One of the most beautiful things you can add to your garden are solar lights. Garden solar lights add a luxurious feel to your garden during the day and a serene look at night. There are different varieties to choose from and all will make a nice addition to your garden.

If you are interested in standard solar lights, many come in steel or plastic lights. Others come in different colors and shapes such as a flower or butterflies. You can even get solar pool lights to line your pool. Make your garden stand out at night with solar lights. Get them today!

Many new gardeners may ask, what garden tool do I use? What time of year do I prune? All these questions an many more will be covered here.

Essentially, pruning can be done all year round. Trees and shrubs are ideal to prune as they can be shaped into a decorative design. Now the best time to prune trees or shrubs really depends on how fast they grow.

Here’s a simple guideline to pruning:

1. Remove Any Dead Debris Or Branches – clean around the base of the plant, shrub or tree and then remove any dead plant that is still one the plant.
2. Thin out crowded areas – If you see dense patches where branches criss-cross or form at an odd angle, prune those back
3. When Pruning, Use A Pruning Sheer – This, by far, is the best garden tool for pruning. They come in different sizes so pick ones that suit the shrubs, trees and plants you have

One of the first things to consider is the design of your koi pond. A professional may be of assistance in this area. Make sure to consider the size, placement of your koi pond. Remember that live koi fish will be in your pond so the bigger the better.

Once your pond is created it’s best to make sure you have the equipment to maintain a healthy koi pond. It’s best to purchase a koi pond filter to help filter and move the koi pond water. These filters can act as a waterfall or stream into your koi pond. Another tool to get is a pond vacuum to help remove any sludge or dirty water that may settle on the bottom of the pond.

Lastly, you want to show off your koi pond with some pond lights. These will sure compliment your garden and add a touch to your solar lights as well.

Koi ponds make a great addition to your garden. Read up and ask a lot of questions before setting up your own koi pond. In the end it’s worth the work!

Here’s how to manage and keep up with gardens or landscapes even if you’re on a budget. There are simple steps to follow in order to achieve a beautiful landscape on a budget.

1. The first step is to take a look at your existing landscape and decide what areas need the most attention. Areas to focus on are usually the front of the home or entrance ways. If the plants are over-grown in these areas, then most likely they will need to be pruned. Pruning shrubs or trees is a process of selectively pruning out unsightly branches or foliage.

For example, if you’re walking to the front door of your home and if there are plants that are growing over the walkway, this would be an area that needs renovating. Go through each plant that looks unsightly and bring it back to a size which looks proper to the whole landscape. At times some plants may be too far gone where pruning them back just makes the problem more unsightly. If this is the case, removal may be the best option. Here’s a little tip to always take in consideration when deciding what to do in regards to pruning or removal of plants. Consider if the plants are over crowded (i.e. growing into each other) if so, choose the plant that is healthier and frames the landscape as a whole. Then decide which plants are anchors in the landscape. For example, in proper landscape design, plants are placed systematically around the home; shrubs should be below the window lines, and entrance doors need to be easily visible from a distance, etc. the landscape should showcase your home, not hide it. It doesn’t make sense how some of the most beautiful homes are hidden with too many plants.

The main reason homeowners over plant is because many of them forget how large the plants will grow in a couple of years. They might feel more is better. This is one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make. People need to do research and take into consideration how big each plant will be at maturity. Maybe, at some point, you may be considering adding on to an existing landscape, if so, do the homework and don’t over plant the area!

2. The second step to help improve the overall picture of the landscape is to clean-up the beds which surround the home. This can be accomplished by raking up debris such as leaves that are cluttering the garden beds. By getting rid of old leaf debris and fallen branches will increase the over all look of the home.

3. Edge all of the beds, so there is a defined line separating the grass from the landscaped beds. At this point you’re ready for the finishing touch. Mulching! Mulching is similar to painting; it is the icing on the cake. Mulch not only gives the landscape lovely curb appeal, but it also helps benefit the plants as well.

These are simple steps for the homeowner to follow. Take the time to review the solutions I provided, and you will have a fabulous looking landscape even on a budget.

Dave Kovach provides solutions in gardening and landscaping for homeowners on a budget. Click here to learn more: BudgetGardening