I don’t want to alarm you, but Christmas is 9 weeks away. Kind of crazy huh? Didn’t we just start the New Year?
Around this time of year, families delegate who will host Christmas Day. If you are the lucky host this year, and your backyard is looking like a Sahara desert rather than a tropical oasis, now is the time to get your yard looking good for Christmas Day.
If your backyard is already landscaped, you may want to get the lawn and gardens looking great for an outdoor lunch or family game of cricket. Here are five tips to get your backyard ready for Christmas.
1. Spring is the perfect time to inspect the condition of your lawn. In most cases it may look a bit brown and dry after coming through winter. Now is the time to feed your lawn with a quality slow release fertiliser. Find an all-purpose fertilizer as some fertilisers have been designed for different grass types. If you’re like me, and you don’t know your Sir Walter from your Cooch, buy an all-purpose fertiliser that can work on any grass type. It will generally feed your lawn for up to 3 months. If weeds are a problem, invest in a weed killer and apply liberally. On our lawns we use Urea and we don’t have a problem with weeds. If we do get the occasional weed, Jacob will pull it out from the roots. Always pull weeds from the roots to ensure they don’t grow back.
2. Weeds are often more of a problem in the garden. You can invest in a weed killer, but often mis-application can kill the plants in your garden, and if you have kids or pets, you may refrain from spraying chemicals in the garden. This can be a big job, but removing weeds by hand can be strangely satisfying.
3. Once all weeds have been removed by hand, inspect the garden for dead branches or plants that may need to be removed. Replenish with new plants and re mulch the gardens as this will keep the moisture in the soil during the hotter months. Gardening can each week will help the backyard look good for Christmas Day.
4. Check your irrigation pipes are in working order. If you don’t have irrigation and use a simple hose, check that your hose, sprinklers and nozzles work. Nothing worse than using a hose nozzle that leaks more than it sprays.
5. Invest in some outdoor prettiness. Clean the outdoor furniture, or buy new if it’s a bit worse for wear and can’t be fixed. Wash down all the furniture and spray underneath chairs and tables for spiders that like to take up residence in the hollow parts of the furniture. Buy citronella candles and devices that can help keep mozzies and insects away while entertaining.
Of course, if you are a little overwhelmed by the amount of work needed to get your lawns and gardens in tip top shape for Christmas, why not hire a gardening maintenance service to do it for you? AC Maintenance are experienced in commercial, residential and acreage grounds maintenance. Hiring a professional means the job will get done, with optimum results. It also means your weekends can be spent relaxing rather than sweating it hard in the yard.
Who’s hosting Christmas for your family this year? Who maintains the lawns and gardens at your place?
