Even if you don’t have green fingers, you can still have a gorgeous garden. Take a look at these low-maintenance (but still lovely) spaces for ideas on how to put a stop to endless weeding, dead-heading and, in some cases, mowing.
John Davies Landscape
Stay off the grass
This urban garden is low-maintenance, yet stunning. Interest is added not with pretty planting, but through clever landscaping.
The different levels and surfaces (paving slabs and gravel) create a contemporary feel and even makes the space seem larger than it actually is. There are easy-care green plants in the raised beds, punctuated by trees and larger shrubs, and there’s no grass in sight so the mower can be put away. The real showstopper, though, is the small pond that divides the two levels.
AG Interiors
Take a seat
The owners of this chilled-out garden have created a series of outdoor ‘rooms’, including a covered lounging zone at the rear, to cut down on weeding and pruning. There are plants here, but they come in the form of trees and evergreen shrubs which provide greenery that doesn’t need too much attention.
Garden Blueprints
Be singular
Fancy flowers, but don’t want to spend hours maintaining them? A simple trick is to stick to just one or two varieties. Here, easy-care plants form a backdrop for a sea of purple Verbena bonariensis. This self-seeding plant is easy to grow and flowers from August to October. Choosing a plant that grows well and has a long flowering period will help you to take a back seat on the gardening front.
It’s also a good idea to plant into beds covered with stone chippings, like these, as they require little weeding.
Christine Wilkie Garden Design
Fill up a raised bed
Contain your plants in one small area and it will be easier to maintain them. Here, a raised bed is full to bursting with foliage and flowers, but because they’re all in one place they’re easy to water. And by filling up the space with plants, you’ll also discourage weeds from growing and that gives you one less job to do. That means you can focus on the important business of relaxing on the deck.
Harrington Porter
Say yes to shrubs
Don’t worry if there isn’t a kaleidoscope of colour in your garden. An outdoor space filled with greenery is just as lovely, and by sticking to low-maintenance shrubs you’ll be able to enjoy the foliage while hardly lifting a finger. Behind the seating area in this calm space there are a few simple white flowers, but the rest of it is just green and lush.
London Garden Designer
Dot the shrubs around
A long, winding path like this one will help to cut down on the mowing and also the weeding because it is one continuous surface. Here, evergreen shrubs are the main border plants. The beauty of evergreen shrubs is that they give a garden structure all year and, once established, should require hardly any maintenance. The only thing you will need to do is get the shears out once or twice a year. The box balls in this space need to be trimmed into circular shapes, while more informal shrubs will require a less precise cut.
Focus on trees
There’s not much in the way of traditional planting in this simple, but stylish, outdoor space. However, the trees more than make up for the lack of flowers.
It’s important to do your research first to see which trees are right for your space. Also be aware of the proximity of roots to your main building.
Red Squirrel Architects Limited
Pick paving and pots
It may not have even the smallest patch of lawn, but this concrete courtyard is still an oasis. The pots and containers are full of shrubs, trees and grasses that are so much easier to care for than the usual bedding plants.
The Garden Builders
Fake it
Still want grass but balk at the prospect of weekly mowing? An artificial lawn will save you the job, but give you that same soft feel underfoot.
Artificial grass has come a long way in recent years, and you can get some very good quality versions that look and feel like the real thing. The lawn here is a soft, neat area for lounging that sits between the gravel path and patio beyond. You can even pop a lounger on top without worrying that the grass will turn yellow underneath.
