Archive for the ‘Landscape’ Category

Cheap Landscaping Ideas

Thursday, February 11th, 2010

This blog is on cheap landscaping ideas. One of the main hassles of a garden is not planting, but weeding. Weeds grow with remarkable speed and can quickly overtake a garden. Using a poison or herbicide like roundup is not recommended as you might kill your plants. I know that the manufacture’s claim the product breaks down in the soil very quickly but I find with my lawn edges after a second dose of roundup no grass is growing there six months later.
In moving into a new rental property I had a large front garden with a nice quick curb concrete border to highlight the beautiful weeds. So I began to weed, got sick of it and left it for a month. Big mistake, there were now more weeds than ever. I was going to have to have mulch it or spend everyday in the garden. With the landlord not interested in paying for it it was going to have to come out of my own pocket. Now I don’t mine paying for gardening supplies, plants, etc when its my own place, but I’m certainly not keen on giving my landlord a free ride.
So I needed a cheap mulching option, that would look good, work, but not cost too much.
I chose three basic supplies, newspaper -the local rags free and it doesn’t take long to build up a stock pile of papers, sugar cane mulch – its comes in a big bags and is cheap, and finally a few bags of bark – not so cheap, but as you will see its used to give color not as a mulch so only a little bit is required.
Step One:-
Prepare the garden, yes this means a huge effort and weed the whole garden by hand. Rake over the soil so its nice and smooth and then apply the newspaper. The thicker the better.
Min. six sheets thick. Spread it out and then with a hose wet it all down so it soaked. The now heavy paper won’t blow around in the wind and will mold better to the grounds surface.

Step Two:-
Next spread out the sugar cane mulch. If you cant access cheap sugar cane mulch, try straw, but ensure it has no seeds in it. Make sure all the paper is covered. It doesn’t have to be deep, just enough to cover all the paper. Once again apply water to damp down the mulch. Once watered it takes on a lovely golden color.

Step Three:-
Now apply the bark. Just grab hand fulls and throw it around. You don’t want to totally cover the yellow mulch, the barks mainly to give color and to contrast with the mulch.

I have found this to be a very effective mulch. A year later and few weeds can get through. Nut-grass was the only successful one and I pulled those out by hand and even the nut-grass gave up the fight. The beautiful browns and golden color unfortunately fade under the harsh sun, but by that time you should have plenty of flower to make up for it. Best of all – NO WEEDING, yes.

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Tips for Do It Yourself Landscaping

Thursday, January 28th, 2010

If you are planning to improve your lawn or garden by landscaping it, you can always do so. And you need not hire a professional landscaper just to realize your dream of having a beautiful landscaped garden. You can do it all by yourself. All you need are some basic knowledge about landscaping, the right tools and equipment and of course patience and some hard works.

But, how do you really make your garden look like it was landscaped by a pro? Well, there are some basic things that you have to know before actually starting to do the landscaping. Here are some tips to remember for your do it yourself landscaping;

• Ask yourself why you really want to have a landscaped garden. This way, you will have a real purpose while doing the works; hence, you can focus on accomplishing your goals.

• Define the real purpose of your landscaped garden when it’s done. How many persons in your household will love it or benefit from it.

• Decide whether your landscaped garden should be used only by your family or will some party be hosted here.

Out of this information, you can now go about deciding which landscape design you will adapt for your garden. Details such as the kinds of plants to be used, paving, lights and layout can now be conceived. After that, you can plan for your budget.

Choose a Theme for Your Garden

It is important to plan for the theme of your landscaped garden. With a theme included in your landscaping plan, you don’t have to buy excessive tools and supplies because you already have an idea on what you will need and how many you need. You may want to have a formal garden, a Gothic one, garden with herbs or with trees and shrubs.

If you’re not sure about themes for landscaped garden, you can always get a landscaping book or magazine that you can consult. Better yet, the internet is where you can look up for different themes that you can use for your gardens.

Taking Care of Your Landscaped Garden

Now that you’re done with your do it yourself landscaping activities, it’s time to take some rest. But, never ever forget to take care of your garden. Give your landscaped garden all the care and the things that they need in order to thrive and grow beautifully.

Be sure to water your plants the proper way; water with the right amount of water depending on the need of each plants. If you want your landscaped garden to last for years, always remember to visit and care for them regularly.

Do It Yourself Landscaping Online

You may be a newbie when it comes to landscaping and don’t have any idea how you will start doing the project on your own. But you know what; you can always use the Internet to your advantage when looking for information regarding landscaping. There are lots of websites and blogs online where you can find different information, tips and guides on how you can make a successful do it yourself landscaping.

Need to know which landscaping tools or equipments are right for your do it yourself landscaping? Search the internet for landscaping forums and communities where you can ask for help from your fellow members regarding any landscaping needs that you have.

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