Most of us long for a beautiful, vast section of greenery behind our homes; perhaps with room for a vegetable patch, a water feature, outdoor dining and with enough space to allow the children to run free. However, for many their garden reality is nothing more than a mere patch of concrete in a fenced-off yard.
Due to financial and space constraints of current years, many people find themselves with property that only offers a limited outdoor space, whether it be due to apartment living or owning a typical Victorian terrace, it often feels like this restrictive space can also restrict your gardening dreams, yet this doesn’t have to be the case.
Transforming Your Yard or Balcony Space
A limited outdoor space simply means you must allow your gardening imagination to run wild; you must learn to utilise the space you have to its full capacity. Every blank wall or empty corner is just part of a blank canvas you need to fill with ingenious ideas that will transform your grey yard into a fantastic, floral space to relax and enjoy the coming summer months.
Maintenance-Free Wall Décor
First and foremost you must consider the walls of your yard; even basic breezeblock walls can be transformed and updated with masonry paint, to give your yard a fresh and modern look. Masonry paint was once only available in rather uninspiring shades of beige, however you will now find masonry paint in every colour of the rainbow in larger DIY stores, from purple to pink, blue and red, giving you the option to really brighten up your outdoor space. Your colour choice can really change the mood and atmosphere of even the smallest yard; whether you choose a deep orange reminiscent of the skies reflecting over the glistening seas, or sprightly spring greens giving an impression of fields as far as the eye can see – the choice is yours.
Once you’re happy with the wall space you have available, you may think about decoration in the form of ornaments, flowers and foliage. If you’re short on time or put-off by the maintenance involved with live plants and flowers you could look to weather-resistant wall art, with everything from metal sculptures to wall plaques; these types of décor are perfect for livening up a plain wall with little to maintenance. For even brighter maintenance-free decoration for your yard, you may consider our unique outdoor canvases; fully weatherproof and printed using a process called “dye sublimation” these canvases are perfect for any images you might have in mind for your yard. Whether it be photographs of family members or artistic rural landscapes, these canvases are ensured to brighten up an otherwise plain corner, making your yard a natural extension of your home, almost like another room.
Vertical Gardens and Modular Trellis
However, if you’re green-fingered and raring for a natural splash of green in your limited space, wall planters, pockets and modern trellis may offer you a simple and cost-effective way of transforming your suburban space into your own scenic, serene backdrop.
There are many types of wall trellis now available in specialist garden stores and DIY outlets. The traditional wooden wall trellis can give a small space a quaint and rural feel, or if you’re more inclined towards the modern-look, materials such a zinc-coated metal sheet are now used for producing garden trellis. The modern metal trellis is often designed with modular functionality, and offers an eye-catching glint in the sunlight, really allowing your trailing plants to stand out from the wall.
If you’re looking for an abundance of floral colour in your yard, yet find it hard to find floor space for planters, the vertical living wall system may be the perfect solution. Our MiniGarden system is designed to house 9 separate plants, and due to the modular functionality, you can make your vertical wall garden as large or small as desired or needed. The wall planters can be used for an extensive herb garden or simply fill with beautiful blooms of your choosing.
Utilise Your Corner Space
The corners of a yard must not be forgotten in the design process, and they often are not utlilised to their full capability. Using square planters is a perfect way of filling unused corner space; you can purchase a number of different types of planters, from glossy and glazed earthenware to pebble-filled wire constructions, which include a small central recess space for plant pots. However, you may find containers around the home which would work perfectly as a corner planter, such as old wine crates and unwanted, brightly coloured plastic storage boxes; as long as you ensure you drill holes in the bottom to allow water drainage, you can use almost any box for displaying your plants.
Hanging baskets are also a wonderful way of utilising your upper-wall space. Attaching a bracket to a masonry wall will allow you to hang planters such hanging baskets, which you can then fill with a mix of bedding plants and trailers to give cascades of colour down your walls.
The possibilities of transforming a small and grey yard or balcony into a blooming and colourful space are almost endless, and for more wonderful and innovative gardening ideas, please view our extensive product range available at GardenBeet.com.
Jessica Heartland is a freelance travel writer from England specialising in Mediterranean cruises and great travel deals. When she’s back from a trip though she loves nothing more than to tend to her garden.
