As temperatures drop and autumn colours fade, the garden can become a blank canvas in the winter months. With a little imagination and creativity, it’s easy to add interest to your garden and welcome little bursts of colour to carry you through to spring! Read on to find out how.
Brighten it up with simple lighting
In winter, we often come home in the dark and miss seeing the garden altogether. Outdoor lighting can bring it back into play and transform the view from windows that would otherwise be dark, reflective panes. Try a few tea lights in clear jam jars to add seasonal twinkle for special occasions and solar lights to provide a few hours of decorative light. Fairy lights are fun draped in a tree and there’s a wide range of lighting kits on offer that are quick and easy to install. Be sure to switch lighting off before going to bed, to minimise disruption to wildlife.
Add evergreen shapes
Even just one piece of evergreen topiary will add interest to a pot or bed and hold an area together in winter. Box and yew are traditional choices, but other small-leaved evergreens, such as Ilex crenata, phillyrea and privet, are pretty low maintenance. For instant impact, you can buy ready-made, but more costly, topiary – expect to pay around £25 for a 30cm box ball!
Plant up patio containers
Pots are the best way to add a seasonal splash of colour just where you need it. Opt for plants that look good together, such as cyclamen, heathers, hellebores, pansies and variegated ivy. In a large pot, add a shrubby evergreen plant such as a rosemary or sarcococca. At this time of year, all these plants are available in garden centres in small pots, making it easy to mix and match.
Brighten things up with a splash of paint
Introducing permanent colour into a garden through planting alone can be difficult, but painting or staining will add instant colour just where you need it. A wash of a water-based colour on terracotta pots isn’t permanent but will add some extra interest for a few months. Rendered walls can be painted, while wooden fences and structures such as pergolas are best stained, as it’s easier to re-apply.
Build a bug hotel
There’s nothing better than a project that makes your garden more interesting and benefits wildlife. Bug hotels can be simple or fancy, and of any size… Think nooks and crannies! Small holes make ideal hibernating homes for ladybirds and lacewings, so cut bamboo canes into short lengths with the hollow ends exposed. Set them into an old wooden box, or forget the frame and simply tie them into a small bundle. Leftover lengths of wood can be drilled with holes to do the same job, and if placed on the ground then beetle larvae will feed on the decaying wood.
A complete garden renovation
If you’re making the most of the winter months to do a complete garden overhaul, then the team at Rosewood can help. Our landscaping team can completely transform your garden, by installing new fencing, a brand new patio, erecting a pergola, laying new turf or planting new flowerbeds.
Get in touch with the team today to see how we can help you freshen up your garden for the new year!