7 Quick Ways to Spruce up Your Garden for Summer

Paint fences, sheds and pergolas. A cheap way to give your garden a quick facelift is to paint all the wood. Avoid using green – it simply blends with the planting. I always use black which makes a great foil for planting and eventually disappears into the shadows. 

 The shed blends into the overall scheme in this Woking, Surrey garden design

Weed borders and put down a mulch. Tidying borders before the growing season starts will give you a head start and stop weeds from taking hold. Fork in a little fish, blood and bone and top with a generous mulch of green waste compost. The small particle size of green waste compost makes it an excellent mulch that won’t blow around or be scratched up by the birds.

 Green waste compost is a wonderful mulch

Scarify and feed lawns. Remove moss and dead matter from lawns with a rake and put the waste on the compost heap. Aerate the surface with a fork and treat the lawn to a top dressing of weed and feed. There are lawn fertilisers specifically for use either in the spring or the autumn, so check the packaging.

 Lawns need regular maintenance

Fill gaps in herbaceous borders by sowing some annual seeds. Cosmos are great for the middle or back of the border, whilst Nigella are lovely for adding texture and colour nearer the front. There is loads of choice and a trip to the garden centre will give you inspiration.

 Nigella

 Cosmos

Re-point paving. Remove loose pointing from between paving slabs with a chisel and bolster. Mix 1 part cement with 5 parts builders sand and add water just sufficient to make it damp. Press the mixture into the gaps and finish off with a rounded implement to create a smooth joint.

Freshly pointed paving in my Crowthorne, Berkshire garden design

Pressure wash paving, decking and garden furniture.  Giving paving and garden furniture a good clean really perks up the garden.  Make sure you clean the paving before re-pointing or make sure the new pointing is dry first.

 An off the shelf pressure washer is usually good enough to remove gunge from patios

Upgrade planted pots. Get rid of old, cracked containers and scruffy hanging baskets. There are some affordable fibreglass containers available now with realistic metallic and stone finishes. Investing in some new containers and filling them with clipped box shapes or annual bedding will give some instant colour and glamour to your outdoor space. Containers are also great for creating informal divisions in the garden or planting climbers where paving adjoins walls and fencing.

Fibreglass planters are great for outdoors, there is a great selection at Livingreen Design 

If you would like help designing your garden, or if you simply want a new planting scheme please drop me an email, or visit my Web site for telephone contact details.  You can also see examples of my work on my Facebook page and Houzz profile.