Gardening is one of Britain’s most popular hobbies, enjoyed by people from all generations for its relaxing effects and rewarding results. Over 2020, gardening saw a considerable boost in popularity, and now an estimated 27 million people in the U.K. take part in gardening regularly[i].
The pastime has found a surprisingly cosy home on the internet in recent years, too, with accounts on sites such as TikTok and Instagram boosting garden trends and providing tips and ideas for garden activities. We’ve gathered some of the best garden hacks and trends that have been gaining popularity on the internet recently, so you can keep your garden up to date – and get the kids involved too!
Balcony gardening became immensely popular during lockdown, when people had to bring the outdoors to them for a while. Relying on succulents nurtured in containers and plant pots, this form of urban gardening allows people with limited outside space to explore gardening and reap all the benefits.
Transforming a balcony, no matter the size, into a modern-day Eden is relatively easy and provides more options than you probably think. To create a balcony garden, begin by figuring out how much sun it will get. Choosing plant varieties that will thrive with the right amount of sunlight is important to nurturing successful results. There will be plants and vegetables that fit your sun aspect, so don’t panic if it doesn’t seem like your balcony gets enough.
Once you have plants that will grow, choose sturdy containers and trellises that will withhold strong weather, and ensure that your mini-garden is successfully cared for. A balcony garden will require the same care as a regular garden, so make sure you set aside the time to water, prune and maintain your plants.
Many of us would jump at the chance to get anything for free, and this TikTok hack for easily finding and growing free succulents is a gardener’s dream. So easy to do and costing extremely little, you could get brand new exotic plants in no time.
In the video above, this gardener is helping a local store by collecting fallen leaves and seeds from plants which they then take home and leave in a sunny place. After a few days, the collection starts sprouting new roots and leaves, when they plant them in a tray filled with cactus soil. With occasional misting, new plants will begin to grow in only a few weeks. If you’d like to do this at home, you can find fallen leaves and seeds just as easily in local parks and public places as well as garden centres and local stores.
Choosing to run a sustainable garden started as a viral trend but is quickly becoming more of a necessity with the growing need to help save our planet. Creating a sustainable garden may sound like an intimidating task, but all it requires is a bit of extra care and thought. When choosing what you use in your garden, you have to consider the environment at every step of the process. If any part of its development affects the environment, from how the product is made to how it is delivered, it is not eco-friendly, and you should avoid it.
Also, recycling in your garden is essential to make it more sustainable. For example, to start seeds or contain plants and herbs, things like toilet roll tubes, plastic food trays, and old yoghurt pots can all be reused in your garden. There are plenty of recycled and environmentally friendly options on the market these days, so you shouldn’t find it difficult to start running a more sustainable garden almost immediately.
You can find more tips for running an eco-friendly garden here.
Although turf, the rolls of grass you can buy to establish a lawn quickly with little fuss, helps create the immaculate garden of every homeowner’s dreams, the costs can soon add up. Covering a whole lawn with turf can cost between £450 – £540, and, for some, that cost isn’t justifiable. So this handy TikTok garden trend has been stepping in for many, providing people with a great environmentally friendly alternative, excellent for birds and bees, and requires very little maintenance.
Instead of laying turf or sowing grass seed, this TikToker recommends planting clovers instead. Widely available at low prices, clover seeds can grow in as little as a week, providing a soft grass alternative that is perfect for kids to play on and adults to relax by. With minimal watering needed, fertilizer unnecessary and cutting optional, clovers are a functional grass alternative that can brighten up any lawn in a short space of time.
Plants are constantly at risk of falling victim to slugs and snails, and a new hole in the leaf of your favourite flower is indescribably annoying. Luckily, the internet provides us with the answers once again. This garden hack doesn’t only rid your plants of slugs and snails but is entirely eco-friendly too!
Many items that you would usually find in your kitchen waste bin are perfect for warding off these pests. For example, spreading coffee grounds, grapefruit skins, or tea leaves around your plants are ideal because the slugs and snails can’t stand the smell and will avoid your flowerbeds. Also, placing eggshells around the base of plants will deter pests because of the rough territory and the risk of getting hurt.
A way to add a fast-growing burst of colour to any space, seed bombs are a trend that has spread all over TikTok. Seed bombs are small containers full of seeds, soil and compost, and all that is required is a clear patch of dirt and regular watering, which can more often than not come from natural rainfall. You throw the seed bomb into the desired spot and, after a few weeks, the first flower roots will make their way out of the bomb and begin sprouting. There are many tutorials on the site for making seed bombs, but they are very popular with independent retailers too.
The plants that seed bombs produce are a lifesaver for bees, birds, insects, many small mammals and the ecosystems they are a part of. However, despite this increase in flowers and plants being good for the environment, many videos of seed bombs show someone throwing them into urban spaces sparse of flowers and trees that they do not own. It’s crucial that you throw them in a place where it’s entirely legal to do so if you use seed bombs. Otherwise, you may get into serious trouble.
A popular trend back in the 1970s, avocados have come back in style in a big way. High in antioxidants, avocados provide the body with many necessary vitamins, lower cholesterol levels, aid weight loss and help relieve symptoms of chronic diseases. Because of their benefits, over 6,000 avocados are bought each hour in the U.K.[ii]. This has led to the rising trend in growing them from seed in the garden.
Simple to grow and requiring very little maintenance, avocado trees can be grown indoors and out. All you’ll need to do is remove and clean the pit from a regular avocado, half-submerge it in a glass of water on a sunny windowsill (where it will eventually begin to sprout), then, when it gets to around 15cm tall, plant in soil. From there, all it will need is frequent watering to keep the soil moist. It is worth growing several avocado trees, as it is never certain that a single seed will produce fruit.
Every plant has different needs. Some only need care very rarely, while others require daily preservation to keep them alive, and it’s only natural that you won’t always be there to water your necessitous plants. So if you’re not going to be around for a few days (or you feel like being lazy for a little while), this TikTok hack is the perfect answer.
Automatic plant watering systems and other alternatives can be pretty expensive, especially if you have a few flowerbeds that you need to look after. So take some inspiration from this TikToker, and recycle old wine or soda bottles by washing them out, filling them with water and using these to water your plants while you’re gone. Then, stick them mouth first into the soil so the water can flow steadily out, keeping your garden alive and you at ease.
Gardening, although a rewarding hobby, is often a case of trial and error. Finding tricks that work for you and your garden can be a long process, but with the internet at your fingertips, new ideas for you to have a go at are never too far away! And to complement your modernized garden, why not add some exciting garden decorations, and harmonize your outdoor space?
Are there any garden trends that you’ve been enjoying recently? Let us know in the comments below!
[i] https://www.lovethegarden.com/uk-en/article/gardening-popularity-it-growing-or-declining#:~:text=In%20the%20UK%2C%20there%20are,people%20who%20partake%20in%20gardening.
Ryan Jenkins is a professional gardener and has been working in the gardening industry for over 25 years. This has allowed Ryan to accumulate a vast wealth of gardening knowledge which he shares on the Sefton Meadows blog.
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