Now is the time to head to the shops if you want spring blooms, says horticulturalist and garden designer Anne Britt
The weather may be a bit grim and grisly as we head into winter, but now is actually the perfect time to update your garden to ensure it’ll look its best come spring. And doing so doesn’t need to cost much at all. In fact, some of the best updates are just pennies – or even free.
Anne Britt, horticulturalist and garden designer, with 20 years under her belt in the business of making things bloom, reveals her top tips and tricks for the month.
LEMON SCENT
Provide a sensory treat for yourself wherever you sit in the garden. On outdoor tables you can place a pretty pot with scented lemon verbena to be crushed to release its refreshing scent. Add shells or pebbles collected from holidays in a pretty dish too, to provoke happy memories.
Then, beside a favourite bench, plant a large pot with scented herbs to include rosemary, mint, salvia or thyme. You can crush these leaves between your fingers too, to release a sense of calm and wellbeing.
REPURPOSE THE SHED
Most people use their shed as a place to dump things they’re not sure what to do with. But it makes a lovely space to sit if you clear it out. So why not repurpose your cluttered shed into a summerhouse to bring it back into use as a cosy retreat?
Clear it out, pop what you no longer need on eBay, Vinted or Facebook Marketplace to rake in some pennies and use those to buy some cheap cane chairs and pre-loved cushions. Paint the walls inside too. Now you have an outdoor shelter for rainy days.
BUY BULBS
And don’t forget to plant them! Bulbs are in the shops now and are one of the cheapest ways of adding colourful flowers to your beds and borders in the bleakest months from January to April.
Look on the back of the packets to see when they flower and try to get a spread over all these months. Small narcissus are the best value as they come back year after year and can be successfully planted in pots too.
MIRROR MIRROR
As a garden designer, I know the power of an old mirror. So why not head to your local charity shop, flea market or car boot sale and pick one up? Fixing a mirror on to a blank house wall or fence will brighten it up no end, reflecting the garden too and making the whole thing look bigger.
What’s more, the mirror will make light come into an often dark area. On either side, fix a simple trellis panel, on which to climb plants. Try trachelospermum jasminoides, or star jasmine, and you’ll bring the added bonus of scent too.
UPCYCLE
If you have a look in your cupboards, I bet you’ll be surprised at the things you find in there that could come in handy in the garden. An old ladder can be turned into a rustic plant stand, while chipped teacups and mugs make quirky containers for herbs or succulents.
Wooden pallets, which you can often find for free from businesses, can become vertical planters.
SUPER SEEDS
Instead of buying fully grown plants, start them off from seeds. It’s much cheaper and incredibly satisfying. Pop vegetable, herb and flower seeds into tiny pots and keep them on windowsills to watch them grow.
One of the easiest things to grow from seed is cut and come again lettuce, which has the added benefit of being edible – saving you money on buying salad in the shops too!
FEED THE BIRDS
Add a squirrel-proof bird feeder in view of your window and fill it with sunflower hearts. Bringing bird life into the garden has so many benefits – they feed on aphids and caterpillars and generally keep your plants pest free. They’re stunning too, and a total joy to watch.
Add water for them to drink and bathe in, choosing a bird bath, big or small, new or secondhand, and enjoy the show from your window.
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