Spring garden essentials

If you’re new to gardening, in need a refresher course or just want to tick off a few must-have essentials now that the season of preparation and planting is upon us, our checklist of green-fingered tips will ensure you have everything you need to help your garden grow.

1. Check and organise your tools

You’ve put on your old clothes and headed towards your shed, determined to bring some much-needed post-winter order to your garden… only to realise that your most-needed tool is missing. After the long winter months, spring’s the perfect time to have a proper look through your tool collection, tidy and organise your garden equipment, give any dirty tools a thorough clean with ourGarden Sonic Scrubber在新的一年开始之前，记下任何缺失或需要补充的东西。

When it comes to must-have tools, it pays to remember that whatever else you decide to do with your outside space, plants will always need pruning and weeds removing. A good pair of clean, sharp-bladed secateurs will save you a lot of time and effort when it comes to cutting out dead wood, and a hand trowel and weed fork will help you turn your hand to smaller digging and plant removal tasks. Garden trugs are great multi-taskers, allowing you to transport tools and equipment into your garden and remove any green waste out for compost or recycling, and a divided caddy like ourShed Tidywill keep all your smaller tools and essentials like twine, gardening gloves and plant labels safely together in one easily portable place.

2. Protect yourself – and your clothing

让我们面对现实吧——在英国的气候下，园艺永远不会是一个温和而干燥的事情。Nothing brings a gardening session to a close faster than aching, muddy knees, so knee pads or a garden kneeler like thisone fromKneelo®are a great investment.

A pair of hard-wearing, comfortable gloves are another essential, both keeping hands warm in still-cool spring weather and damp earth and protecting against cuts and grazes from thorns and sharp stems. And just because they’re practical doesn’t mean they can’t be pretty –this pair from Kneelo®in a beautifulchrysanthemum printcan only inspire you on to greater gardening glory! And sturdy, waterproof footwear like wellies or garden clogs will keep your feet warm and dry – and much less likely to want to dash indoors and prop them up in front of the fire.

2. Food and water

With the main growing season fast approaching, this is the time to make sure your plants have everything they need to thrive. Compost will go a long way towards providing any nutrients your soil may lack – ask at your local garden centre if you need advice about which kind is right for you. When it comes to general compost you can always make your own from kitchen and garden waste – we’ve a wide range ofkitchen compost caddiesto help get you started – but specialist varieties are also available for seed sowing and bulb planting.

To keep your garden well-watered through the warmer months to come, a hosepipe for larger gardens or good-sized watering can for smaller ones will save you time and effort, and cut down on trips to the tap. If you don’t have an outside tap, a water butt will collect rainwater and reduce both the need to keep popping inside to the kitchen tap – and the repeated dirty garden shoe shuffle!

3. Proper support

有些植物需要一些额外的帮助来保持直立，花园铁丝、麻绳和竹手杖将帮助你提供急需的支持。TheBuild-A-Ballsystemhelps you protect crops or plants and will let you get the upper hand in that ‘battle with the birds’.

4.A helping hand

说到在菜园里帮忙，许多好的虫子都帮了大忙(或六个)，它们为植物授粉，吃害虫。Encourage them to linger a while longer by giving them a home – theBee & Bug Biome提供一个可爱的精品酒店的花园友好的昆虫像瓢虫，草蛉和孤独的蜜蜂。

5. Banish the pests

Just as there are helpful critters, there are some less than welcome pests any gardener is keen to banish from their garden.Slug Circlesare a humane way of deterring slugs and snails from munching on your prized plants, and if you have a problem with furry intruders digging, scratching and fouling, try ourCat & Dog RepellentorCATWatch– the only cat deterrent independently tested and approved by the RSPB – to put an end to unwanted visits.

6. Decorative delights

如果你正在计划一个种植计划，并想在花卉和树叶中增加一些兴趣点，我们有一系列的花园饰品，这正是事情。Our funGnome Spotlight Setand elegantPeacockSolar Ornamentcan’t help but add a touch of charm, and will also light up your garden when dusk falls.

7.…and relax…

After all your hard work, you’ll have more than earned the right to relax and enjoy the fruits of your labours. All you have to do is sit back, close your eyes… and try to ignore that last unpulled weed!

(NB All featured products are on sale in most Lakeland stores now and will be available to order from lakeland.co.uk from1 April 2015.)