An Autumn Garden Makeover In 7 Steps

Just because summer is over, that doesn’t mean that you have to hibernate your garden until spring. There’s still so much you can enjoy from it over the colder months, and using this time wisely will ensure you have the garden in tip top condition by the time summer rolls around again. 

Whether you have lots of outdoor space or just a little, this will offer up the extra room in your home you never properly used before. 

Taming the Weeds
If you’ve let the garden get a bit unruly in terms of length of grass and the appearance of weeds, then it’s time to get aggressive. Get the whole family involved in taming the garden into a space that you can work with. Try to look for some great deals on gardening equipment such as lawn mowers, strimmers, folding shovel, hedge cutters, shears, trowels, decent gloves etc so you have the tools to get the job done.

Colour Choices
Now you have your blank canvas, it’s time to fill it with plants and flowers that will bloom at different times of the year, ensuring your garden has a little splash of colour all-year-round.
A great place to start is with the Royal Horticultural Society’s guide to gardening for beginners. Here you pick up tips on what to plant when, how to care for it and keeping on top of those pesky weeds that you worked so hard to get rid of!

Comfy Additions
If you want your outdoor space to be somewhere the whole family can congregate, you will need to invest in some furniture. If you don’t have a sheltered area from weather such as an awning, you will need to go for seating and table options that are all-weather. That doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice on style though. Benches are also a good option as they give the option of storage for your garden equipment.
Upping the comfort levels is also easy with the additions of outside heaters or maybe even a fire pit or a cute little chiminea, which you can pick up from most garden centres. Coupled together with a basket full of blankets, cushions and slippers and you’ve got all you need to entice the family outside, even on pretty chilly nights.

Upcycling
To help keep the pennies down, why not try a bit of upcycling, you could turn an old pallet into a wall planter for a selection of succulents to thrive. Or you could create a herb spiral from old bricks and stones to add a little feature to the garden that will also come in handy for your cooking too.
Upcycle That has a great selection of garden improvement ideas to get you started.

Creating More Space
Another key investment is into the entrance to your garden from the house. Folding doors are a great way of getting more light into your home and creating a bit of a show home feel to the space. They also give the impression of the garden being another room in the house especially when the folding doors are wide open, inviting you outside.

Lighting
Now that you have such a beautiful garden, it would be a shame for people not to be able to see it day or night. Adding some outdoor lights, strategically placed, will bring your space to life as the sun goes down, allowing you to entertain people for longer or to simply enjoy the view from inside when the weather becomes a little too cold for comfort.
You can opt for specialised outdoor lighting or simply some fairy lights or fake candles dotted about the area.

The Grand Reveal
Finally, enjoy what you have created. If you have enlisted the help of family and friends, having a celebration will be an excellent way to thank them for all the weed pulling, grass trimming and help to upcycle old items.
For the little ones (and big kids at heart) you could organise a treasure hunt so that everyone gets to see every inch of the beautiful garden. And don’t be afraid of attempting a BBQ too. Even in not so ideal weather conditions, the draw of BBQ food will be too tempting to turn down. You just need someone eager enough to tend to it to make sure everything is cooked properly!

*Collaborative post