DIY Doctor

Essential Gardening Project and the 4 Essential Gardening Tips that Every Gardner Should Know

For the avid DIY enthusiast there are a number of things that you will need in your garden. We cover these Essential Gardening Projects in this section. We cover how you can build a compost bin yourself, essential information about choosing, maintaining and constructing a greenhouse in your garden. Also read on for our essential gardening tips to make gardening easy.

  • Building a Compost Container

    Compost bin - how to build - How to build a container for kitchen compost.

  • Deadheading flowers

    Deadheading flowers - How to deadhead flowers; why and when you should deadhead and tips for how to do it correctly to help the plant produce more blooms

  • Blackberry's and raspberry's

    Fruit Growing - Fruit Growing guide covering how to start growing fruit in your garden, what are the easiest fruits to start growing and also how to grow and maintain them

  • Planted apple tree bearing fruit

    Fruit tree planting - Find out about growing and caring for fruit trees and how to grow in order to ensure that you get a bumper crop

  • Garden and yard area diseases

    Garden diseases - Find out all about the most common diseases that can affect your garden and the plants, flowers and trees growing in it

  • Choosing a Greenhouse

    Greenhouses - how to choose - How to choose a greenhouse, how to build it and which is best situation for your greenhouse in your garden

  • Herb garden

    Grow a herb garden - Find out all about starting your own herb garden, what herbs to grow and the best ways to grow them to ensure a plentiful supply

  • Savoy cabbage

    Growing brassicas - Find out all about growing brassicas, what the best conditions are and what the best planting out and growing tips are for cabbages and other leafy veg

  • Freshly picked carrots

    Growing carrots - Find out all about growing carrots, what varieties are available, how to prepare your ground and sow the seeds and also tips on growing a bumper crop

  • Growing herbs in containers

    Growing herbs in containers - Find out about growing herbs in pots and containers, choosing the right pots, planting your herbs and tips to be aware of to ensure success

  • Freshly picked peas

    Growing peas - Find out all about growing peas, how to prepare your soil before sowing and all the growing tips you need to know to cultivate a healthy crop

  • Freshly picked potatoes

    Growing potatoes - Find out how to grow your own potatoes, what different types of potatoes are available, chitting your potatoes and planting and harvesting techniques

  • Runner beans

    Growing runner beans - Find out how to grow runner beans, how to prepare soil before planting and growing tips to ensure that you get a great crop

  • Growing lettuces

    Growing salad crops - How to grow your own salad, which are the best salad crops are and how to grow them successfully in your own garden and get a great crop

  • Supermarket herbs

    Growing Supermarket herbs - Growing supermarket herbs. How to get the best from herbs bought from the supermarket and grow them at home successfully

  • Growing tomatoes on the vine

    Growing tomatoes - How to grow tomatoes; what types of tomatoes, which types of containers to grow them in and how to get healthy tomato plants

  • Hanging basket

    Hanging basket Ideas - Hanging Basket ideas including what plants can be used in a hanging basket if you would like to be a little different from using traditional plants

  • Repotting a pot plant

    How to Repot a Plant - How to Repot a Plant into a larger pot whether it's an indoor or outdoor plant will allow the roots more space to grow and enable to plant itself to grow

  • Well stocked vegetable garden

    Introduction to vegetable gardening - Find out all you need to know about the basics of vegetable gardening, how to pick a site and lay it out, prepare the soil and also what to grow

  • Japanese Knotweed in growth

    Japanese Knotweed - How to deal with and kill off knotweed - Japanese Knotweed it an invasive plant, learn about the techniques to get rid of it for good and also what laws apply to it's presence and treatment

  • Metal compost heap

    Metal Compost Heap - How to build a compost heap using metal roofing sheets - Learn how to build a compost heap using box profile roofing sheets or repair an old rotten timber compost heap

  • Planting a hanging basket

    Plant Hanging baskets - How to plant hanging baskets and know what you will need to grow healthy plants and how to look after hanging baskets so that they thrive

  • Pruning roses

    Pruning roses - Find out all about how to correctly prune roses and how you should prune different types of roses to ensure their success

  • Rockery garden

    Rockery plants - introduction - Read our introduction to planting for rockeries and find out about the different types of plants available

  • Planting seeds

    Seed Gardening - Seed Gardening help for novice gardeners to learn how easy it is to fill your garden with easy varieties of fruit, herbs and flowers raised from seed

  • Using a Garden Shredder: How to Use a Mulching Shredder or Chipper to Dispose of Garden Waste Easily

    Shredders and chippers - how to use - How to use a garden shredder or garden chippers for making woodchips and disposing of garden waste easily

  • PH levels in soil

    Test soil ph levels - Find out how to test the ph levels in your soil and then fins out what the results mean

  • Weed control fabric

    Weed control fabric - usage - Find out all about using weed control fabric in your garden including when you should use it and what type of fabric you should use

  • Wild garden

    Wildlife gardens - Find out how to create your very own nature garden and create a haven for flowers, insects and birds to thrive in

This section is all about many of the essential gardening projects that you do need to carry out in the garden. We have separate sections to help with garden features , such as pergolas and ponds. Paths and garden steps are also covered in a separate section, as are Lawns and Hedges.

Here we focus on the sorts of gardening projects that almost every garden will need as some point or other, but doesn’t naturally fit into any other category.

