Your perennial borders will peak by mid-summer just as a wider range of sun loving flowers start to bloom. With a mix now in your garden including leftovers from spring and nearing the end of the summer months, there will also be signs of the later blooming flowers too. Your annuals will also be in full bloom during mid-summer.

Then a third wave of beautiful blooms begin to brighten up your garden once again when the summer flowers start to fade. The colours in your garden now begin to change in the autumn with many perennials now blooming in fabulous shades of yellow, purple and orange. Amongst the autumn flowers are your annuals which continue to provide full flowers until first frost. Later again in the season, flowers such as sedum and black-eyed Susan change into brown and rust coloured seeded heads. They look stunning with the colourful foliage on the surrounding trees. Foliage of late season perennial is attractive just on its own.

Winter is the season which most gardeners will forget about their landscape but the garden can offer colour and a visual interest through its evergreen shrubs and bark, plant form and seeded heads.
The winter landscape would be quite empty without the hardy evergreen trees and shrubs. Garden walls and surrounding fences become even more prominent as foliage that had screened them in the summer disappears completely. So hedges along with walls, make a strong statement in winter.

With careful planning, it is now possible to have a stunning garden year round. Even in the winter months, when everything appears stark and barren.

All good gardens have just one thing mainly in common.

They offer something in terms of aesthetic natural beauty during each of the four seasons. So in spring as well as summer there are colourful perennials or annuals and beautiful flowering trees and shrubs which make a natural and pleasing focal point in the garden. Once summer flowers start to fade, the colorful autumn foliage will brighten the garden. During the winter, evergreens and trees with berries and darken bark will provide the garden with colour as the shape and form of plants and trees become more prominent against a stark winter sky.

In the spring, green is virtually always the dominant colour in the garden as new shoots and shrubs seem to be rapidly putting out new growth. Some bulbs and perennials that do flower in early spring will do so against the backdrop of rich, green foliage and brown soil. Bulbs are always the earliest blooming plants in the garden and essential to a spring landscape. Some bulbs will even give you colour until more of your perennials begin to bloom during May and June.

The early flowering perennials like Iris, will range in colour from a snowy white to yellow and to deep purple and also range in size from only a few inches right up to 4 feet. To ensure spring foliage, make sure to plant some hosta, they grow in a huge variety of greens, ranging from blue-green to yellow-green and make the most beautiful backdrop for spring flowers.

Gardening is getting more popular, it can be cheap and lots of fun as well, and if it is done regularly it shouldn’t need to take up a lot of your time. Plus, it’s a huge advantage for a homemaker to have a green thumb and a nice garden is always attractive to a buyer.
One of the most rewarding aspects of gardening is to start plants from seeds. Gardens can still be created today with very little money and some of the best gardens were created without any money at all.

Depending on the climate there are so many types of soil that can be used for planting. Look for a garden location that gets lots of sunlight, for a healthy garden your plants will need around six hours of direct sunlight and that’s every day.

When planting any new plants you will need to water them daily until the plant(s) get acclimated to their new environment. If any leaves show signs of starting to wilt, but the soil is still moist, you may be best to mist the foliage lightly. When to water depends on the weather conditions and more humidity means less watering. If plants are in pots, you will see the water seep from drain holes in the pot and the plant will feel “heavier” after it’s been watered. Roots showing around the edge of the pot are sign that the plant has outgrown its pot and needs a larger pot or to be planted into the garden or growth will become hindered.

If you are planning the design of your perfect garden, you need to have a clear picture before you start.

If you don’t have a garden at all, the first step is to determine where your garden will go, draw a map of your property identifying areas you are going to focus on. Then the ideas will start flowing as you realize there may be other parts of your property that you could turn into a garden.

A truly essential next step is to evaluate the true condition of your soil to determine what will need to be done. You can find good soil testing kits in most garden centres and using them will save a fortune because the last thing you want is to buy plants and shrubs that will not last in your garden. If necessary, you may need to purchase some new soil.

