YW_Issue_94_July-18_68 pages

garden
12 wellness
Be A 10-Minute Gardener
Would you love a beautiful
garden but just don’t have the
time? Long to grow your own
produce but a busy schedule
makes it impossible? Well,
don’t despair. Even the busiest
individuals can find the time to
enjoy gardening with the right
routine.
For the busy gardener, little
and often is the key to success. So
rather than putting jobs off until
you have a full day to spare, break
activities down into small tasks
that you can complete in just a few
minutes. This means you can check
on your garden a couple of times
a day and achieve a lot of care and
maintenance without it impacting
on your other commitments. A
quick whizz around the vegetable
plot once or twice a day is all it
takes to keep on top of things – so
even with a busy schedule, you can
still enjoy your garden. Here are
our tips:
Plan ahead. The types of
jobs that need doing in the garden
vary from month to month. Keep
a diary or set reminders on your
smartphone so that you know
exactly what needs doing when.
Then when you have a spare ten
minutes, you’ll be able to jump
straight in, with everything you
need to complete the task.
Keep on top of pests.
One of the most important jobs
for any gardener, but particularly
those with little time, is to check
for pests. Slugs, snails, flies and
other bugs can all destroy a crop in
a matter of hours. The good news
is, it only takes a few minutes to
check for pests and, with a range
of natural pest control methods
available, you can put a stop to the
nasties in next to no time.
Create a watering
reminder. In dry weather,
it’s important to keep plants well
watered. Keep your watering can
or hosepipe ready to go so that
you can keep your garden watered
in just a few minutes.
Harvest regularly.
Whether it’s a morning stroll
around the garden while you enjoy
a cup of coffee or a quick whizz
round after work, regularly check
your garden when vegetables or
fruits are ready to harvest.
Enlist help from
family and friends. If
you’re really struggling to keep
on top of your garden tasks, ask
family or friends if they’d like
to help out. Many will love the
opportunity – particularly if you
promise them free produce in
return.
Have your tools
ready. Keep your tools and
garden accessories organised and
ready to use so that you don’t
waste precious time when popping
into the garden to complete a
quick task.
Schedule in more
time at weekends or
holidays. Keep bigger jobs
such as repairing furniture,
digging, or planting a new crop for
when you have a little more time
to spare.
Eat outdoors. If the
weather is fine, why not enjoy
your meals outdoors? It will give
you the opportunity to check the
garden and give everything a quick
water or remove weeds before you
return inside.
Choose plants wisely.
If you know you won’t have a lot
of time to tend to your garden,
choose plants that will happily look
after themselves rather than those
needing lots of attention.
yourwellness.com • Volume VII • Issue II • July 2018