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Community Corner

Saving Time in the Garden

Planning and preparation can make the job of tending your home's landscape easier.

If you were to take a look at my home’s front garden bed, you will find a weedy mess. That’s because in amongst the roses that I love are a variety of weeds that are growing happily, thanks to the frequent watering that I give my rose bushes.

So now, I have quite a job before me, as I need to dig out a lot of very well-established weeds. So, next year, I plan to make my life easier. After consulting some gardening books, I have decided to take these actions to minimize the work I will have to do next year to keep my flowers looking pretty:

  • Apply mulch just after my tulips stop blooming in the spring. This time, I’ll make sure that I put down a layer of mulch that’s at least 1 to 3 inches thick. (Unlike the shabby layer I usually put down.) The mulch should help keep weeds down, as well as conserve water around the plants that I love.
  • Organize my small gardening tools in an easy-to-carry caddy. Right now, my gardening tools are spread throughout the garage, so I often waste time looking for them. Before spring hits, I will place gardening gloves, some gardening twine, gardening scissors, a hand trowel and a padded knee rest in the caddy so everything I need will be at my fingertips.
  • Look for sales on mulch and other gardening needs. As the growing season ends, there may be a chance that I can get what I need for next season at a discount.
  • Block out a few minutes for gardening at least every other day. If I spend just a few minutes frequently throughout the week in the garden, the tasks I need to complete won’t become too large.
  • Keep a gardening journal. I often make plans for my garden, only to forget them. This time, I will create a gardening journal so I won’t have to duplicate my work. To that journal, I can add clippings of articles and gardening ideas to keep me motivated.

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