The next thing for your garden is how you plan to enclose it. You need some kind of border for your garden. Rocks are a popular border and add a professional and elegant touch for your garden project. Any fencing material and mulch or even small shrubs look nice to surround a garden as well. I enjoy using small pebbles mounding them around the border I’ve designated as my garden. I love coloured rocks for this purpose too. The border makes the difference between good and bad garden designs.

If for any reason part or all of you garden will not get rain water directly, you’ll need to see if it’s possible to redirect water or install a simple irrigation system. Make sure your garden won’t get too much water when it rains and look at simple drainage solutions.

Always consider lighting as a final touch it’s a special touch to add lighting to your garden at night because you get to enjoy your hard work in the night as well as the day. Speak to a garden centre to see what they suggest as the best options for your purpose.

Like most things, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. So, if red blooms put a big smile on your face, then stick to plants in your garden with purple blooms and it’s the same for any colour you find pleasing.
However, Feng Shui is a great idea to apply to inside and outside the home, no matter if you have each and every room aligned to maximize its chi (energy), or you just want to make a garden space more appealing.

A room (as defined by either an indoor or outdoor space) with a ‘metal energy’ tends to be very tidy and structured. The colours that are considered to have metal energy in Feng Shui are; white, gold and silver and some shades of lighter blues. It is said that Metal energy allows for clearer and more concise thinking to aid in the completion of tasks.

This is true for a garden space. For example, an organised, mass planting of white Tulips provides a space in your garden to give you clarity of thought and purpose. Some yellows and more earthy tones tend to blend a more nurturing feeling into the planting design, the feeling it is supposed to give you is the same feeling as you get with your first morning cup of coffee and watching the rising sun greeting a new day; filling you with warmth, potential and purpose.

Much as the same as ‘power of dress’ a flame of red colour to the blooms in your garden is supposed to fill you with the feelings of power and confidence. For the strong, silent type violets and blues are supposed to lend a feeling of inner strength and serenity.

In fact, before planning the design and colour scheme, first ask yourself how you want to feel when you

Growing a herb garden gives you the chance of eating fresh herbs right there straight into your cooking. Not only is this a very satisfying feeling it is also tastier, fresher, cleaner and cheaper. The best place for an indoor herb garden is the kitchen because of the temperature changes which are similar to the changing climate outdoors.

To check if your plant is overwatered do the finger test, before watering your indoor garden, test with your finger by poking it into the soil, go down a little way and if the soil is quite damp already do not water it.

Right Spot For Your Indoor Herb Garden

The ideal place for your herb garden is the kitchen, an indoor herb garden needs the typical temperatures of a kitchen. Plenty of natural light is needed. Having a dry atmosphere is not ideal, and installing a humidifier would compensate and hand sprays are good for watering.

Tips For Watering Indoor Herb Gardens.

Most herbs will require the same amount of water with a few rare exceptions so check the care instructions before you buy. If the any herb require special attention these will obviously need to be potted separately.

Don’t herbs add flavour to any dish when herbs are used freshly from your indoor garden it is even more tasty.

Place your indoor herb garden inside your kitchen and you can enjoy the wonderful aroma from your herbs whilst enjoying them in your dishes and serving something up that a gourmet chef would be proud of.

Keep your herb garden in the correct temperature, with enough light and water and it will allow you to get the best out of your herbs getting them growing healthier.

Consider the size of pots you want to grow the herbs in and if you want the larger pots, then your best choice would be growing several plants in the same pot. If you want to group your herbs together, like the ones which are used best with Thai French and Italian cooking. The single variety herbs should be grown in pots approximately 6 to 12 inches deep.

The pots you may choose should determine how you water your indoor garden. Self watering pots are really handy - you fill a container inside the pot full of water and it the water is slowly released to the plant roots, with the option of adding liquid fertilizer too.

