Selling with a Spring Garden

By the Beresfords Marketing Team - 10th November 2011

At last, after a much colder winter than many of us care to remember spring has arrived. The garden is starting to wake up with glorious displays of daffodils and trees coated in blossom. Don’t be fooled into thinking that we have seen the last of the cold weather. Frosts, snow, hailstones and strong winds can reappear right through to May, but that does not mean that some spring cleaning can’t be carried out in the garden. If your house is on the market or you are thinking of putting it on, now is the time to start tidying up. For a little money and some work the benefits will be plentiful.

First start with the grass. It will be getting quite long by now so set the blade of your mower to the highest point. This will stop the mower cutting the grass unevenly. The blades can be lowered every other time the grass is cut. Next trim the edges to the beds and round pathways.

If you have a patio it is probably looking rather sorry for itself with green mouldy patches and the odd bit of moss. Sweep it over with a stiff broom, then hire, borrow or buy a patio jet wash. If any pointing has come away it would be worth having this repaired and this will stop weeds appearing.

Next are the flower beds. Weeds will be starting to appear even at this time of year. Get rid of them now before they start spreading their seeds. Give the soil a light fork over and then start planting some spring colour in the borders. Colourful primroses and pansies are being sold in abundance.

Once tided and planted up then add a layer of mulch throughout the border. This can be either woodchip or garden compost. It serves to keep the weeds down, keep the moisture in and looks good.

If you have decking it will probably need a cleanup. Again a proper decking cleaner can be used and if necessary the wood can be treated.

You might have some straggly evergreen shrubs such as buddleia and holly. At this time you can cut these back to a more tidy shape and this will improve the appearance as the year progresses. As for shrubs flowering now such as forsythia with its acid yellow flowers, leave these and enjoy the lovely spring show. Once they have finished flowering then give them a light trim and tidy up. Roses and shrubs such as fuchsias and hydrangeas that flowered through to late summer of last year can be cut back to healthy buds that are now appearing.

If you have a few old pots lying around clear them out completely, give them a good old scub and then line the bottom with some broken old pots, grit or broken polystyrene packaging. This needs to only fill one quarter of the pot but will allow for drainage at the bottom of the pots. Top with good quality compost and then plant with a slection of spring plants and bulbs.

Finally make sure the windows of your house or flat are clean so that all your hard work on your balcony or in the garden is appreciated by your potential purchaser.

Article written by Joanna Beresford, a qualified landscape gardener trained at Writtle College