Low Maintenance Small Garden Design: 17 Ways To Create One
The majority of people dream of having a beautiful garden in their backyard but don't have enough time to maintain it given their busy work schedules. Thus, no matter how beautiful a small garden looks, maintenance will always make you leave the idea altogether. However, it isn't impossible to have a low maintenance small garden design of your own.
So, when you wish to create a garden in your backyard, you should remember that you can use a low-maintenance garden design to make the work easy. Yes, you can make a low-maintenance garden that looks nothing short of stunning.
When creating a garden in your backyard, you don't have to stick to the traditional ways of designing. You can use your creativity to make your space look perfect. There are several ways you can make your garden low maintenance. For instance, you can add plants that will become pretty self-sufficient as they grow with time. But before we share our suggestions on how you can create a small garden in your backyard, we will answer some of your most asked questions.
What Is The Most Low Maintenance Garden?
To create a low-maintenance garden, you add shrubs and trees to them. Removing weeds is the most difficult and time-consuming task when you have a garden of your own. So, when planning the design, you should keep in mind to leave the least amount of space possible between the plants. It will leave no space for weeds to grow, so you won't have to spend much time plucking them out. You can add a lot of flowers and create flower beds in your garden to cover the space.
You can create meadows in your backyard or front yard. This design is considered one of the best ways to build a garden that is easy to care for. It won't leave huge spaces for weeds to grow. You can add various types of wildflowers, plants, and shrubs. For example, you can add magnolias, lavender, peony, ribbon grass, and many more. Also, you will not have to worry about watering these plants because they require low water levels to grow.
How Do I Start Making A Low-Maintenance Garden?
The best way for you to create a garden that does not require much upkeep is by adding plants and elements that can work well with little care and water. To avoid weeds from growing in your garden, you can go for a mulch-based or gravel-based garden area. You can also think about adding low-maintenance furniture and retaining walls.
Once you have created a garden layout and know where you will put your flowers and other plants, you can take things further. You can now look at the plants that work well for your area and require less work and maintenance.
How Do You Create An Effortless Landscape In Your Garden?
To make your gardening work fuss-free, you can make a design with a good ecosystem. Good gardening makes it effortless to work with your garden. Further, you can put flowers and plants in a way where you can see every plant properly. You should put the shortest plant in front, medium-sized ones in the middle, and the tallest ones at the back.
Moreover, you should also pay extra attention to the flowers you choose. The flowers' and plants' colors and textures will make a huge difference in how your landscape looks.
Tips For A Low-Maintenance Garden
To make a trouble-free and easy garden, you can use our below-mentioned ideas and tips. You can take inspiration from our ideas and create the backyard garden of your dreams.
Make An Effortless Rock Garden
Rock gardens not only add to the aesthetic appeal of your place, but they are a perfect idea if you want a self-sufficient garden. When you make a rock garden, you add texture and contrasting colors to it. All you got to do is add some stones, pebbles, and rocks to your garden area to make a rock garden. These rocks will not only make your garden look good, but they will also keep weeds from growing. The covered soil means no weed, and no weed means no extra upkeep time.
Know About The Local Plants
Adding native flowers and plants to your garden will attract wildlife around the area, which will lower the maintenance requirement. Also, local plants are used to the weather conditions in the area, which means they will need less water and care. They can help keep your garden lively by attracting wildlife. You can find your native plants on the internet, or you can just go to your nearest nursery and find out about them. These plants will keep your garden looking lush and green. And a green garden is a perfect place for you to relax after a long day of work or enjoy yourself with your friends.
Build A Self-Watering Living Wall
If you have ever seen a living wall, you know how good it looks in an outdoor space. A living wall can help create a lot of depth in your small garden. And if you choose the self-sufficient one, you won't even have to worry about its maintenance. These are perfect for your garden as they not only just look good but also serve different purposes. They help in purifying the air around you, encouraging biodiversity, maintaining a balanced temperature, and lowering the surrounding temperature.
You can get the one that works with the help of solar power or create an irrigation system of your own.
Add Succulents To The Equation
Succulents are available in various sizes, and you can add them to your garden to add a pop of different greens. Succulents are pretty much adaptive to any weather condition and can survive on the bare minimum amount of water. They also add structure and diversity to your plants with their different textures and sizes. These plants help clear the air around you and add a little water to the atmosphere. It is especially beneficial for places where the temperature gets high. So, if you live where it can get really hot, you should put succulents in your garden.
Pick Hardy Plants To Add Color
You can choose hardy plants; if you don't want to change the flower plants in your garden every season. These hardy plants are better at withstanding harsh weather conditions like strong winds and extreme cold. They can survive in very hot temperatures as well.
Some examples of hardy plants include Butterfly weed, Lily of the valley, Shasta daisy, Coneflower, Hosta, Hydrangeas, Yarrow, and many more. Bleeding heart is also a type of hardy plant that will get well effortlessly after getting damaged from the snow. Yarrow is a vibrant and beautiful pink plant that will add lots of color to your garden. It is similar to Ajuga, Hollyhocks, Hydrangeas, etc.
Add Mulch To The Mix
If you don't know what mulch is, let us tell you that first. Mulch is available in different forms, such as fresh compost, shredded bark, chopped leaves, gravel, etc. This material's main function is to stop weeds from growing and retaining moisture for plants.
