They come back every year without having to replant them! Plant perennials in spring so they will grow throughout the year. Perennials include roses, lilies, lavender, irises, daylilies. They come back every year without having to replant them!
10. Rake up leaves and debris after a windstorm: Did you just come home to find all of your freshly cut flowers strewn about? Well, no need to lament, be sure to check the weather forecast and see if there’s a chance for any windy storms coming up! If so, go out and save yourself sometime after the storm is over. Take a rake with you to sweep up all of the leaves and other debris that will be scattered about once the wind starts blowing again. And if you don’t want to spend your time raking up all of your yards, you can use a leaf blower to get rid of them!
11. Pick up any fallen branches or limbs: If you had a tree that was recently involved in a storm, be sure to pick up any stems that are, well, lying around. If your yard looks like a tree recently fell in it during the storm, make sure you sweep this up! Not only will this save you time later on when raking after the storm, but it will also save your lawn from damage that rotting leaves can cause.
Conclusion: with these tips, you will maintain a clean yard and healthy trees with little effort. Even with a 9-5 job, you will help keep your house surroundings and have many beautiful moments in the green.
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