How to maintain a garden yourself
Two hours a week in summer, less in winter. €100–€150 in hand tools you keep.

THE JOB

The weekly round, in order

1. 1

   Walk the garden and plan the session

   10 min

   Start with the season's list above. Walk round with a cup of tea and look before you touch anything: what needs cutting, what is flowering, what is wilting, what is new. Check the weather and choose the jobs to suit: mow and hoe on dry days, plant and weed on damp ones. Write a short list so you do the important jobs first, not the pleasant ones.

   • Note what looks good and what does not; it guides next year's planting
   • Look for nests in hedges and shrubs before cutting them
   • Pick up stones and toys from the lawn as you go

   Mistake to avoid: Starting on whatever catches your eye and finishing the session with the lawn still uncut.

2. 2

   Mow the lawn

   30–45 min

   Mow when the grass is dry, taking off no more than a third of its height in one cut. Start by cutting two strips round the outside of the lawn, then mow up and down in straight, overlapping lines, changing direction each week. Empty the grass box before it is full. Raise the height in a dry spell and in shade.

   • A sharp blade gives a clean cut; check it midsummer
   • Collect clippings unless your mower mulches them finely
   • Keep children and pets indoors while you mow

   Mistake to avoid: Scalping the lawn on the lowest setting to put off the next cut.

3. 3

   Trim the lawn edges

   10–15 min

   Cut the long grass along the edges with edging shears, blades vertical, walking along the edge. A strimmer tilted on its side is quicker for long edges. Once or twice a year, recut the edge itself with a half-moon edging iron against a plank, so it stays crisp.

   • Neat edges make the whole garden look looked after
   • Pick the trimmings out of the borders
   • Wear eye protection with a strimmer

   Mistake to avoid: Strimming the edge flat and gouging a ragged line into the lawn.

4. 4

   Hoe and weed the beds

   20–30 min

   Push a sharp Dutch hoe through the bare soil between plants, just under the surface, on a dry day. Seedling weeds wither where they lie. Hand-pull anything close to your plants, and dig out any perennial weed, dandelion, dock or couch grass, with its whole root. Never let a weed flower and seed.

   • Ten minutes every week beats a day every month
   • Hoe after rain once the surface has dried
   • Keep perennial roots off the compost heap

   Mistake to avoid: Leaving weeding for a month in May and spending a whole weekend on your knees in June.

5. 5

   Deadhead and tidy the plants

   15–20 min

   Snip faded flowers off roses, bedding, perennials and pots with secateurs, cutting back to the next leaf or bud, so the plant puts its energy into new flowers rather than seed. Tie in tall plants and climbers that are flopping. Take off yellow or diseased leaves and put them in the brown bin rather than the compost heap.

   • Deadhead little and often for a longer display
   • Leave the seed heads of some perennials for birds in autumn
   • Wipe secateurs after cutting diseased plants

   Mistake to avoid: Leaving dead flowers on and wondering why the roses stopped flowering in July.

6. 6

   Water where it is needed

   10–20 min

   Water pots, hanging baskets, new plants and vegetables at the base, not over the leaves, early in the morning or in the evening. Give each a thorough soak rather than a sprinkle. Established beds and lawns rarely need watering in an Irish summer. Use rainwater from a water butt where you can, and check for any hosepipe restriction before using a hose.

   • Push a finger into the soil; water only if it is dry a few centimetres down
   • Group pots together so they shade each other
   • A saucer under a pot in summer saves water

   Mistake to avoid: Watering the lawn every evening in a dry spell and the pots not at all.

7. 7

   Prune a shrub that has finished flowering

   20–30 min

   Shrubs that flower in spring and early summer, such as forsythia, flowering currant, weigela and philadelphus, flower on stems that grew the year before, so prune them straight after flowering. With secateurs and loppers, cut about a third of the oldest, thickest stems right down near the base, then shorten the stems that carried flowers back to a strong pair of new shoots. Shrubs that flower in late summer on this year's growth, such as buddleja and hardy fuchsia, are pruned in early spring instead. Stand back after every few cuts and look at the shape before you go on.

