Who says your garden is only good for spending time in in the summer? Even a rainy British summer can drive us away from our own outdoor havens, but with some clever design, garden accessories, and a vegetable patch to invest your time in, you can enjoy your private garden 365 days of the year, in all seasons. A garden is an outdoor haven to be enjoyed all year round and it will improve your home’s exterior too. Here are my tips for how to turn your garden into an outdoor haven of your very own.

Make your garden an outdoor haven by adding a vegetable patch

Creating a vegetable patch will add more function to your garden and help you to live a more natural lifestyle. You can literally see the fruits of your labour and there’s no feeling more satisfying than successfully growing food you can eat! What’s more, it fuels a more sustainable lifestyle and cuts down on wasted food, packaging, and emissions. Goodbye pesticides, hello freshly grown, organic fruits and vegetables. You don’t have to be a gardening expert either. There are plenty online tutorials in how to grow your own produce.

For an optimal vegetable patch, create a vegetable calendar so you can plan which varieties you want to grow each month. With such varying weathers and temperatures, and a range of seasonal crops, it will stop you being disappointed with your harvest!
Make your garden an outdoor haven by making it cosy

With warm, long evenings comes the possibility to enjoy your garden around the clock. Make the most of it by creating a cosy patio space using some outdoor lighting, a table to eat and entertain at, and some comfortable chairs. Quick and easy to install, consider adding layers of lighting with a mix of stylish lanterns that come in all shapes and sizes. Pair these with some twinkly fairy lights and a few LED tealights and you’ll find that with very little effort, you have created a truly magical place for spring and summer evenings. To enjoy your new outdoor haven in autumn and winter too, consider working with backyard landscape design experts on some form of firepit or outdoor heating solution. When the weather is dry, this can be a great way to enjoy a crisp winter night under a clear sky.

Make your garden an outdoor haven by keeping it clean

There’s nothing more unwelcoming than an overgrown garden, especially in the summer when it’s supposed to be a retreat. It’s understandable that garden maintenance can be neglected over the colder months of the year, but it’s still important to keep on top of the boring jobs such as sweeping up dead leaves, removing weeds, pruning overgrown plants, repotting when necessary, and cutting the grass. Nobody wants to sit in an overgrown and untidy garden.

Just like with your vegetable patch, write up a yearly garden calendar so you know exactly when to start planting certain vegetables and flowers, when to feed other plants with specialised food, when the optimal time to mow your lawn is, and how to maintain water features throughout the colder months. If you use a calendar such as this, it will make the whole garden maintenance task much less daunting.
Add structural elements to make your garden an outdoor haven

Give your garden a shape and a story by adding some different structural elements. These can include anything from an impressive topiary, building a canopy for a more weather-resistant sitting and dining space, planting some raised flower beds, or a mix of textured plants. Evergreens are famously resilient and aren’t limited to the traditional dark green; some even come in reds and oranges! Create a bush of varying evergreens for an eye-catching, luscious display all year round.

And speaking of colour, you can never have enough. Keep your terrace or patio perky all year with a strong colour scheme. Think vibrant, warm shades that structure your personal outdoor space and encourage you to get out there in the colder months. Flower are wonderful plants that are good for the soul, as you can really take inspiration from flowers.

Main Photo by Athena via Pexels / 2nd Photo by Irina P via Pexels / 3rd Photo by Irina Iriser via Pexels

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