For instance, if you put mulch around your plants, then your plants will require less water. Furthermore, during winters, it will protect the roots of your plants. Since the mulch stops the sunlight from reaching the ground, it blocks the growth of all unnecessary plants. It will reduce your time cleaning the garden, and you will be able to enjoy your space more freely. This way of gardening is also known as Xeriscaping.
You Can Use Containers For Gardening
Since you are making a low maintenance small garden design, a container garden is a good option for you. The containers will require less space in your garden. Moreover, it is also a smart option for reducing your work. You can use pots as containers. Also, colorful containers can add a vibrant touch to the whole space. With the help of this idea, you won't have to remove a lot of soil to put your plants in. Also, you can shift them around to wherever you want very easily. You can put different types of plants in one huge pot. Or you can add one plant to each pot. No matter how you decide to put your plants, this idea will make your garden look luxurious.
Also Read: 8 Best Ceramic Vase Products For Home Decoration
Create A Path In The Middle
One way you can reduce the size of your lawn is to create a path that goes through the middle. It is not an easy job to mow your grass or remove weeds regularly, especially if you have a huge garden. So, to avoid doing the mowing work and cutting your grass and plants every spring season, you can reduce your lawn size. Instead, creating a walkway in the middle will make your lawn look all better and improve its functionality. Also, the walkway can lead to many seating areas and go through a set of bright and beautiful plants.
Create An Illusion
Many of us wish to have a green lawn with fresh grass and flowers. But the maintenance of these types of gardens is a bit difficult and time-consuming. And if you are not the kind of individual who can spend their time doing this work, then you can always choose the alternative.
Faux grass is your best friend if you don't want to do much work maintaining your garden. It is an artificial or fake kind of grass that you can install in your garden. The appearance of this fake grass is very similar to the original grass. So much so that you won't be able to tell the difference at first glance. And this grass will look perfectly green and lush irrespective of the weather. So, you can design your whole garden to complement this green base.
Pick Durable Outdoor Furniture
No matter what type of garden style you choose for your big or small garden design, durable outdoor furniture is required in both of them. Whether a traditional or contemporary garden inspires your design, an outdoor sitting space is a must. The newest furniture technology helps you get the best furniture sets that require low maintenance. The fabric of these sofa sets is UV resistant which avoids color fading in the sun, and it is also made using quick dry foam.
To keep your sofas clean, all you have to do is dust the sofa from time to time using a soft broom. You can create a separate deck for your sitting area or place your furniture in one corner of the garden.
Put Colorful Furniture Instead Of Regular Color
If you are creating a low maintenance small garden design, there may be chances that you cannot add a lot of features to your garden. So, if you don't have enough space to add a lot of colorful flowers, you can always choose colorful furniture pieces.
Colorful furniture will add a pop of color to the garden and make it look interesting. Also, if you add different textures or patterns, then it will jazz up the place instantly. You can add cushions, rugs, and throw blankets to give your garden a cozy and homely feel.
Faux Greenery All-Around
If you have a really small space to create your garden, you can use faux plants and a living wall to create a beautiful sitting space. You can choose to stack up small plants however you like to create a designer green wall. The faux plants reduce your responsibility for keeping the plants alive. It is an effortless way to make a new space with greenery that will give you all the relaxing feels.
Choose A Minimalistic Design
You can also create a garden in a minimalistic style. A garden with this design offers both style and practicality. Instead of a grass floor, you can switch it up with tiles for a clean look. The tiles will offer a minimal-looking space and also will save your time from all the maintenance work. Further, this style creates a seamless flow making it easy on the eyes. You can also match your exterior garden design with the indoors of your home. The angles and borders will give your whole exterior a sleek look and create an easy space. Besides, you can add living walls or plant beds on the sides for a fresh feel.
Include Solar-Powered Lights
Everybody knows how lights can instantly brighten up the look of a place. You can put up lights on even the smallest of gardens and make it look stunning. Solar-powered lights in the form of string lights, bulbs, or even lanterns are easy to maintain and can charge on their own with the help of the sun. During the nighttime, the soft glow of these lights helps create a comfortable mood. They don't cost you any energy bills. And you won't even have to be concerned about switching it on or off.
You can also pick fairy lights that you can access from anywhere to light up a particular spot in the garden. These lights can greatly affect your garden or patio looks during the dark.
Add Water Detail
You need to add a water detail to your small garden to take it to a whole new level. These little features can be added to any small garden as there are numerous options available in the market. You can add a fountain or make a small pool in your garden. Today, the water features come with self-cleaning features that will keep it clean and lower your workload. Also, the sound of water creates a perfect soothing atmosphere. You can choose a built-in water detail in your garden to make it look natural. For example, a built-in pool or fountain for a gorgeous-looking space.
Install An Irrigation System
Installation of an automatic sprinkler in your garden is the best way to cut down your time on caring for your lawn. This system is the perfect answer if you have flowers or plants that need extra water when it gets hot out. Also, you won't have to stand in extremely hot weather to water your garden.
Plant Perennials
One more way to make your garden low-maintenance is by adding perennial plants. These plants can withstand weather conditions and have a minimum life expectancy of two years. Some of the most common perennial plant examples are Hostas, Hibiscus, and Daisy flowers. These plants disintegrate and grow by themselves every year. It makes them one of the best to add to your garden.
Conclusion
If you don't like gardening work or don't have enough time, then a low maintenance small garden design is the solution. Using the above-mentioned tips, you can create small and low-maintenance gardens that you always see in magazines. These are some of the ideas that can help you create the garden that you always wanted.
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