   • Take out dead, damaged and crossing stems first, at any time of year
   • Cut just above a bud or a pair of buds, sloping away from it
   • Check the shrub for nests before you start

   Mistake to avoid: Giving every shrub the same short back and sides in autumn and cutting off next year's flowers.

8. 8

   Do this week's seasonal job

   30–60 min

   Each week, add one bigger job from the season's list: feeding, mulching, pruning a shrub that has just flowered, trimming a hedge, planting, dividing a perennial, or clearing leaves. Doing one of these each week spreads the work across the season rather than leaving a mountain at the end.

   • Prune spring-flowering shrubs straight after they flower
   • Mulch only when the soil is moist and weeded
   • Feed the lawn in spring and early autumn, not in a drought

   Mistake to avoid: Trying to do every seasonal job on the one fine Saturday and doing none of them properly.

9. 9

   Clear up and compost

   15 min

   Gather the clippings, weeds, deadheads and prunings. Put soft green material and annual weeds on the compost heap, mixed with brown material such as cardboard or dry leaves. Put perennial weed roots, diseased leaves and anything woody that will not fit the heap in the brown bin. Sweep the paths and put the tools away.

   • Keep a trug or bucket with you as you work and the clear-up takes minutes
   • Turn the compost heap every month or so
   • Chop prunings small before composting

   Mistake to avoid: Dumping all the grass clippings in a deep layer on the compost so it turns to a smelly sludge.

10. 10

    Look after the tools

    10 min

    Knock the soil off spades, hoes and forks and wipe the blades with an oily rag. Wipe sap off secateurs and shears. Hang tools up out of the weather. Once a season, sharpen the hoe, the secateurs and the shears, and once a year service the mower.

    • A sharp hoe and sharp secateurs halve the effort
    • Store batteries indoors at room temperature
    • Keep a file and a can of oil on the shed shelf

    Mistake to avoid: Leaving tools out in the rain and buying new secateurs every spring.

1. 1

   Walk the garden and plan the session

   10 min

   Start with the season's list above. Walk round with a cup of tea and look before you touch anything: what needs cutting, what is flowering, what is wilting, what is new. Check the weather and choose the jobs to suit: mow and hoe on dry days, plant and weed on damp ones. Write a short list so you do the important jobs first, not the pleasant ones.

   • Note what looks good and what does not; it guides next year's planting
   • Look for nests in hedges and shrubs before cutting them
   • Pick up stones and toys from the lawn as you go

   Mistake to avoid: Starting on whatever catches your eye and finishing the session with the lawn still uncut.

   Done — next step
2. 2

   Mow the lawn

   30–45 min

   Mow when the grass is dry, taking off no more than a third of its height in one cut. Start by cutting two strips round the outside of the lawn, then mow up and down in straight, overlapping lines, changing direction each week. Empty the grass box before it is full. Raise the height in a dry spell and in shade.

   • A sharp blade gives a clean cut; check it midsummer
   • Collect clippings unless your mower mulches them finely
   • Keep children and pets indoors while you mow

   Mistake to avoid: Scalping the lawn on the lowest setting to put off the next cut.

   Done — next step
3. 3

   Trim the lawn edges

   10–15 min

   Cut the long grass along the edges with edging shears, blades vertical, walking along the edge. A strimmer tilted on its side is quicker for long edges. Once or twice a year, recut the edge itself with a half-moon edging iron against a plank, so it stays crisp.

   • Neat edges make the whole garden look looked after
   • Pick the trimmings out of the borders
   • Wear eye protection with a strimmer

   Mistake to avoid: Strimming the edge flat and gouging a ragged line into the lawn.

   Done — next step
4. 4

   Hoe and weed the beds

   20–30 min

   Push a sharp Dutch hoe through the bare soil between plants, just under the surface, on a dry day. Seedling weeds wither where they lie. Hand-pull anything close to your plants, and dig out any perennial weed, dandelion, dock or couch grass, with its whole root. Never let a weed flower and seed.

