Making Your Garden More Eco Friendly

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Having a pretty garden is great, but you can easily go a step further and create a space that's eco-friendly too. We should all try to be a bit kinder to the environment, even small changes can make a big difference and it's not difficult or expensive to do. Here are a few easy steps to make your garden more eco friendly.

Don’t Use Chemicals In Your Garden 
If you want your garden to be more eco friendly, the first thing you can do is stop using chemicals. You might think they're essential for killing weeds and keeping out pests, but they aren’t great for the environment and can also be harmful to children and pets. Look for more natural methods of controlling these things, there are loads of tutorials online for effective DIY treatments that will still give you great results- as well as making your garden a better place for wildlife to thrive. 

Make Your Own Compost 
Making your own compost is a great way to grow your own plants and flowers. You can make your own compost pretty easily from kitchen scraps, and it’ll really nourish your plants and encourage them to grow. Why waste your money on man made products when you can make something even more effective yourself? Invest in a compost bin, and get into the routine of popping in suitable kitchen scraps. 

Grow Your Own Food
Instead of just using your garden as something that looks pretty, really put it to use and start growing your own foods. Doing this will save you so much money; you don't need a huge amount of space, even small gardens can accommodate a few pots or wall mounted planters so you can grow your own herbs (which are easy to grow yet expensive to buy from supermarkets). If you have a bigger garden you could section out a vegetable patch or even plant some fruit trees. If you have friends or neighbours who also grow their own, you could arrange to do regular swaps of your produce.

Recycle and Reuse
Instead of buying new stuff to make your garden a better place, re-use and recycle where possible. Scrap wood could be made into things like planters or garden seating if you have the skills, and you'll probably find things like pots and garden furniture at reclamation yards. Not only is this good for the environment, but you'll probably get a fun DIY out of it and will save money too. There’s no shortage of outdoor recycling advice out there, so you have no excuse!

Attract Wildlife
Inviting in butterflies and bees is great for pollination, planting lots of colourful flowers will help to attract them and will also make your garden look pretty too! You can buy bird feeders, nesting boxes and various different seeds and food for birds and squirrels cheaply on the highstreet or in DIY shops at this time of year. Cutting a five inch hole in the bottom of your garden fence will allow hedgehogs access, you can then provide them with a 'hedgehog home' with either a wooden crate or buying one from a shop.

Have you thought about ways you can make your garden more eco friendly?