Your garden is your escape from the ‘real world’, a sanctuary where you can slow down, relax, and tend to your plants and flowers. With the last few years in mind, investing in brightening your outdoor space, whether large or small, can have real benefits to our well-being.
Colour in particular has been shown to be a mood-enhancer, with the potential to rejuvenate the spirit and relax the mind. Just a few small bursts of color in your garden can make all the difference.
We’re primarily going to focus on affordable strategies to inject colour, but there are many other ways you can brighten up your garden that we’ll also cover. We’ll give you a wide selection so that you can cherry-pick the ones that work best for you.
Add Variety to Your Plants and Flowers
We’ll start with an obvious one: add plenty of colour to your garden by adding variety to your plants and flowers. Just remember that you don’t necessarily need flowers to achieve this. Plenty of plant species offer absolutely stunning leaf colours, including whites, bright greens, and purple.
Plenty of flowers will give you the vibrancy you’re looking for, but we have a soft spot for sunflowers. They not only look beautiful and ooze positive vibes, but they are also relatively easy to grow and care for.
The key is keeping it simple when it comes to the colour palette. Don’t be tempted to add all sorts of different colours, as that can actually detract from the aesthetic and overall experience. Simple contrast colours like purple against bright greens can work wonders.
Paint Your Fence, Decking, and Shed!
When it comes to DIY home renovations, paint is the easiest and most inexpensive way to transform a room. And the same applies to the garden: by adding a lick of paint to your fence, decking, and shed, you can completely reinvent the space.
The advantage of taking this route is just how easy and inexpensive it is. It happens instantly as well, you don’t have to wait for species of plants or flowers to come to full bloom. Just subtle colours or staining of the wood can also achieve spectacular effects.
Welcome Local Wildlife
Gardens should not be spaces that shut out the rest of the natural world, but rather welcome local wildlife. The classic way is to add a bird bath and boxes, which you can also use to add colour to your space.
Birds are amazing visitors to have in your garden. They are very relaxing to watch, but they also have a practical role. For example, they can help rid your garden of annoying weeds.
There are several tried and tested ways you can lure birds to your garden. For instance, bird feeders with foods to attract certain species. Or by planting bird-friendly plants, like ivy and holly.
Candles and Lights for After Dark
You can literally add some brightness to your garden through candles and lights. String lighting is amusing and practical, as you can wrap these around pretty much anything. Just make sure you buy lights that can handle all weather conditions!
Candles are best used with lanterns, especially outdoors. Just the slightest gust of wind can be a real problem. For something really unique, have a look on Etsy. There are so many talented people on the platform that sell lanterns you simply won’t find anywhere else!
Fire Pits for Cozy Comfort
For the perfect cool afternoons and evenings, you need a fire pit. Just watching those glowing embers can provide comfort and relaxation, not to mention plenty of warmth to get you through the colder period.
The best braziers burn coal or wood, which not only gives off plenty of heat for warmth, but you can also make some s’mores! There’s nothing better than tasting that gooey marshmallow after a tough day at work.
Many people think that a decent fire pit is expensive, but these days, you can buy affordable options that perform very well. Stay away from the absolute budget products and you will be just fine!
Clean the Dirt
Dirt can often be so deeply ingrained in our gardens, that we think it’s permanent! It’s difficult to remember that things used to look very different. But it’s amazing how much a good clean can do for brightening up your garden.
For example, try a good jetwash to clean your windows, paths, and tiles. Hire a local company to do this for you; it’s usually not very expensive and will make a noticeable positive impact.
Your Garden is Yours!
Our final piece of advice is to remember that your garden is yours (well, and the local wildlife!). By this, we mean that it’s not there to impress anyone else. Brightening up your garden should be done to relax you and your family, to give you a sense of calm and enjoyment. Enjoy the process and do it according to your own needs and wishes, and you’ll see just how much of a positive difference it makes.