Blue Daisy Blog

April usually brings with it an injection of colour in our gardens, the spring bulbs are usually out in force, other plant leaves are unfurling and trees are often awash with blossom at this time of year making it feel as though life is most definitely stirring!  The birds are usually singing, insects are usually starting to show themselves and often the bees are out making the most of the early nectar from the spring flowers. 

Keep your eyes open for any pests like slugs and snails and the dreaded vine weevil.   

Chances are you've been reticent about getting tender plants or seedlings outside but if you have ventured out take care still as frosts can still damage them so have some horticultural fleece or even an old newspaper at the ready to cover them during those colder nights.  If you don't have either and can bring them indoors remember to take them back out the next day.

Spring is a great time for scent in the garden and if you don't have anything now is the perfect time to go out and buy yourself something that will add another dimension to your garden at this time of the year. Some to consider are, for example, Viburnam, Philadelphus, Daphne, Wisteria and Magnolias but be sure to double check before you buy because not every variety of these plants has a scent.

If you have a vegetable garden you'll be a busy bee making sure the ground is prepared and heated sufficiently enough to plant those tender seedlings that will hopefully produce an abundance of tasty treats for you later in the year!  Remember though the trick is to sow seeds every few weeks or so to make sure you get an ongoing supply of produce that you can cope with rather than being inundated with things like courgettes...yes, we've all done it with courgettes!!

Some of the jobs that can be done in your garden this month are:

• Dividing perennials - any plants that you didn't get to last month, now's the time to replant them around your garden to increase your border stocks (or give to friends if you don't have any space in your own garden!)
• Keep weeding the borders, annual weeds should be easy to pull out by hand but the perennials will need digging out
• If you haven't cut back your ornamental grasses yet this is the last chance to do it or there may well be a chance of damaging the emerging shoots
• Get sowing your annuals

The last two heatwaves and serious lack of rain has had severe consequences on water availability in many counties in the UK and our gardens have really suffered.  With reports of heavy rain and possible flash flooding in the next few days there are a few things we can all do to ready our gardens and not waste that very precious resource – water!

When soil is parched through lack of water it becomes compacted and the gaps between particles gets smaller and smaller, as such any rain that falls won’t be able to penetrate and be absorbed by the plants or grass that are desperately in need. Instead, it will just run off causing the flash flooding they have said is highly likely. 

There have been some major growth spurts going on in our gardens this year and one of the biggest problems for gardeners is to make sure things don't get too much out of hand.  As ever deadheading is the order of the day for August along with watering. Don't forget to try to water late afternoon or evening if possible, avoiding the heat of the day (although roses do prefer a morning drink!).  Some summer pruning is also on the cards to help keep things under control along with the usual August jobs:

In all of the years we’ve been designing gardens we’re rarely asked to do anything with a front garden.  We seem to think long and hard about what we want from our back gardens but rarely approach our front gardens with the same level of gusto – or indeed with any level of gusto to be fair – which is a shame.  

When we ask clients what they want from their back gardens the lists we get back are usually long and multi-faceted  but ask somebody what they want from their front garden and most people tend to lean towards the ‘somewhere to park the car’ and ‘somewhere to hide the bins’ approach, and don’t take their thoughts any further. But why stop there?  We may not want to sit out and entertain in the front garden but a fabulous front garden is in reach of anyone who has one and in this first article of two I’m going to try to convince you why it’s worth going beyond the total paving approach to our front gardens and opting instead for a beautiful, planted but still functional space. 

So, in no particular order here are our top 5 reasons to choose a fabulous front garden...

• Aesthetics. Put simply, a street full of lovely front gardens is a nicer place to be and see, but aesthetics have an economic trade off as well because that kerbside appeal translates into improved house prices.  A well kept front garden tops the list of the top 5 exterior must-haves for homebuyers with almost a third of us being willing to pay up to 25% more for a home with kerbside-appeal.  
• Supporting wildlife.  While gardens will never replace natural habitats they are an important nature reserve that can support a substantial range of wildlife. Evidence is growing that some species that were once common in low-intensity farmland are now more abundant in urban areas and particularly in domestic gardens.
• Mitigate flooding. More and more of us are increasing the amount of paving we have in our gardens, especially our front gardens; a trend that has been linked to a higher frequency and magnitude of flooding in those areas with increased levels of impervious paving. Recognising these problems the UK now has legislation relating to front gardens and flooding.  Simply put, permeable surfaces and planted up front gardens help prevent flooding.  Vegetation, especially trees, acts like a storm water management tool.  It captures intense rainfall and temporarily holds it in its canopy which eases demands on urban drains. At its other end vegetation encourages better infiltration of water into the soil which reduces surface water flows.  
• Reduce urban temperatures.  Urban areas – dominated by dark and impervious surfaces – absorb considerably more heat and reflect considerably less than planted surfaces; which makes them warmer than planted areas. This is essentially what causes the urban heat island effect where cities experience higher than normal temperatures as compared to surrounding rural areas. Current research suggests that a 10% increase in vegetated surfaces in urban areas would help manage the rise of summertime air temperatures due to climate change; our front gardens have the potential to significantly contribute to this goal.
• Improve human health. Much research points to the benefit of green spaces in human health terms – alleviating stress, improving cognitive function, improved self discipline; reduced illness levels, better relaxation and being able to cope with trauma have all been evidenced, while the act of gardening brings with it physical health benefits too.

This list isn’t exhaustive but when so many positive consequences can come from reconsidering and treating your front garden as a garden rather than a car park and bin store why wouldn’t you opt for a fabulous front garden?  Tips for how to achieve one though is an article for another day so please look out for part 2 coming soon!