A small garden hardly seems worth even considering for garden landscape ideas. It is such a small space that you don’t have much area to organize. Thinking like this would be a mistake. Just to have a lawn in the middle with flowers along the sides is not really inspiring when you could have so many more elements even within a small town garden.

One big advantage of garden landscaping for a small garden is that they are normally quite level. This makes them pretty easy to plan. Firstly, one of the first techniques you could consider is introducing various areas on different levels.

Decks and Patios

Decks and patios are fab as garden ideas. Usually connected to an outer part of your main home and looking out to a view. Many house owners like to have patios and decks as these are great places to relax with friends and family. Decks / patios have all sorts of different kinds of design which will complement your garden. Garden landscaping ideas usually have something to do with either a pathway or flagstones leading from the deck or patio.

Water and Stone Structures

Structures made from stone are the more common structures you will encounter in garden/ landscaping ideas. The structures are often formed into furniture / water structures. So, Even in a smaller garden the use of these features is really important. Stone furniture can be left outside in the garden despite the weather elements.

Fences and Walls

Fences and walls in the garden will probably have something to do with keeping some things in or keeping things out. The design of fences / walls will depend on the homeowner’s preferences.

You Need Some Garden Lighting

Some of the most attractive garden landscaping designs have something to do with lighting.
Garden lighting is limited to night time use but the effect it has on your garden can be quite stunning.

Slugs don’t like plants that are tough, bitter or hairy. They will more likely choose lettuce over chicory and brussel sprouts over your sprouting broccoli, and for the record they prefer your chrysanthemums over your dandelions (basically all the good stuff!). Slugs will hate with glossy or waxy leaves too because it prevents their tongues from scraping away the surface. They also hate pungent-smelling foliage like lavender because the fragrance is contained in the plant’s vessels that fracture when touched by the slug releasing essential oils which would be a little like gargling on rich perfume for a slug.

20 top slug beating plants

The following plants are the most resistant to slugs. Here, resistance does not mean complete immunity, but picking from this list is the best advice.

• Grasses
• Hellebores
• Aquilegias
• Lavenders
• Astilbes
• Fuchsias
• Pelargoniums
• Astrantias
• Begonias
• Crocosmias
• Ferns
• Japanese anemones
• Lilium henryi
• Hardy geraniums
• Hydrangeas
• Lady’s mantle
• Penstemons
• Roses
• Euphorbias
• Sedums

Tips for foiling slugs

Do not overfeed your young plants in the spring, this only encourages a soft growth, which slugs love eating.

Water the garden in the morning, as trails of water over the garden in the evening are slug highways. Always water at the plant roots where possible, dip potted plants into buckets of water.
Encourage the natural predators. Plant trees to encourage roosts for birds and grow berry producing plants to entice the thrushes into your garden.

We are in August already so make sure you check your list of jobs in the garden.

Greenhouse Jobs:

Plant your prepared hyacinth bulbs in hyacinth vases or in pots of bulb fibre.
Sow your parsley into modular trays
Water plants that are in growing bags and pots
Open your vents each day, close them at night if the weather turns cold
Place your poinsettias in complete dark for 14 hours a day which will encourage colourful bracts to form, move into full light for the remainder of the day
Water your indoor cyclamen after their summer rest in order to encourage new growth
Plant the lachenalia and veltheimia bulbs
Take off the lower leaves from tomatoes in order to allow light and air to reach the fruits better

Flowers in the garden:

Time to dead head the flowers of lady’s mantle before they set seed
Water your camellias and make sure they don’t dry whilst flower buds are developing
Buy bulbs for autumn planting including tulips, narcissus, alliums, iris and crocus
Take the cuttings from the tender perennials and bedding plants
If you fancy propagating then collect seeds from your favourite flowers.
Take the leaves off plants affected by blackspot from roses.
Trim back conifer and evergreen hedges make sure you cut their tops back to desired height
Clear the bedding that has gone passed its best and plant out any wallflowers or forget-me-nots.
Tidy away the fading perennials and use the trimmings from compost.