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How to Maximise Your Outdoor Living Space with a Little Botanical
Here at TLB, we are very much in the indoor plant game. However, at this time of year, isn’t it just fabulous to maximise your outdoor living space into our gardens? We love being able to spend more time outside, making the most of the longer, warmer days while we can. And the good news is, we don’t think it’s fair for our outdoor living spaces to miss out on the TLB treatment. So, at this time of year we have some fab options in our range of outdoor plants to help you enhance your time in the garden.
Whether you want to add aromatic greenery with a fragrant herb garden, include a splash of colour with some floral beauties or encourage those all-important pollinators, we’ve got something for you. Read on for our top tips on how to maximise your time in the garden.
Create a Garden Kitchen
Spending more time outdoors over the summer naturally includes al fresco dining. Enjoying a delicious meal and a sundowner as dusk approaches is an oh-so-pleasant way to pass the time on a summer evening. And what better way to make the most of these relaxing evenings than by bringing some of your kitchen essentials outdoors. You can have the finishing touches to your meal at your fingertips.
Creating your very own herb garden is a fab way to make your outdoor plants useful as well as pretty and the fragrant aromas will delight your nose – a real sensory treat! Take a look at our Outdoor Herb Mix, an aromatic selection of six or ten of the most popular, edible herbs including lavender, rosemary and mint, just perfect for livening up your summer dishes. And this is a superbly versatile option too, as you don’t need a dedicated herb garden.
This selection can be planted into window boxes, garden borders or flower beds. You could even pop them in our stoneware pots and dot them around your patio. Just ensure these herbs are watered regularly and watch them grow before your eyes, filling your outdoor space with delicious scents and scenes.
For a more complete herb garden in one fab package, have a look at our PlantBox Outdoor Living Wall with Herbs. This is a fab option if you want to make a feature on a patio or balcony or you have a smaller garden space. Available in a five or ten trough package with a mix of 20 or 40 edible herbs to love and nurture into a gorgeous, scented wall of texture and greenery. These living walls contain everything you need to build your own vertical garden. It’s super easy to set up and look after too. The PlantBox system is oh-so-clever; each trough can hold up to 1.8L of water which is enough to last for a week. This means you don’t even need to water these herbs daily to keep them flourishing! It couldn’t be easier to create your very own garden kitchen.
Add a Splash of Colour
Does anything say ‘hello summer’ more than a garden bursting with vibrant colour? Here at TLB we love to see a summer garden popping with brightly coloured flowers. Add gorgeous florals to your garden corners and edges with our range of TLB outdoor plants.
Our Hydrangea Garden Bundle makes it super easy to bring a big burst of colour to your garden. This duo of British-grown, mophead hydrangeas are available in pink or blue and will produce their gorgeous, colourful clusters of blooms all summer long. You can dot these floral beauties around your patio and enjoy the blooms, or if you plant them in your garden, they’ll flower year after year.
How to care for Hydrangeas we hear you ask? Well, your hydrangeas will be happiest when kept moist, in a spot with partial light. They’ll tell you if they’re thirsty because lack of water can cause them to wilt. It’s also a good idea to give them some plant food every few weeks during the summer.
Originating from the tropics, begonias are a perfect choice for planting out in the summer. They don’t enjoy direct sunlight so pop them in a shady spot in your garden. You can then watch them transform from boringly bland to blooming beautiful.
To keep your begonias flourishing all summer ensure they are kept moist and give them some plant food every couple of weeks. When you notice any browning flowers, deadhead them to encourage new growth.
Give the Bees a Happy Place
The gentle hum of bees in the air, buzzing from flower to flower as they go about their busy work on a warm summer’s day is something closely associated with British summertime and being out in the countryside. But many people don’t realise just how important these busy bees are to our environment. The work they are doing is vital to the survival of many of our ecosystems. These distinctive, black and yellow striped insects ensure the ongoing survival of much of the crops we need to survive. They are also crucial for the trees and plants that other wildlife call home through pollination on a big, big scale.
The RHS encourages everyone to do what they can to help the declining bee population. And here at TLB we have a fab option to help you do your bit. This will ensure you make your garden an inviting place for the bees.
Have a look at our seedboms; the Beebom and the Wildbom. These beautifully packaged ‘bombs’ contain a super mix of wildflowers especially chosen because the bees love them. Simply scatter them over a border or edging and your garden will be buzzing in no time. Sow them between now and October and you’ll have a stunning summer meadow vibe ready for next year. It will be a true bee sanctuary. For maximum impact from these stunning wildflowers, check out our Seedbom Garden Bundle. Your garden will be awash with bee-friendly flora including Cornflower, Wild Marjoram, Borage, Oxeye Daisy, Marigold and Forget-me-Not. Blooming lovely!
So, there you have it plant people! Our top tips for maximising your outdoor living space for the summertime. If you have any questions, please do get in touch at [email protected]. We always love to help. But for now, go out and enjoy your gardens. We just don’t know how long the good weather will last in good old Great Britain. Oh, and feed the bees!