Cleaning Up Our New Home Garden

We recently moved into a beautiful old house in the downtown neighborhood of our city. The house is everything we were looking for, but it was built in 1905 so it has its share of problems. The windows are drafty and the floor is slanted in parts of the home, but probably the biggest place that needed improvement was the yard.

The previous tenants had done a lot of haphazard work on the yard and had not kept up any of it. When they moved out they left us with an unfinished porch, tree branches down all over the yard, and several gardening projects halfway done. The front yard was just as bad, overrun with weeds. To get started on this huge project, we first began by clearing as much of the debris from the yard as possible. We took a hand saw to the largest tree branches, and broke up the ones we could manage by hand. We put them in a pile in the far corner of the yard to use as firewood. Next, we had to take care of the weeds. We pulled the bigger ones by hand, took a weed whacker to some of the harder to reach areas, and just mowed the rest down with the lawnmower. This took care of most of the weeds, but I would not recommend using a lawn mower if you can help it because it's bad for the machine and spits weeds out at random. After everything was cleared away, we started cleaning up the fixtures in the yard. We gave the peeling deck a fresh coat of paint, and nailed some straying boards back in place.

We still have a lot of work ahead of us, but giving ourselves a fresh slate to work with will make the process easier. Disposing of all the yard trash has also proven to be a hassle, so we're trying to do controlled burns with as much as we can.

Article kindly provided by

User Anecdotes

We've solicited a number of user anecdotes on this topic, and have hand picked some of the more interesting ones below. We feel that anecdotes can give a practical, human perspective on a topic.

"<i>When we first moved into our new home, the garden was an absolute jungle. Overgrown bushes, weeds everywhere, and a lawn that looked like it hadn't been mowed in years. My husband and I decided to tackle it ourselves, and it took us a good month of hard work to get it into a decent state. One thing we found extremely helpful was renting a garden waste bin from our local council - it saved us countless trips to the dump and made disposing of all the green waste so much easier. We also invested in a good quality hedge trimmer and a lawn mower, which has made maintaining the garden a breeze. I'd definitely recommend taking the time to do a thorough clean up of your new home's garden, as it can make such a difference to the overall look of your property.</i><br><b>Sophie T.</b><br><br><i>When my wife and I moved into our new house last year, the garden was a complete mess. It was full of weeds, the lawn was patchy, and the flower beds had clearly been neglected for a long time. We spent the first few weekends clearing out the junk and making a plan for how we wanted to revive the garden. One thing that really helped us was getting a soil test done - we discovered that our soil was quite acidic, which explained why the previous plants hadn't thrived. We added some lime to balance the pH and started planting new flowers and shrubs that were suited to our soil type. The transformation has been incredible, and our garden is now a beautiful, thriving oasis that we love spending time in.</i><br><b>Rajesh K.</b><br><br><i>I recently moved into my new home, and the garden was in terrible shape. I have never been much of a gardener, but I decided to give it a go and see if I could turn it around. The first thing I did was to remove all the weeds and dead plants. I then added some fresh compost to the soil and planted a variety of flowers and shrubs. I also decided to create a small vegetable patch, as I thought it would be a great way to get fresh produce and save some money. It has been a learning experience, but I am really enjoying the process of transforming my garden. I have found that gardening is not only a great way to unwind, but it also provides a sense of accomplishment when you see your plants growing and thriving.</i><br><b>Keiko S.</b><br><br><i>Cleaning up a new home garden can be a daunting task, but it can also be incredibly rewarding. When I moved into my new home, the garden was full of overgrown plants and weeds. I decided to enlist the help of my friends and family, and we spent a weekend clearing away all the debris and digging up the weeds. One thing I found particularly helpful was using a weed torch to burn away any stubborn roots - just be sure to use it carefully and follow the manufacturer's instructions. After the initial clean-up, I spent some time researching the types of plants that would be best suited to my garden's conditions and my personal preferences. I am now enjoying a beautiful, well-maintained garden that I can be proud of. Don't be afraid to tackle your new home garden; the results will be well worth the effort.</i><br><b>Marie-Pierre L.</b>""

Want to add your own anecdote? Fill in your comment via our contact page here - just put your name in the name field (we will not publish your full name), and your comment in the "message" field. The subject field will already be populated with the title of this article so we know which article you are commenting on. We will NOT publish or use your email address for marketing purposes.