DIY GUIDE · GARDEN & OUTDOOR · CHECKED OCTOBER 2026
How to maintain a garden yourself
An hour or two a week in season. £74–£117 for the core hand tools.
A weekly round, the seasonal jobs, watering and feeding properly, and what to do with the waste.
- Every step, start to finish
- Checked October 2026 — sources at the end
- Honest about when to call a pro
FIRST, THE HONEST ANSWER
Do it yourself, or get a repairer?
Do it yourself if…
- You can give the garden an hour or two most weeks from spring to autumn
- The work is mowing, weeding, deadheading, light pruning, watering and tidying
- Everything can be reached from the ground
- You have a way to get rid of green waste: a compost heap, a council bin or a car
Get a pro if…
- You are away for long spells in the growing season
- Hedges or trees need cutting above head height
- The garden has got out of hand and needs a clearance before routine care can start
- Bending, kneeling and lifting are not realistic for you
Safety first
- With any corded mower, trimmer or blower, use an RCD-protected socket; HSE advises a device of 30 mA or less outdoors and testing it each time.
- If you use a garden weedkiller or pest treatment, you are legally responsible for using it to the label, HSE says; store it in its original container out of reach and never pour any down a drain.
- Wear gloves for weeding and pruning, and glasses for strimming and hedge trimming.
- Kneel on a kneeler, swap tasks every half hour, and lift bags and pots close to your body.
- Keep cutting tools sharp and closed when not in use, and lock them away from children.
- Work from the ground; anything that needs a ladder is outside this routine.
| MATERIAL | COVERAGE | FOR THIS JOB |
|---|---|---|
| Mulch: compost or bark | Spread over moist, weeded soil | A few bags for the beds each spring |
| Lawn feed | Seasonal, at the label rate | Enough for your lawn area |
| General plant feed | For pots, vegetables and hungry plants | A small box or bottle a season |
| Twine and canes | For supporting tall perennials | A roll and a bundle |
How long the weekly round takes
Time each job once and add them up. If mowing takes 30 minutes, edging 10, hoeing 15, deadheading 10 and watering 15, the round is 80 minutes a week in season, plus a longer session each spring and autumn.
Your own garden is the only honest measure. Time the round the first week of May, when growth peaks, and plan for that.
Good secateurs, a Dutch hoe, a border fork, edging shears and a rake cover almost every routine job. Buy fewer, better tools and keep them sharp; a cheap pair of secateurs that crushes stems does more harm than good.
Mow, edge, hoe, deadhead and water once a week in season and nothing gets out of hand. Ten minutes with a hoe each week removes weeds as seedlings, before they root or seed.
A thorough soak once or twice a week reaches the roots and encourages them down; a daily sprinkle wets only the surface and keeps roots shallow. Mulch to hold the water in, and collect rainwater in a butt.
Lawns, pots and hungry vegetables need feeding; most established shrubs and perennials in decent soil do not. Overfeeding leads to soft, sappy growth that pests love.
The plant decides: spring-flowering shrubs are pruned straight after flowering, summer-flowering ones in early spring, and hedges outside the main nesting months unless you have checked for nests. When in doubt, look the plant up before you cut.
A thick layer of compost or bark spread over weeded, moist soil each spring cuts weeding, holds water in through summer and feeds the soil as worms pull it down. Of all the jobs in the year, it is the one that most reduces the others.
THE PART THAT DECIDES THE FINISH
What to do — by the season
The weekly round stays the same; what changes is what the garden needs around it. Find the season you are in.
Spring
From roughly March to May, when growth takes off.
- Start mowing once the grass grows, high at first, then lower as the season goes on
- Weed and mulch beds before the main flush of weeds, while the soil is moist
- Prune summer-flowering shrubs and cut back last year's perennial stems
- Feed the lawn and hungry plants as growth starts
Early summer
May and June, the busiest weeks.
- Mow weekly, sometimes twice, keeping to the one-third rule
- Hoe weekly and deadhead faded flowers to keep plants blooming
- Prune spring-flowering shrubs straight after they finish
- Check hedges for nests before any trim
High summer
July and August, heat and dry spells.
- Raise the mowing height and water lawns only if you want them green; they recover after rain
- Water pots daily in heat and beds deeply once or twice a week
- Keep deadheading, and trim hedges such as privet and beech in late summer
- Collect rainwater and mulch to save it
Autumn
September to November.
- Clear leaves from the lawn and paths weekly; leave them under shrubs
- Give the lawn an autumn feed and rake out thatch
- Plant spring bulbs, shrubs and perennials while the soil is warm
- Clean and store pots, hoses and tools before frost
Winter
December to February, the quiet months.
- Keep off frozen or waterlogged lawns
- Prune apples and pears and other dormant-season plants
- Clean, sharpen and oil tools, and service the mower
- Plan changes and order seeds for spring
A garden you have just taken on
A new home, or a garden inherited from someone else.
