simple tips to maintain your garden

 Gardening is a much-loved activity but unfortunately, due to our busy lifestyles, we don't all have the time to beautify our outdoor spaces. So how exactly can we give our gardens the attention it deserves?

To get the nation gardening smarter, we suggested 10 tips across watering, lawn maintenance and weeding to help you see greater rewards from your own garden.

Watering

1. Keep flowering beds evenly moist. Water just 1-2 times per week.

2. It's better to water plants in the evening or early in the morning, when the soil is cooler, as less will evaporate than during the heat of the day.

3. Avoid watering leaves or plant heads to avoid mould formation, and water gently to avoid damage.

4. Try an automatic irrigation system if you are away a lot. With a water control they can regulate the amount of moisture in the soil so can let more or less through depending on how the soil feels.

Lawn

5. Protect your lawn from hot weather – temperatures of up to 26°C will promote the growth but anything above 30°C will stunt growth. If the temperature rises, avoid cutting the grass too short and instead leave it standing at about five centimetres, which will protect from the sun and prevent the soil from drying out.

6. The optimum time to water the grass is 4-8am; enlist a water computer control system to water your garden during these unsociable hours.

7. When watering the lawn, use 10-15 litres of water per sq.m as a guide and be warned that over-watering can lead to mould formation.

Weeds

8. To prevent the growth of weeds, plant beds densely to minimise the space available for weeds to develop.

9. The use of mulch prevents weed seeds from sprouting.

10. If attacking existing weeds, remove the source. Get to the roots by using a weeding trowel.