As the days get shorter and darker, it’s time to think about what we can be doing to ensure our gardens are prepared for summer. The weather is often unpredictable, leaving many of your plants vulnerable. The heat and rain damage can wreak havoc on your beautiful gardening, ruining all your hard work. There are plenty of little odd-jobs you can be getting on with to prep your outdoor space. Here are some top tips with last-minute gardening jobs to do before summer truly sets in:
Lawn Care and De-Weeding
First thing’s first, lawn care should be your number one priority. Making sure that your lawn is kept as healthy as possible over winter is paramount, especially if you want to guarantee strong growth for the rest of the year. Rake away any old grass, moss, leaves and cuttings until your lawn is as clear as possible. Then, use a fertiliser to revitalise your lawn, patricianly in places where it may be looking patchy. Spraying it with fertiliser will be providing it with some much-needed nutrients before summer comes. Additionally, improve drainage by using a fork to dig deep holes scattered around your lawn. This will help with distribution if it rains heavily.
Get a head start before spring by de-weeding your lawn. Work your way around pavements and any crevices so you don’t miss any lurking in the corner. Ensure that you dead the weed directly at the root, using a precision de-weeding spray can help with this.
Protecting Garden Furniture
If you’ve invested in luxury garden furniture then you’ll want to keep it in the best condition possible. Even if your garden corner sofa is ‘all-weather’ it’s advised to stay on the safe side and try to store it away in the shed. If you’ve got no storage room in the shed or indoors, then cover it with a protective waterproof sheet from corner to corner.
Saving Young Plants and Trees
Young plants and trees are particularly vulnerable during the warmer season, so it’s important to protect them before summer truly sets in. You can temporarily re-home some of the newer plants that will still thrive in a greenhouse or conservatory, such as fruits and vegetables or herbs. For some of the more durable varieties, covering them with the thick layer of mulch should do the trick when it comes to keeping the weather at bay.
Minimising Damage
As soon as the weather starts to take a turn, it’s time to think about minimising damage. There’s not only the sun and rain to consider, but there’s the strong winds that can really do some harm. Store away any items that could be moved by the winds, like statues, ornaments and garden tools into the shed. If you have a pond, you should cover it up during bad weather because if it gets full it can cause blockages, overflowing and rotting. All of which can produce a nasty smell. Covering it up also reduces the changes of it freezing over, giving any wildlife a better chance of survival.