There are a few things we should all be doing every year to keep our gardens safe and looking their best, but most of us will admit to a little bit of garden neglect. ‘What’s the point,’ we might ask, ‘when it’ll be winter again in a few weeks and we won’t use the garden for months?’ Well, that’s only part of the issue. Garden maintenance is also a vital part of home security, and it helps prevent problems from mounting up over time.
One of the first things you need to make sure you check regularly is the perimeter and the entrances to your garden. If you have any gates which provide access from the street or any other public spaces, these should be properly secured. If necessary, replace the springs with some top quality iron gate springs to allow the gate to shut properly, and add a sturdy bolt or latch which allows you to keep it shut from the inside.
You should also check your fence, garden wall or hedges to make sure there is no easy entry route for anyone who might want to gain access to your property and no escape route for young children or pets who might try to escape on a whim. Make sure that all fence panels are properly secured, that there are no loose bricks or cement that needs replacing or that there are no large gaps in the hedge which could be crawled through.
Other basic maintenance includes carrying out a full weeding at the end of each season. Weeds can be more destructive than you might think, so should be removed as soon as possible. They can grow under the ground and pop up throughout the garden, which looks unsightly and takes vital soil nutrients away from your real plants. It also looks unsightly if the weeds work their way into the lawn, so these should be removed if you want to keep it looking healthy and luscious.
In winter, it’s important that you remove all of the plants which won’t flower again next year. This can mean removing them from the ground entirely or simply cutting them back so that they can retain their health through the harsh winter months. You should also take this opportunity to dig over the soil before the ground freezes over to make sure it doesn’t become compacted down, which makes it harder to manage when everything starts to thaw again and you want to start the planting process once again.
