It’s too bad that there’s no such thing as a new yard store. Go in, buy a new yard, and walk out again. You could work with landscapers to achieve this look, but that would likely cost a lot, and you need to book in advance. What can you do if you’re low on money and time and want a better-looking yard? 

1. Clean It Up 

Those kids’ toys that you have strewn all over your yard, the broken rain barrel, the old deck chair that you never managed to repair: yes, it’s time to collect all of them and repair them or remove them from your yard. A lot of the lackluster look of your garden could be due to a desire to ignore some of those broken items in need of cleaning or repair. If you have some money to invest, make an investment in the cleanliness of your home and garden. Installing a gutter cover system will not only save you time cleaning out your gutters, it will also help protect your home.

2. Fix the Fence or the Deck 

Your fence or deck are often dominant in your yard, yet it can be expensive to replace them completely. If your fence or deck is looking unsightly but it doesn’t need to be completely redone, you can make it look better by doing the following: 

• Power wash it to make it clean 
• Give it a new coat of stain or paint
• Do minor repairs, such as supports to prevent your fence from tipping 
• Add decorative planters to your fence or deck to make it look more coordinated with your house
• Embrace imperfection. David Domoney suggests that if you have cracks in your patio, you can “Plant creeping thyme into gaps in patios and paths for a heavenly scent as you walk over it.”

3. Add Seasonal Flowers 

Adding seasonal flowers to planters, window boxes, or areas along your front walkway can make an excellent first impression and add color even at times when your perennials have not started to grow yet. If you want to add color during the winter, you could also choose plants like small conifers in pots and decorate them with seasonal decorations. 

4. Develop a Theme 

Make your garden look unified again by developing an obvious theme for your garden. Now, this doesn’t need to be something as obvious as garden gnomes: you could choose an English country garden look or decide to go minimalist and develop a Japanese garden. Alternatively, if you have large shrubs in the garden, you could simply decide to prune them in a complementary fashion so that your garden looks coordinated. If you have one or two key perennials with a specific color theme, add annuals that complement those colors and you’ll have a more cohesive garden.

5. Add Edges or Raised Beds 

If your garden has a tendency to look overly wild, The Spruce suggests that you draw a line with bark mulch, gravel, stones, or bricks. This will help you show that your garden actually exists and that you’ve defined that space. Use mulch not only to define the space but to suppress weeds and to provide a color that contrasts with the plants in your garden.

At Harry Helmet, we want to help you transform your home and garden. Working with us is easy. We’ll bring our decades of experience to work on your home. Curious about how we can make your home and garden more beautiful? Schedule a free estimate today.

Written by Del Thebaud