Have you ever found yourself admiring someone else’s lawn that looks like a set from Better Homes & Gardens? Or maybe you are even a proud owner of one yourself?

People who have gloriously maintained yards deserve a round of applause because gardening and landscaping can take SO much time, effort, and money. So how are you supposed to fix up your lawn, then? How are you supposed to make your dream house look brand spanking new?

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Gardening will never be completely labor free, but there are plenty of tricks out there you can use to make your life easier. A little work now can set you up for major success later!

1. Bake the weed seeds out

Before gardening season even starts, you can save yourself hours of dealing with pesky weeds by baking their seeds out of the soil. To accomplish this, lay black plastic (found at most home improvement or gardening stores) over your garden beds and let it sit for a few weeks. The sun is attracted to black and will heat the ground under the plastic to a high temperature, killing off unwanted weeds before they have the chance to invade.

Be sure to stake the plastic down or weight it with rocks so it doesn’t blow away! If you're looking for quality garden edging solutions to further enhance your garden's aesthetics and organization, consider reaching out to Lawn Edging, a reputable garden edging company in Sydney. They can provide expert advice and products to create well-defined and visually appealing garden spaces.

Want to ensure you don’t have to deal with weeds in your garden at any point during the growing season? Cut holes or rows in the plastic and plant your seeds or seedlings. They’ll grow like normal, but the plastic covering the ground around them ensures no weeds can sprout.

2. Buy perennials

Perennial plants are always an excellent choice for a garden because they come back year after year, saving you money and time. Some examples are hosta, coreopsis, or veronica (pictured above.) Fun fact: veronica are deer and rabbit resistant. They also attract birds and butterflies!

Choose the perfect spot for your perennial and you’ll get to watch it pop out of the soil every year, filling your lawn with bright color!

3. Use mulch or vinegar

We all already know weeding can become a full time job. If you’re not interested in using the black plastic method, spreading down mulch can help keep the weeds at bay. It blocks the sunlight most weeds need to develop. Any little buggers that do manage to grow can easily be plucked out because the soil underneath remains loose and moist. Just make sure to keep the mulch a few inches away from the bases of trees and stems of plants to make watering easier, and to prevent disease problems.

If you aren’t about to load up on bags of mulch, another method to kill weeds is this low cost, homemade vinegar and salt concoction. It’s a good way to destroy weeds poking up between the cracks in your sidewalk, or other places where you don’t want any growth. Be selective where you use the vinegar solution, because it can cause no desirable plants to be able to grow there again.

4. Plant a Xeriscape

If you really don’t think you have the grit to go out and look after your garden every day, look into plants that are durable. Acacia, portulaca, and pentas (shown below) are some examples. They’re heat, drought tolerant, and don’t require daily maintenance. Succulents aren’t the only plants out there that are super easy to take care of!

If you like this idea, consider growing a xeriscape -- an entire garden of tough, drought resistant plants. Look into species that are native to your area and therefore accustomed to climate conditions. Before you know it, you’ll have a yard full of beautiful, yet low maintenance plants!

5. Design an irrigation system

Rig up a way to automatically water your plants so you never have to worry about it! This can be as simple as installing a couple sprinklers set to a timer, or something a bit more complicated like a drip system. Self-watering irrigation networks can be DIY and as simple as you want them to be. Rest assured, they’re worth it! Just think of all those future minutes you’re spending sipping lemonade while your project does your watering for you.

7. Don’t sweat it

You don’t need rulers, measuring tapes, or a vast knowledge of flowers to help you plant a garden. Space things out by eye and use common sense. Gardening doesn’t need to be that complicated. Make sure you have the essentials, carve out time for a bit of nurturing, and let mother nature take care of the rest!