Effortess Beauty; Low Maintenance Ideas For Your Front Garden

Your front garden is where first impressions are formed.  Improve the value of your home and help wildlife with some low maintenance planting.

Real Plants Outclass Artificial Alternatives

I don’t know about you, but I think if it’s carefully planned and built, afront garden really does create kerb appeal, adds value to your property and becomes an extension of you home.

Green is always good.  But what message does green plastic give?  “I can’t be bothered”? “Never mind the environment”? “Let somebody else grow flowers for the bees”?

I enjoy gardening and I’m lucky enough to have time to indulge myself with soil and leaves. But if, like so many of my friends, you think your lifestyle doesn’t leave time for gardening, please don’t opt for paving or look-alike products until you’ve considered all of the alternatives.

Enviromat sedum matting for example.  It’s not just for living roofs. I’ve found that Enviromat is the ideal low maintenance, living groundcover.

Living Plants Promote Well-Being

As someone who suffers periodically from depression and anxiety, I concur with the experts that living green plants are vital for physical and mental health.  I’m convinced that they should be as important in our surroundings as they are in our diets. Sadly though, many people think that gardening is hard work, or complicated or scary.

Clever garden design and careful choice of modern landscaping materials can bring plants into your life without making you a lot of work.

This garden is a prime example of low maintenance loveliness. The Twitchers Garden, created by CouCou Design for the Hampton Court Flower Show is a my idea of clever garden design.  The garden is relaxing, stylish, beautiful and very undemanding.

Sarah Keyser designed her garden to create peaceful retreat for her clients. Her clients live in the city and work long hours.  They want to spend their spare time outside but are not keen gardeners.  They are however, interested in birds and the creatures that attract them.  This garden is a safe haven for  insects, birds and creatures.

The garden features Enviromat Sedum Matting as ground cover.

Enviromat is beautifully textured, low growing and more importantly, low maintenance.

Sound, Colour and Movement. Vital Ingredients for an Interesting Front Garden

Have you ever really stopped and looked at plants and gardens? Live plants definitely offer colour and texture.  I’m amazed at how many different shades of green exist.  And how many different shaped leaves there are.

I will admit to being biased but for me, Sedum matting offers a fascinating texture and amazing foliage.  Many sedums keep their leaves all year round. But instead of being “evergreen”, their leaves change colour in winter and turn red.  Transition times when there are some red leaves and some green ones are my favourite.

As well as foliage, there are flowers.  I look forward to the early part of the year when vibrant yellows and whites welcome in the spring.  Summer is celebrated in hot pinks, yellows and reds with butterflies and bees galore. Sedum Spurium is one of my favourites because keeps its big blowsy flower heads all through autumn. Sometimes it keeps blooming into November and December – now that’s good value for money!

Butterflies adore the sedum flowers and bees relish the abundance of pollen and nectar.  All that wildlife is fascinating – and free.  And of course our flying friends add even more colour and movement to the garden.

Passers-by can’t help but be impressed by the display, but little do they know that a sedum-covered front garden is incredibly low-maintenance.

With Enviromat there is no mowing, no deadheading and no watering.  Just the hum of visiting bees and the knowledge that you are taking positive action towards saving pollinating insects.

Ideal for front gardens

Your front garden is where first impressions are formed.  When it’s well-presented and natural it’s an all-round asset.  Make it effortless with Enviromat.

Read more about using Enviromat as ground cover