   • Ten minutes every week beats a day every month
   • Hoe after rain once the surface has dried
   • Keep perennial roots off the compost heap

   Mistake to avoid: Leaving weeding for a month in May and spending a whole weekend on your knees in June.

   Done — next step
5. 5

   Deadhead and tidy the plants

   15–20 min

   Snip faded flowers off roses, bedding, perennials and pots with secateurs, cutting back to the next leaf or bud, so the plant puts its energy into new flowers rather than seed. Tie in tall plants and climbers that are flopping. Take off yellow or diseased leaves and put them in the brown bin rather than the compost heap.

   • Deadhead little and often for a longer display
   • Leave the seed heads of some perennials for birds in autumn
   • Wipe secateurs after cutting diseased plants

   Mistake to avoid: Leaving dead flowers on and wondering why the roses stopped flowering in July.

   Done — next step
6. 6

   Water where it is needed

   10–20 min

   Water pots, hanging baskets, new plants and vegetables at the base, not over the leaves, early in the morning or in the evening. Give each a thorough soak rather than a sprinkle. Established beds and lawns rarely need watering in an Irish summer. Use rainwater from a water butt where you can, and check for any hosepipe restriction before using a hose.

   • Push a finger into the soil; water only if it is dry a few centimetres down
   • Group pots together so they shade each other
   • A saucer under a pot in summer saves water

   Mistake to avoid: Watering the lawn every evening in a dry spell and the pots not at all.

   Done — next step
7. 7

   Prune a shrub that has finished flowering

   20–30 min

   Shrubs that flower in spring and early summer, such as forsythia, flowering currant, weigela and philadelphus, flower on stems that grew the year before, so prune them straight after flowering. With secateurs and loppers, cut about a third of the oldest, thickest stems right down near the base, then shorten the stems that carried flowers back to a strong pair of new shoots. Shrubs that flower in late summer on this year's growth, such as buddleja and hardy fuchsia, are pruned in early spring instead. Stand back after every few cuts and look at the shape before you go on.

   • Take out dead, damaged and crossing stems first, at any time of year
   • Cut just above a bud or a pair of buds, sloping away from it
   • Check the shrub for nests before you start

   Mistake to avoid: Giving every shrub the same short back and sides in autumn and cutting off next year's flowers.

   Done — next step
8. 8

   Do this week's seasonal job

   30–60 min

   Each week, add one bigger job from the season's list: feeding, mulching, pruning a shrub that has just flowered, trimming a hedge, planting, dividing a perennial, or clearing leaves. Doing one of these each week spreads the work across the season rather than leaving a mountain at the end.

   • Prune spring-flowering shrubs straight after they flower
   • Mulch only when the soil is moist and weeded
   • Feed the lawn in spring and early autumn, not in a drought

   Mistake to avoid: Trying to do every seasonal job on the one fine Saturday and doing none of them properly.

   Done — next step
9. 9

   Clear up and compost

   15 min

   Gather the clippings, weeds, deadheads and prunings. Put soft green material and annual weeds on the compost heap, mixed with brown material such as cardboard or dry leaves. Put perennial weed roots, diseased leaves and anything woody that will not fit the heap in the brown bin. Sweep the paths and put the tools away.

   • Keep a trug or bucket with you as you work and the clear-up takes minutes
   • Turn the compost heap every month or so
   • Chop prunings small before composting

   Mistake to avoid: Dumping all the grass clippings in a deep layer on the compost so it turns to a smelly sludge.

   Done — next step
10. 10

    Look after the tools

    10 min

    Knock the soil off spades, hoes and forks and wipe the blades with an oily rag. Wipe sap off secateurs and shears. Hang tools up out of the weather. Once a season, sharpen the hoe, the secateurs and the shears, and once a year service the mower.

    • A sharp hoe and sharp secateurs halve the effort
    • Store batteries indoors at room temperature
    • Keep a file and a can of oil on the shed shelf

    Mistake to avoid: Leaving tools out in the rain and buying new secateurs every spring.

    Done — next step

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