Winter gardening: How to keep a low-maintenance garden

Our gardens are an integral part of our homes and the perfect place to relax during the warmer months of the year but, come winter, they can start to look scruffy and unloved without a lot of work.

Few of us relish the idea of working in our gardens in cold weather, so here are our tips for achieving a great-looking, low-maintenance winter garden.

Getting the lawnmower out every couple of weeks in chilly weather isn’t much fun, but is necessary if you insist on having a full, lush lawn.

Instead, consider replacing parts of your garden with paving. These days, there are plenty of great options for gardens, including patterned tiles and rustic paving stones, and these can help to create a beautiful winter garden without the fuss.

Our garden fences provide much-needed privacy as well as safeguarding children and pets, but they can require a fair amount of maintenance in terms of drainage, staining and sealing to protect them against the elements.

A great alternative to traditional wooden fencing is composite screens. These are made of fence panels created from a combination of wood and plastic, making them more durable and less susceptible to the elements.

Elijah Blue grass is a stunning ornamental variant of grass that requires far less maintenance

A garden wouldn’t be a garden without a bit of vegetation and, for most of us, this tends to mean traditional turf—but this isn’t the only option.

Ornamental grasses can look stunning in a garden of any size and need significantly less maintenance than standard turf.

Try combining grasses such as Elijah Blue (which you should only need to cut back every couple of years) with varieties such as Festuca Glauca and Miscanthus Sinensis for a beautifully natural look without the graft.

Whatever kind of grass you use in your garden, try to ensure that the shape of your lawn is square or rectangular, as this will make mowing much easier.

If you absolutely insist on having a full lawn, astroturf can provide a practical solution, although often a pricey one.

When it comes to plants, evergreens are a great choice for ensuring that your garden looks its best all year long. Evergreens, such as small fir trees, will add a lush look to your garden with very little maintenance.

You may also want to consider getting a few larger plants rather than lots of smaller ones, as this will very much help you to cut down on gardening hours during the winter.

Encouraging climbing plants like honeysuckle or ivy can let you do away with high-maintenance lawns

If you fancy doing away with your lawn completely but don’t want your garden to look stark and bare, a green wall may be the answer.

Succulents and climbing plants, including honeysuckle, are ideal for a green wall and can give your garden a lush, natural look while allowing you to keep the lawnmower in the shed.

If gardening isn’t your thing at any time of year, try the wild meadow look. Combine paving or decking with narrow borders and then scatter wildflower seeds into the borders for a fun and less structured look to your garden.

This idea may seem a little daunting at first if you’re used to a more manicured look but it can be a pretty and practical solution for your winter garden.

Plant easy vegetables like potatoes in your kitchen garden so you can spend less time maintaining them 

Kitchen gardens have become increasingly popular in recent years and, while these can be useful for cutting down on your grocery bill (particularly with current soaring costs), they do need a fair bit of work.

If you’re determined to grow your own vegetables, try to stick to those that don’t require much maintenance, such as potatoes, courgettes and radishes, and give high-maintenance gardens the cold shoulder.

We all like our homes and gardens to look great, but with such busy lives the upkeep can feel like an endless struggle.

Following some of the tips in this article will help you to make sure that your garden is neat and attractive all year round, as well as help you to avoid hours spent outside in the cold and damp during your precious time off during the winter months.

Suhail Patel is the founder of Luxury Screens

For more tips on keeping a low maintenance garden, read - Maintenance Garden: How To Create A Low Maintenance Garden

Read more: 5 Things to plant this winter

Read more: Your yearly planner for planting seeds

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