Home & Garden

How to make your garden eco-friendly

As the weather starts to brighten up and the days are getting longer, those with regular green fingers will know how rewarding it is to bask in the glory of your hard work in the garden. But for those novice gardeners looking for creative ways to refresh their garden, there are a few simple things you can do to make your garden an environmentally-friendly space, that’s both sustainable and teeming with wildlife.

Plant pretty flowers: Planting attractive flowers will encourage bees, butterflies and other wildlife into the garden. Bees are vital to the eco system and therefore all of us, so when considering what to plant next, why not try some honeysuckle, lavender or foxgloves? These will all help to attract bees and make your garden an environmentally-friendly safe haven for our buzzy friends. Collect rainwater: Put the British weather to good use by purchasing a butt or us a large container to collect the rainwater from your downpipes when the downpours inevitably start. The water collected can then be used to care for your plants, conserving water but still giving your shrubbery the drink it needs after a sunny day. Feed the birds: A great way to attract more birds to your garden is to simply put out food. Hanging a bird feeder from a tree or scattering bird seed over the lawn will have your garden filled with bird song in no time – but why not go one step further and create a bird feeder from scratch? There are plenty of resources online that demonstrate ingenious ways to create a bird feeder at home using recycled materials.

Grow your own: Starting your own vegetable patch is a great way of being green; not only will growing your own veg be an entertaining task, it will cut down your CO2 emissions and packaging wastage. Home grown vegetables are often more nutrient-rich and pesticide-free, so you can’t go wrong.

Upcycle: Nip to your local hardware store and buy some sandpaper and paint, give that tired old garden bench a rub down and a fresh lick of paint, and it’ll feel brand new in no time. Alternatively, take a spin around the local charity shops to see if there’s any furniture you can repurpose, such as wooden chairs or tin baths for the birds.

Other eco-friendly ideas for the garden include creating animal shelters, making your own compost and adding a water feature for wildlife.

Serenata Flowers

HOME DÉCOR TRENDS FOR 2021

Chances are, you’ve spent more time in your home in the last year than any other year – and you may well be fed up of the sight of the same four walls. So why not take the opportunity to refresh your décor? Dowsing & Reynolds has rounded up the top interior design trends for this year so you can not only keep up with the Joneses, but get ahead of them.

Mood-boosting plants: We already know about the positive effects natural greenery in the home can have on our mood. From reducing stress and anxiety to cleaning the air and even helping us sleep, plants in the home really are a powerhouse, so it’s no surprise to see this is a trend that is rising.

Trending colours reveal our state of mind:

as Brave Ground: a muted, earthy brown that signals comfort and a return to nature. After the year we’ve had, we’re turning to nature and soothing aesthetics to ground us and give us the right mentality for 2021.

The home office is here to stay: 2020 blurred the

lines between work and home like nothing we’ve ever seen before. Many of us would sign off work for the day and make the long commute from the desk to the… sofa. With news that more employers will offer their workers more flexible options long-term, our home office is set to stay. That’s why it’s important to adapt our living spaces for work.

The finishing touches: People are looking to refresh their décor in subtle ways. ‘Marble knobs’ and ‘leather handles’ were the second and third most-searched terms, proving you don’t need to change your entire home to inject new life into it.