Why should a low maintenance garden appeal to you?
If you’re someone who barely has time on their hands, but would still like to create an outdoor space that breathes life into your household then a low maintenance garden is the right pick for you. Most gardens contain a variety of plants and host huge expanses of lawn which require constant mowing.
Save time with low-maintenance garden ideas
However, this requires a huge chunk of your time every day. Even if you hire someone to do it for you, it will be expensive! Not just that, but it will also require constant supervision as the gardener tries to translate your perfect garden from vision to reality. A couple of hacks and ideas which help foster a low maintenance but cozy garden are what you may be looking for.
Cut down on the greens
Design borders for your plants.
Section off parts of your garden.
If you want to make your garden more manageable, you may want to limit the different types of plant species that you have in your garden. Having a variety of plants means meeting their individual requirements such as what soil they prefer, what season they need extra care in, how much they need to be watered and which fertilizer is appropriate for them.
By limiting the different varieties you have, you will effectively be able to create a more low-maintenance outdoor space. It is recommended to not have more than 5 or 6 types if you have a small garden, otherwise it will be tricky to take care of them and even harder to eliminate and kill weeds in the garden.
Create sections for plants
The greater the size of planted area in your garden, the greater the amount of effort will be required to maintain it. If you want a low maintenance space, you will have to buckle down on the green space. If you have flower beds towards the boundaries of your garden, we recommend paving them with gravel and stone to create a path of sorts.
Create Pavements
If you have a lawn, then you may want to consider covering up some of it as well. Larger lawns mean more grass which means more maintenance and time using your lawn mower. It is not difficult to create a pavement if you have an existing path already. Just try getting material which closely resembles the existing pathway for the sake of congruency.
Store Cleaning tools
Another idea for your small low-maintenance garden is to have cleaning tools readily available for hands on cleaning access. A pan and cleaning brush are all you need to sweep up gunk as well as dust and remove fallen foliage covering paths. This will help decrease the amount of extra time you will have to devote to just cleaning your garden.
Be careful with your choice of plants
If you want to have a low-maintenance gardening space, then it is key that you are selective of your choice of plants. As mentioned above some plants require more attention and care than others, just to stay alive. Sowing grass seed and growing vegetables typically takes a lot of effort which is why it isn’t recommended if you want an easy-care and minimalist space. Don’t opt for plants which require staking and support to be able to grow. This requires a lot of time and constant monitoring of the plant and it is easy to mess things up if you aren’t consistent.
Avoid Climbers and slow growing plants
Climbers are another variety which requires a lot of effort to take care of. Some evergreen species of climbers grow at a very fast rate and require cutting to stop them from taking control of your entire garden or wall, this applies to fast growing trees also. Others which are slower at picking up pace may require support just to start sprouting. The point is that climbers are a species that aren’t recommended going for unless you are willing to invest the time and effort in them.
Grow Low-maintenance plants
So, which plants should you go for? Trees and shrubs are easy-care plants that you could consider growing in your garden. Lavender and holly are particularly popular choices when it comes to growing shrubs because they will survive almost anywhere. You can even grow fruits such as currants and raspberries as they only require pruning once a year. Just be sure not to go overboard with your plant choices, because the bottom line is that ‘less is more’ when it comes to creating a low maintenance and easy-to-care for garden.
Construct an outdoor living area for your garden
One of the key aspects of creating the perfect outdoor space is being able to balance the aesthetics of indoor and outdoor items. By creating an outdoor living area, you will create a comfortable lounging area that will ask for nothing from you in return! You can embrace the minimalism of your low maintenance garden by creating a seating area.
You can do this by cordoning off certain parts. This means that you need to compartmentalize specific areas which are designated for plants and flowers. The purpose of creating this fence or edging is to section off a part of the garden so that it does not spread around everywhere.
Get cool Garden Furniture
Once you have contained different parts of your garden, you can create a living room space by making use of sofas and chairs. Garden furniture is one of the most classic ways of being able to create an aesthetic outdoor space. Figure out what sense of style you want to create – casual wooden chairs for a summer picnic vibe or something more exotic and glamorous like lavish white sofas that are appropriate for late night parties and bonfires. For an exciting twist, you could add in a small swing set, daybed or pod hanging lose. After all, it needs to be a comfortable and relaxing place to be in.
The Bottom Line
Planning a garden can be a challenging thing to do, especially if you are clueless about what should go in it. You can use the above-mentioned low maintenance garden ideas to make the most of your space with putting minimal effort.
