Making the most of your garden this summer

I hope the spring sunshine has inspired you to get outside into the garden. It's a busy time of year, putting plans into place ready to make the most of the outdoors this summer.

Think about how you wish to use your garden. Do you plan on entertaining? Do you have young children and need a play area? Or do you have pets that need to be contained within the garden? Also think about how much time do you have to dedicate to maintaining the area? Even 'low maintenance' gardens need looking after to keep them looking top notch. 

We have noticed an increase in demand for decking over the last twelve months. It is great in that it offers such a versatile space and also enables use of previously inaccessible or unused areas. It's great for the table and chairs, BBQ's and play houses. We recommend that decking is cleaned and oiled every year in order to keep it looking fab. 

Here's a few of the projects we have undertaken within the last year...

Thanks very much for taking a look around, if you need any help or advice, give us a call.

Think about the Bees

Since the last post on this blog, we've been working hard on running things here. Still lots of planning and ideas flying around, arranging advertising, social networking, sourcing someone to sign write our van and making improvements to our blog!

I hope you like the changes, let me know what you think. Hopefully, the style will fit better to link in with our website. That's the idea anyway!

Luckily, we've had some great quotes to do this month. Which is different to this time last year since we had so much snow back then, work was very slow for us. But 2014 is looking up! Rich has started a job recently which will take a few weeks. It consists of removing hedging, replacing it all with a close board fence and building a deck. Be sure to follow us to see the results. I love to see the before and after photos! Other work we have on includes a few small fences, gates, decking and of course our garden maintenance. 

It seems spring is in the air. I was reading an article in the guardian on how our mild winter has brought on signs of spring. Apparently spring has moved forward by up to 12 days in the last quarter of a century. This may sound good at first but if we do get snow later, this could be bad news for plants that have started to flower early. 

Either way, you can do your bit for nature. You can feed the birds, have nest boxes for both birds and bugs and of course get into gardening. I found a great little product called 'Seedball', wildflower seeds in a tiny compact mini ecosystem ball - easy to do. You can read more about this on their website: www.seedball.co.uk I'm going to be ordering mine and we'll see what our customers think too. A garden full of flowers is not only pretty and relaxing, it provides food for our bees. 

If you want to find out more about gardening for bees follow this link to Bumblebee conservation: http://bumblebeeconservation.org/get-involved/gardening-for-bees/

That's it from me today! I'm off now to play with my little girl. The latest game consists of having a Doctors check up. Then she tells me i have talking marshmallows in my ears which need removing! Oh and the diagnosis is 'Battystingyflowerisis'! Whatever will she come up with next? I should write a book about her funny little saying.

Have a great week and thanks for reading x

Halloween and Hedgehogs!

Wow, October! The month of golden brown, cosy nights and Halloween. Now that autumn is upon us, our garden maintenance consists of a lot of tidying and clearing of leaves. If possible we recommend giving up a small inconspicuous area of your garden to pile them up. Hedgehogs, frogs and toads love it and you can mix them (the leaves that is) with some compost in twelve months or so to create a leaf mold, to add valuable nutrients to your garden. Or you could simply spread the leaves under shrubs as a mulch, the worms will get to work on improving your soil.

Hedgehogs will begin hibernating soon, usually in mid November until March or April. I'm sure we will come across a few whilst we're at work and we'll have to take care using the strimmer, especially whilst working near hedgerows.

We are going to be making some hedgehog houses for our customers shortly, we are calling them 'Hog Cabins'! I've found a few cute designs on Pinterest. Maybe you could have a go yourself?



As far as frogs and toads go they often hibernate in leaves or log piles, so look out for these too.

We have had a busy few months since the last blog. We've been looking after our maintenance gardens, hedge cutting, fencing, decking and landscaping a few areas. We've been working on getting to grips with various social networking platforms too! And we hope to be launching our new website very soon.


 There is still plenty of time for cutting and pruning and tidying back all that summer garden growth. So get your gloves on and get out there, enjoy the fresh air! And don't forget your pumpkins! I can't wait to get carving! 

Consider your garden well watered

Yes, we all know it’s been raining. It’s such a disappointment in June, when it persists the way it has this week.  Just imagine, you’re sat out in the garden with friends and family of an evening. Some music is playing gently in the background, the tea lights are lit and hang in their coloured glass holders in the trees. You’ve enjoyed a glass of wine or two and that soft, warm summer breeze drifts across your face. Feeling relaxed? I can dream! So, this week I’ve been making plans for my own pergola, with a roof! I think something like this is essential for all garden lovers in this country, or of course you could always go for the more traditional summer house. But for me the pergola will suit just fine, I will sit out and listen to the pitter patter raindrops whilst reading my book. I'll warm things up a bit as I watch the flames dance in the chiminea and i'll listen to the birds singing. I WILL enjoy this year’s summer evenings, even if it pours!

Has that given you some ideas for your own garden? It’s all about making the most of the space you have, we can help you to do that. If you want to chat about ideas just drop us a line or give us a call and we’ll see how we can help.

This week, despite the rain, Richard has been busy with garden maintenance (as usual) and he’s also been doing a fair bit of hedge cutting. Now that everything has had a good watering, it’s all shot up. And that’s what you can expect, especially for your grass. It’s best to cut it regularly, preferably once a week at this time of year. After cutting, apply a granular weed and feed in order to avoid weeds taking over. If we do get a dry spell, make sure you water your lawn in the evening to keep it looking tip top!

I am hopeful for next week as it seems the temperatures are set to improve slightly. So, stay happy and have a great week. And a big ‘Happy Father’s Day’ to all those fab, hard working Dads out there.

June Sunshine and BBQ's

Well June is here already and we are finally enjoying a bit of sunshine. It's amazing how the sun can alter your mood and make you feel great, it must be that vitamin D that we are all slightly deprived of in this beautiful country, Wales!

If you're in the landscaping or building industry you'll know how those sun rays get the phone a ringing and everything can go a bit crazy in a short space of time. But us gardeners thrive on a bit of crazy time! There's nothing better than having a hard days work out in the sun, weeding, trimming, mowing, blowing, strimming, digging, lugging and hauling... knowing you've done a top job, customers are happy and when you get home? Get the BBQ going!

Oh yeah... Sausages from the local butcher a bit of salad and potatoes (home grown) and there you have it the perfect end to a great day. So here i have to plug! Where do you keep your BBQ? Yup, you need a patio or decking, that's where we come in :) As shown in this picture we have a simple decking base level leading from the french doors.

We can make it as simple or as complicated as you like with different levels and balustrade etc and it makes great use of space that may have been ignored or inaccessible in the past.

Decking is also great for making safe play areas for small children, quite a lot of local child minders opt for this with gates strategically placed!

So there you have it, my first blog and one of my not so secret secrets to keeping young and enjoying life! So, make some time, get the family round and start up the coals, flame grilled is always best with added vitamin D.