Planters on concrete can be more work than a lawn
I like home grown veggies and work smart without much effort
to get it. I’m not alone and someone has now come up with a name for gardening
without effort, Sami Grover coined the word ‘Lazivore’ which is a variation on
the similar word "locavore" which relates to a person whose diet consists only
or principally of locally grown or produced food.
Locavore proved so popular
that it was unveiled as the 2007 Word of the Year at the Oxford University
Press. I’m not sure Lazivore will get the same accolade but that doesn’t
matter, most Lazivores wouldn’t be bothered with that sort of thing.
For years if anyone asked me what was the best way to get a
stress free low maintenance garden I would smile and say “Concrete it” I found
it amusing for a while but came to the conclusion being so glib wasn’t helpful
as concrete also needs looking after occasionally. Things get more time
consuming if you have containers placed on a concrete yard, this can be more
labour intensive than a lawn to look after in summer. There are also the
environmental aspects to consider such as wildlife and water run off so I don’t
recommend concrete anymore.
But what can we do? A
‘No Maintenance’ garden doesn’t really exist so as long as we are aware of that
we have a base line to start. There will always be something to do even in the
best planned garden, but with a bit of thought we can keep the work to a
minimum. There’s really quite a short window of time in life where we can give
all of our time and energy to the garden.
If you look at stages in life you’ll see what I mean
- When you are working
- When raising a family
- Gardening in older age
- Gardening with a disability
- When new to gardening or not interested
- When renting or renting out a property with a garden
- For non-gardeners who have to look after a garden
Most of those examples highlight the fact that gardening is
either fitted in in-between other activities or ignored all together, which
would be OK if you were living in an upstairs flat.
Keep it Simple
Use large containers for planting as they won’t dry out as
quickly. Small ones require a lot of attention in summer.
Keep tender plants to a minimum. These require seasonal
tasks such as lifting, winter wrapping, moving to a protected environment or
annual propagation. Instead, look for plants that are deemed fully hardy which
can be left outdoors year round.
Bedding plants and temporary plantings are very pretty but
hard work. Moving away from bedding to borders with permanent plantings would
help eliminate this dependency. Wildflower annuals are an easier option and
will look after themselves
Choose the right plant for the right place. Don’t insist on
growing rhododendrons on a chalky soil, or bog plants in a windswept dry
garden.
Buying large specimen plants and trees may seem like a quick
route to an instant garden but aftercare can be more time consuming. Younger
plants will often establish in half the time and require less attention to
watering and staking
Choose slower growing hedging plants such as box (buxus) yew
(Taxus baccata) or holly (Ilex aquifolium) when planting or replacing hedges.
Be relaxed about the lawn. Cutting down on weeding, feeding
and moss control will give the lawn a visual patchwork but will often stay
greener for longer when stressed by drought or waterlogging. It is also more
likely to support a greater variety of wildlife as well.
Borders and weed
control
Replace some perennials with slow growing shrubs, planting
through a membrane. Overlay this with attractive
mulch such as bark or gravel and it may be several seasons before weeding or
topping up of the mulch is required.
Most new weeds growing now won’t be too much of a threat to
the vegetable patch or borders as the plants you have are big enough to look
after themselves. Pull out the larger ones and for the smaller ones invest in a
Dutch hoe. You won’t even need to bend down! The dry weather and heat will dry
any chopped seedlings as they sit on the soil.
If you fail- give up. Only grow what thrives and needs no
looking after. Choosing plants that fend for them will reduce the need for you
to intervene which will give you more time to cover other important issues in
your life. Mine at the moment is napping on my sun lounger.