- Wait through one season before removing anything you cannot identify; bulbs and perennials appear at different times
- Find the lawn edges, paths and bed outlines first and get those clear
- Note where the sun falls through the day and where the ground stays wet
- Deal with the big jobs, such as an overgrown hedge or a clearance, before starting the weekly round
THE JOB
The weekly round, in order
Walk the garden first
10 minStart with the seasonal checks above, then walk round with a bucket and secateurs. Pick up rubbish and fallen sticks, look for anything that needs urgent attention — a plant collapsing in a dry spell, a pest outbreak, a broken support — and decide what this week's round will include beyond the basics.
- Note what is flowering and what has finished; that tells you what to deadhead and prune
- Look under leaves for pests before they build up
- Check the lawn for stones and toys before mowing
Mistake to avoid: Starting the mower straight away. You miss the problem that needed doing first and run over the stick you did not see.
Mow and edge the lawn
40 minMow at the right height for the season, taking no more than a third off in one cut. Trim round obstacles first, mow, then cut the edges with edging shears for a sharp line. On a corded mower, plug into an RCD-protected socket and keep the lead behind you.
- Change the mowing direction each week
- Raise the height in hot, dry weather
- Cut edges vertically; recut them with a half-moon only once or twice a year
Mistake to avoid: Cutting short to mow less often. Scalped grass browns, moss and weeds move in, and it grows back just as fast.
Hoe and hand-weed
20 minRun a sharp hoe through the open soil of beds and the vegetable patch on a dry day, slicing seedlings off just below the surface. Hand-pull or fork out anything growing close to your plants, getting the whole root of perennial weeds.
- Little and often; seedlings take seconds, established weeds take minutes
- Keep annual weeds from flowering
- Put perennial roots in the council bin, not the compost heap
Mistake to avoid: Leaving weeds until they are knee high. They have seeded and rooted, and the job has tripled.
Deadhead and tidy plants
15 minSnip off faded flowers just above a leaf or bud with secateurs, which encourages many plants to flower again. Remove yellowing leaves and broken stems, and tie in tall perennials and climbers before they flop.
- Deadhead roses, sweet peas and bedding weekly in summer
- Leave seed heads on plants you want to self-seed or feed birds
- Tie stems loosely in a figure of eight so the twine does not cut in
Mistake to avoid: Pulling flower heads off by hand. You tear stems and leave ragged, rotting stubs.
Water what needs it
20 minWater pots, new plantings and vegetables thoroughly, at the base of the plant rather than over the leaves, early in the morning or in the evening. Established shrubs and lawns rarely need watering except in long dry spells.
- Check pots with a finger; water when the top couple of centimetres are dry
- One deep soak is better than several sprinkles
- Use water from a butt where you can
Mistake to avoid: Watering a little every day over the leaves. Most of it evaporates and the roots stay shallow.
Light pruning in season
20 minPrune what is due this week: shrubs that have just flowered, overlong shoots, dead or damaged stems. Cut just above a bud or a pair of leaves with clean, sharp secateurs, and step back regularly to see the shape. Anything thicker than loppers can manage, or out of reach, is not routine pruning.
- Remove dead, damaged and diseased wood first
- Prune spring flowerers after flowering, summer flowerers in early spring
- Check shrubs and hedges for nests before cutting in spring and summer
Mistake to avoid: Pruning everything in autumn because it looks untidy. You cut off next year's flower buds on spring-flowering shrubs.
Check for pests and problems
10 minLook under leaves and at shoot tips for aphids, caterpillars, slugs and signs of disease such as mildew or black spot. Most outbreaks are small at first and can be dealt with by hand: squash, pick off, or cut out the affected shoot. Encourage birds, hedgehogs and ladybirds rather than reaching for a spray.
- Go out with a torch on a damp evening to find slugs and snails
- Remove leaves with black spot or mildew and bin them rather than composting
- If you do use a garden product, choose one authorised for amateur use and follow its label exactly
Mistake to avoid: Spraying at the first sight of a greenfly. You kill the predators that would have dealt with it, and the aphids come back first.
Feed in the right places
10 minFeed lawns at the change of season, pots and containers regularly in the growing season, and vegetables that are hungry. Apply exactly the rate on the label, on moist soil, and water granules in. Most established border plants in decent soil need only a mulch.
- Pots run out of nutrients fastest
- Do not feed in drought or frost
- An autumn lawn feed is low in nitrogen; do not use a spring one late
Mistake to avoid: Feeding everything heavily. You get soft, leafy growth that flops and attracts aphids.
Do this week's seasonal job
30 minAdd one larger job from the seasonal list above to each week's round rather than saving them all for one weekend: mulching a bed in spring, trimming a hedge in late summer, planting bulbs in autumn, cleaning pots in winter. Spread through the year, the big jobs stop being big.
- Keep a list of seasonal jobs on your phone and tick them off
- Do the job that cannot wait first; a hedge with nests waits, a frost-tender plant does not
- Pair a heavy job with a light one so you do not overdo it
Mistake to avoid: Saving every seasonal job for one weekend in spring. You run out of time, energy and daylight, and half of it waits another year.
Clear up and sort the waste
15 minRake up clippings and debris, then sort them: soft green waste and annual weeds to the compost heap, woody prunings shredded or bagged, perennial weed roots and diseased material to the council's garden waste collection. Sweep paths and the patio last.
