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Scarification is the name given to the process where you remove excess thatch and moss from your lawn to encourage it to grow and look healthy. Although it sounds difficult, it’s actually pretty easy – simply grab a sturdy rake and apply moderate pressure to rake out moss, thatch and dead grass. Then collect it up and add to your compost heap if you have one. You can also use a petrol or electric rake, but you just want to tease out the moss and thatch. Don’t be tempted to go deep into the grass, as this could damage your lawn. So when should you scarify your lawn? The experts say that the best time is in the autumn, when the grass is actively growing and it’s not too hot, cold or dry. Most of summer’s weed seeds will have gone, so you won’t encourage weeds to grow in the raked-up soil. This soil also makes an ideal seed bed for over seeding with new grass seed, so that’s why you don’t want to get weeds in there as well. However, you may also carry out light scarification in the spring – usually around April. Make sure you don’t go too far though – as you will end up with a rather disfigured lawn if you scarify too heavily and the dryness of summer stops the lawn from recovering. It’s also best to scarify your lawn in the spring if the following apply:

• If you couldn’t do it the previous autumn – if you keep putting it off, you might end up with extreme moss and weed growth
• If your lawn is shaded – these areas will thin over winter and start to thicken from spring onwards, so if you scarify in the autumn you’ll make your lawn even thinner.
• If your lawn is under trees – pair the shade from the trees with the fall of leaves in the autumn and your grass won’t be healthy, but in the spring the trees are bare, allowing lots of light onto your lawn to help it grow.

What Do Landscape Gardeners Charge?

If you’ve decided to hire a landscaping professional for your gardening, you’ll probably be wondering how much it’s going to cost so you can start planning. A landscape garden serves a wide range of purposes from beautification of your surrounding and building to serving as a perfect spot for family and friends’ get-togethers and to brighten up one’s life. However, we must also note that the garden landscaping does not come cheap. In order to make it look great and send a clear message, there’s need for a effective and careful planning as well as consideration which perfectly combines both beauty and utility ( as not every landscaping idea works perfectly for every house). So just how much will landscape gardeners charge?

Just like most home improvement efforts, the cost of landscape gardening is influenced by a wide array of factors. These factors include the scope of the project, the size of the garden, the type of material and size of your patio, the cost of the plants and mulches, the professional daily or hourly rate as well as the unique treatment of the aesthetics of planting.

In general, landscape gardeners can charge as little as a price ranging from £15 to £20 and £45 per hour greatly influenced by the location as well as the gardening services required. As a daily rate, professional gardeners tend to charge about £140 to £200 per day. However, it should be noted that the major factors influencing the price that a gardener will charge is based on the area you live in as well as the size of your garden. For instance, if you live in an area with higher demands like London, you can expect to be charged a lot more than anywhere else.

If you’re thinking about a career in gardening or horticulture, regardless of the aspect there are relevant memberships, accreditations and qualifications available. First and foremost, gardening courses can range from as little as 6 months to a couple of years depending on the level of expertise that you require. Before you can be accepted as a member of a gardener’s association such as The Gardener’s Guild, you must prove to have a minimum of one horticultural qualification at Level two or above. It’s highly recommended that gardeners seek formal training in other to ensure a steady development - both personal and professional.

When it comes to gardening, qualifications are very important. They’ll give your customers the confidence in your commitment to your trade as well as your reliability. Having a qualification in gardening can also make you more efficient as you’ll be able to identify plant properly, know when they flower and need pruning etc, which helps you to effectively manage your time. The skills qualifications you’ll need include LANTRA and City and Guilds/NTPC qualifications which typically includes licenses for the use of horticultural equipment. For instance, if you plant to use a chainsaw, you’ll have to contact them to enquire about local courses. Licenses are a legal requirement in certain events and represents your seriousness when it comes to safety and environment issues.

RHS qualifications are also very popular amongst gardeners in the UK. The RHS courses can be completed at local colleges or through correspondence. Here, there are various modules that specialize in different horticulture topics and can also be combined to achieve higher level qualifications.

1. Remove any existing fascia boards Remove the fascia boards and the old felt if you’re re-felting.
2. Measure the shed roof Measure the roof, taking into account that you should leave around 50mm for overlaps at the eaves and 75mm at the gable ends. You’ll probably need 3 pieces of felt, but some smaller sheds only need 2.
3. Apply felt to the roof Once you’ve cut the felt to size, apply the each piece to the roof, pulling it tight. Then nail along the length of the roof at 100mm intervals. For nails at the bottom edge, they can be wider – around 300mm. If you’re adding a piece of felt in the middle of the shed along the apex, fix it using adhesive, then nail it at the lower edge at 50mm intervals.
4. Tidy up the overhangs Fold down the felt at each overhang and nail it securely. Cut a slit in the overhang at the apex using a pen knife, then fold that down and nail at 100mm intervals along the gable. If you like, you can add fascia boards to keep the shed looking neat. Use wood nails to secure them and then trim away any excess felt.

Chances are at some point you’d probably given a though about how steps would fit in perfectly in your garden, except of course, your yard and garden is flat. Adding steps and gardens makes it a lot easier to get around your yard while also enhancing its curb appeal. In order to avoid the cost of hiring a professional to get the task done, you might be tempted to make it a DIY task. However, if you lack the required skill and confidence to pull this off, we’d strongly recommend you call in a professional so as to avoid costly errors. In this post, we’re going to take you through the garden steps building process. Let’s take a look!

1. Measure the vertical height of the slope by marking it with two parallel lines. Once done, proceed by connecting a string line to the slope’s top and hold it in a horizontal way, take a measurement of the flight’s length and breadth. Divide the measurement by 200mm to get the number of steps that’ll be required. Then proceed to divide the number by the height to identify the depth of each step.
2. Working downwards from the flight’s top, dig the step shapes and also dig a shallow trench and install a concrete foundation.
3. Enable the foundation to harden by leaving it for about 48 hours, then install two courses of bricks on the concrete strip and use gravel to backfill.
4. With the help of a trowel, apply mortar to the top of the brickwork. Place the first slab on the mortar bed and press down. Then, make use of a spirit level to make sure that the steps are level.
5. On the back edge of the first tread, you should proceed to build the second rise, backfill and install the slab to form the second tread – just like the previous step. Repeat this process until you’ve gotten to the top of the flight.

A patio is an outdoor space which can be used for a variety of stuffs which includes fun time with family and friends, reading time or just relaxing as the fresh breeze blows. With all these benefits and more, it’s becomes more obvious that there’s a need to keep your patio in a tip top condition at all times. If otherwise, you may not be able to enjoy your patio to your satisfaction and probably, for as long as you would want. You simply have to provide it with a regular maintenance which involves inspecting and identifying the damages that needs to be repaired before it gets out of hand. Fortunately, the minor repairs can be done by yourself if you’re confident enough. However, for bigger damages it’s advisable to call in a professional for help. In this article, we’ll take you through the patio reparation process.

✓ Prepare the area. This involves removing the problem piece gently and carefully. If there’s a piece you think can still be useful, store it in the re-use pile or you can start a new one. Once you’re done removing the pieces, the next thing to do would be to start removing anything that’s unwanted from the damaged area like debris, unwanted soil etc, and start sand fitting with some fresh sand. This should be levelled out to ensure there’s no bumps.

✓ With the sand down, you can start by putting the pieces back in together. This should be done gently to avoid any further damage. Do this until your patio

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