Most of us want a well-maintained lawn and garden, but this isn’t the easiest thing to achieve. It demands a bit of time, sacrifice, and resourcefulness. Because how can you keep a well-manicured garden if you are stuck to your day job between 8AM and 5PM, and have to take care of the household as soon as you finish your work?
Fortunately, there are ways you can achieve your dream of a healthy and well-maintained lawn without having to sacrifice your time with the family and your job. The first skill you have to learn is time management. The second one is some basic gardening skills. These two together will create a yard that’s easy to manage and maintain.
Preparation
Is your yard designed for easy maintenance? First, get a sturdy garden hose that can reach all places in your yard. If you have the budget, you can install a sprinkler system so it’s easy for you to water the plants.
Second, you need to manage where the stormwater from the gutters go. Does it create a pool of water on the sides of your house? Does the stormwater go to the garden and turn the soil muddy? Install stormwater drain grates to manage the flow of stormwater and prevent dried leaves and twigs from entering the drainage. You need to control the amount of water that gets to the yard so it won’t drown the plants.
Third, prepare the soil. You can amend the nutrients in the soil by adding fertilizers, mulch, and compost. Healthy soil makes plants easier to manage because it has the nutrients your yard needs.
Plants
What kinds of plants should you grow? Look for local plants. These are the plants that are native to your area. They are acclimated to the weather there and they grow despite the lack of rain or the lack of nutrients in the soil, for example. This makes these plants easy to maintain and grow.
Most people love growing seasonal plants because they look better in the yard. However, these tend to change their requirements throughout the year. If you do not have time to keep up with what your plants need, it is better to stick with plants that occur naturally in your region.
Schedule
Create a schedule that allows you to look after your plants. You only need about 30 minutes to an hour to water the plants and remove the weeds from the yard. You can do this in the morning before everybody in the house wakes up. It’s a great way to start your day. Surrounding yourself with nature is a confidence booster that will help you in dealing with work, personal issues, and many other things.
Besides, gardening is a great workout scheme. Do you know that gardening for an hour can burn up to 600 calories? That’s more than the amount of calories you can burn if you run on the treadmill for an hour. So, when you tend to your yard, you’re essentially doing two things: work out and garden.
The yard is the first thing that people see when they visit your house. Neighbors and passersby may even judge your home because of the way your yard looks. A simple and workable schedule improves your home’s curbside appeal. Aside from this, gardening is therapeutic. It helps you get in touch with nature. That at least should convince you to keep your yard well-maintained.