Get your garden Christmas ready!

A pleasure of being in the southern hemisphere and enjoying a warm aussie Christmas is that we get to enjoy more time outdoors celebrating than our northern hemisphere counterparts.

However, having friends and family around to your place might mean it’s time for a few pre-christmas preparations in the garden…

We’ve put together this quick checklist to get you summer party season ready!

- Get the lawn ready -

Your lawn really can be the centrepiece of your garden, using a fertiliser like OptiLawn Granular Fertiliser can offer some quick greening. Also, give it a good mow with blades raised up so it cuts higher. Deep watering once or twice a week early in the morning will also help get your lawn looking lush for party time.

- Time for a tidy up -

You know that pile of old nursery pots you’ve been stacking in the corner of the garden for so long, because they might be handy one day? Well it’s time to get rid of them! Some local nurseries now offer pot recycling schemes, so give your local a call and see if they can take them in for you. Also consider any other odds and sods laying around the yard – old bikes the kids have outgrown or sun damaged toys – it’s time to clear them out.

- Clean the furniture -

Has your outdoor setting been a little neglected over the winter months? It’s time to bring it back to life – consider getting out the pressure washer (or even a good old bucket of water and a brush for a scrub) and give everything a good once over. Timber furniture can be quickly brought back to life with some furniture wipes, and chair covers and cushions may also need a wash through the machine.

- Trim and tidy -

A few weeks before you’re planning of having guests is a great time to do the dash around the garden and give everything a light trim and tidy. Deadhead any old blooms from spring flowerings, snip off any dead leaves too.

- Mulch! -

If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a million times – summer gardens NEED mulch! Spread it everywhere! Not only will it make your garden look great, especially if it’s not quite as landscaped as you’d like it, but it protects all those precious plant roots under the soil, retains moistures and suppresses weeds (and less time weeding makes for happy gardeners!).

There are so many options for mulch available, from finely chopped and lightly coloured Sugar Cane, Lucerne & Pea Straw ideal for edible and ornamentals gardens, or great looking shades of chunky Tea Tree, Pine Bark, Cypress and timber chip mulches in our decorative range.

- Pop some colour -

If you’ve got some blank spots in your gardens and edging, it’s an ideal time to head out and buy some potted colour from your local garden centre. Get some ActivGrow Soil Improver and dig through your garden bed soil before planting, this will help with moisture retention and some fresh feeding over the heat of the season.

- You CAN make friends with salad -

Salad greens like rocket, lettuces and spinach grow SUPER quick over the summer months. Plant out seedlings on rotation (every week or so) so you’ll always have a fresh harvest of salad ready to go. We all know nothing tastes quite as fabulous as home grown, so show off to your guests with a big bowl of homegrown goodness.

- Grow some gifts -

Take a wander around your garden and check out if there is anything you may be able to take some cutting or separate up. Plant into a funky colourful pot (or get the kids to paint up some basic terracotta pots) and you’ve got some great gifts ready to go!

- Pretty up the pots -

We've all got a couple of pot plants around that can be looking a little drab or sad – now is a great time to pop down to your local independent nursery or garden centre, pick up some new pretties and pot them up. Choose a high quality potting mix like Coco Pro, for it’s 14 months of controlled release feeding, and also high percentage of coir fibre and chip – acting like little sponges for moisture, it will keep your plants happier over the long hot summer months.

- One last thing... -

In the last day or two before having people around, do your last minute tidy up. Give the lawn a mow (on a higher setting), blow off garden paths and tip out any water laying around (it can be a mozzie breeding ground).

Merry Christmas and happy entertaining!