Well kept garden
Keeping your garden doesn’t have to be hard work (Image: Harrington Porter)

The 4 Absolute Essential Gardening Tips

Over and above these specific essential gardening projects, here are our key tips to keeping on top of your garden all year round:

Keep on Top of it

It doesn’t take much to keep a garden look nice to the untrained eye. There are a couple of simple things that make all the difference so that you can stop, put your feet up and enjoy the garden. Obviously you will have to do more at some point but at least you will have enjoyed the garden in the meantime and won’t be resenting the work you have to put in!

Here are some of the best gardening short cuts stay on top of your garden:

  1. Mow the Lawn: Just by mowing the lawn a scruffy, unkempt garden immediately looks much better and you can start to use it and enjoy it
  2. Weeding: This can be a big job, but if you get round in spring before things really start to grow and before the weeds have established themselves, then you will be one step ahead of them
  3. Trim the Hedges: This, like the lawn, can really making a garden look tidy and cared for without a huge amount of effort. This is a great autumn job, as you can cut back the years growth and it will keep looking good well into the next growing season
  4. Wood Treatment: There are likely to be areas of decking, or other wooden features. You should look after these because they will make the garden look great, but also because they are generally easier to maintain than they are to repair and replace
  5. Garden Style: If you know you are going to struggle to keep up with the gardening, then you should develop your garden into a less formal, cottage style where you can get away with doing less. Selecting the right plants is key
  6. Weeds running away? If you can’t keep up with the weeds, one easy way to deal with them it to cut off the tops to prevent them from seeding! Also for the plants you want to keep, a little bit of Dead Heading can make a garden look better, and is great for the plants, encouraging more flowering
Trimmed and shaped hedges
Trimming the hedges will make the garden look great

The Royal Horticultural Society have a great article on low maintenance gardening which is worth a read if you are pressed for time to get into the garden.

Using the Right Gardening Tools

Like all forms of DIY, if you have the right tools then the project is always much easier. Gardening is no different!

There are a huge range of tools that you will find for all sorts of gardening job, but there are a few essential tools that you should consider:

  1. Gloves – A good sturdy pair is essential as it protects you hands from dirt and thorns so you can just get on with the project
  2. Trowel, Fork  and Hoe – you will need these as there are times when you have to get ‘struck in’ but consider a long handled version which saves bending down all the time. You’ll have less control, but you can save time and bending down all the time
  3. Lawn Mower – There are a great range of mowers. If you have a smaller area to mow an electric mower is just fine, but bigger gardens will probably need a petrol version. Remember the wider the mower the more it will cover in one pass!
  4. Secateurs and Loppers – These are vital tools for keeping any garden in check. This is all the you need in most gardens, but the addition of a good pruning saw and some hedge clippers and they you cover pretty much every eventuality
  5. Kneeler and Waste Bag – sometimes you have to get down and dirty, then why not do it in comfort. Get a good waste bag to put the weeds, clippings, etc in. Plastic sacks that many councils issue for recycling are perfect!
  6. Rake and Barrow – Finally it is really helpful to have a good rake to rake things up. Consider a leaf rake as well as a normal garden rake as they are very useful in autumn
Selection of gardening tools
Having the right tools will make gardening easy (Image: time.com)

Have a look at our Gardening Section for a full range of gardening tools.

Tool Maintenance

Looking after you tools is particularly important for gardeners as unlike a lot of other DIY it is very seasonal by its very nature. This means that some tools are put away and not used for some time, months in many cases.

Here are our top Tool maintenance suggestions:

  1. Petrol goes stale after a couple of months and can cause the plugs to coke up, so it is worth using all the fuel or draining it before you bed down you mower, strimmer, etc for winter.
  2. Sharpening is time well spent. It’s easy to over look but sharpening the blades of you cutting tools, mowers, hedge trimmers, etc, will make the job quicker and easier. You only need to do this once a year, more if possible and necessary, but once will show a marked improvement
  3. Oil against rust. Most quality tools are stainless steel but it will not hurt to give them a drop of oil. Standard thee-in-one will work fine and repel moisture. If there are any working parts, such is in secateurs and loppers, this will help the movement too
  4. Follow specific maintenance instructions as they might surprise you. It is worth caring for your power tools and store them as the manufacture recommends, particularly the battery.  Strimmer line can be stored in water to keep it supple, for example
  5. When you are putting the tools away for a period, this might be a great time to reorganise the storage. Finally get the shed organised?!
Well kept and organised shed
An organised shed makes it easier to find what you need (Image: Beast Sheds)

Focus on the Soil

Everything that grows in your garden comes from the soil. Make this as good as you can get it and your garden with thrive. There are a lot of things that you can do that will really help, but here are some of the most effective:

  1. Fertilise – obvious but vital. Use organic fertilisers or manure where you can get it as this will be the best way to improve the soil
  2. Worms are your friend – Encourage worms as they are a great sign that the soil is good. They do a huge amount to improve the soil. Mulch really encourages worms
  3. Compost – use your own garden waste to make compost and then this will improve your soil
  4. Think about moisture – soil can either be too free draining or boggy. You can improve and alter the drainage so that you soil retains the right amount of moisture
  5. Test – There’s a cost, but if you want to know what your soil is like, get it tested. This will guide you to what you can add to make it better

There you have it – the essential gardening tips and essential gardening projects. There is now nothing stopping you making your garden the most amazing space in your home.

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