- Mix green waste with drier material such as cardboard in the compost
- Keep diseased material out of the home heap
- Store full sacks somewhere they will not kill the lawn
Mistake to avoid: Piling all the waste in a corner. It becomes a slug hotel and a weed nursery.
Clean and put the tools away
10 minKnock the soil off forks, hoes and spades, wipe sap from secateurs and shears, and put everything back in the same place, dry. Lock away blades and any garden chemicals.
- A wipe with an oily rag stops rust
- Sharpen secateurs and the hoe a few times a season
- Coil hoses loosely and drain them before frost
Mistake to avoid: Leaving tools out in the rain. They rust, the handles split and the secateurs seize.
The mistakes that let a garden get away
- Waiting for a free weekend instead of a weekly round
- Mowing too short and too seldom
- Pruning at the wrong time and losing the flowers
- Watering a little every day instead of deeply now and then
Stop here and get a garden maintenance contractor
- Hedges or trees need cutting from a ladder or with a chainsaw
- The garden has become overgrown and needs a clearance first
- A pest or weed problem needs a professional product, which only a certified user may apply
- You cannot keep up with the growing season and the garden keeps getting away from you
| WHAT YOU SEE | WHY, AND THE FIX |
|---|---|
| Lawn going yellow in summer | Drought or cutting too short. Raise the mowing height; a brown lawn usually greens up after rain. Water deeply only if you want it green through the dry spell. |
| Shrub did not flower this year | Pruned at the wrong time, cutting off the buds. Check when it flowers and prune straight after flowering next time. |
| Plants wilting even after watering | Water is not reaching the roots, or the roots are waterlogged. Water more deeply and less often; check pots drain freely. |
| Weeds taking over the borders | Gaps in the weekly hoeing. Clear perennials by hand, mulch thickly over clean soil, and hoe weekly from spring. |
| Pots drying out in a day | Small pots and summer heat. Group pots together, move them out of midday sun, water in the evening and mulch the surface. |
| Aphids on soft new shoots | Often encouraged by heavy feeding. Squash or hose them off, feed less, and let birds and ladybirds do their work. |
| Bare patches in the lawn | Wear, pets, shade or compaction. Fork the patch, add a little topsoil and seed in spring or early autumn, and keep it moist. |
| Compost heap slimy and smelly | Too much grass and green material. Mix in cardboard, twigs or dry leaves and turn it to let air in. |
WHAT YOU SAVE
What it costs to do it yourself
| Bypass secateurs | £14–£17 |
|---|---|
| Dutch hoe | £11–£32 |
| Edging shears | £18 |
| Rake | £11–£16 |
| Garden hose | £15–£25 |
| Gardening gloves | £2–£5 |
| Garden waste sacks | £3–£4 |
| Total, first time | £74–£117 |
| DIY total | £74–£117 |
Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.
These are tools you keep for years; a mower is the bigger purchase and has its own guide. After the first year, routine maintenance costs little beyond mulch, feed and your time.
RATHER NOT?
Garden maintenance contractors near you, with prices shown
The ones who cover your area, nearest first, with one score from every review. No account needed to look.
Or post the job free and let them come to you.
Soft green waste and annual weeds make good compost mixed with drier material; turn the heap now and then.
Woody prunings, perennial roots and diseased material go in the council's garden waste collection or to the household waste recycling centre; never on a bonfire or over the fence.
Clean after each use, sharpen blades a few times a season, and service the mower each winter.
A note of when you pruned, fed and planted is next year's calendar, and saves you guessing.
Keeping a garden maintained: questions people ask
A short round once a week from spring to autumn, with longer sessions in spring and autumn, keeps most gardens in shape. In winter, every few weeks is enough.
Mowing at the right height, weekly hoeing, deadheading, watering properly and pruning at the right time. Get those right and most other problems never start.
It depends on when they flower. Spring-flowering shrubs straight after flowering; summer-flowering ones in early spring. Check for nesting birds before pruning dense shrubs and hedges in spring and summer.
Pots most days in summer heat; new plants and vegetables deeply once or twice a week; established shrubs and lawns only in long dry spells. Water at the base, early or late in the day.
Compost soft green waste at home, and use the council's garden waste collection or the household waste recycling centre for the rest. A gardener who takes it away must be a registered waste carrier.
The Locufy UK price guide puts garden maintenance at £30–£90 per visit, typically £50. Ask what a visit includes and whether waste removal is extra.
MORE GUIDES
More DIY guides
Sources — checked October 2026
- HSE — electrical safety FAQs: RCDs outdoors
- HSE — using pesticides in your garden, home or allotment
- STIHL — how to mow your lawn
- STIHL — creating and caring for a plant bed: watering and soil
- STIHL — trimming hedges: timing and nesting birds
- GOV.UK — dispose of garden waste
- Environmental Protection Act 1990, section 34 — duty of care
- Wickes — price check: secateurs
- Wickes — price check: hoes
- Wickes — price check: edging shears
- Wickes — price check: rakes
- Wickes — price check: garden hoses
- Wickes — price check: gardening gloves
- Wickes — price check: garden waste sacks