Time is always of the essence in creating, developing, and maintaining a garden. Whatever we create we have to maintain — at least to retain some semblance of order, which in the garden combines aesthetics and function. Last year’s hurricanes did a good job in clearing out both desirable and non-desirable material, the latter simply due to lack of ongoing maintenance, and the same will happen again if the same scenario is adhered to.

Use plants, lawns and hard landscapes to your advantage whilst still creating a statement. Hedges for example appear a permanent staple in the garden, but often to excess, they can also become labour intensive when planted incorrectly, as in too close to the boundary, too close together or simply the wrong plant for the area.

Instead of hedges consider a mixed planting consisting of small trees, shrubs and ground covers which when viewed from the house will be a bold colourful statement, and hopefully less maintenance.

If you are seeking privacy between neighbouring properties consider a fence or trellis with vines, this is useful in small gardens when land use is important to the owner for other needs.

Create footpaths which lead to a destination, narrow ones for defining a quiet area or for “single” traffic whilst wider paths for use when arriving to a dominant feature such as the front entrance or BBQ area or an area that will be well used when entertaining. Such a feature will save a lot of wear and tear on the lawn when pedestrian traffic will be eliminated.

Shade in the garden is desirous during the hot summer months however the deciding factor as to type is obviously location but just as important the size of area that will accommodate the shade tree. On large properties the selection is greater ranging from the Albizia lebbek — Black Ebony which is deciduous and therefore will tolerate more open locations better, to the Delonix regia — Royal Poinciana, Lonchocarpus violaceous — Lilac Tree both being deciduous but requiring a more protected location.

In the case of small properties in which small trees would make a better fit, height and canopy spread are not necessarily adequate to fulfil the need, therefore to obtain the desired effect consider using groups of trees. Terminalia muelleri — Small leaved West Indian Almond has an upright habit and is relatively hardy, whilst Schefflera actinophylla — Umbrella Tree which some think of as an invasive, is also a good tree when planted in a group. The important thing to remember with a shade tree is simply it needs to achieve maturity quickly in order to fulfil the requisite shade, if planted too small the recipients themselves may be well past caring about the shade cast!

If the garden produces a lot of waste and there is enough room to create a compost heap it is well worth the effort as one can then recycle the horticultural waste; small chipping machines can reduce the average twigs, etc to a compostable size; the alternative is to pay for it to be removed.

Garden waste is oft determined by the design and more so the efficacy of the maintenance programme; I am of the opinion many properties are “overly” maintained in areas of pruning especially.

With a good selection process of plants for the specific area combined with correct spacing apart pruning should be an exercise carried out two or three times per year, certainly “not on every other Tuesday” when the landscape company converge on the property with machetes poised for the massacre, the mowers revved to shave whatever the grass type to ground level and the blower in full throttle to disperse whatever is in its way to someone else’s property.

The lawn occupies a fair amount of the average garden and is therefore a visual impact area; a good lawn sets off a property.

A good lawn by its very nature is best kept to one specific grass type, the selection being based on the location and function of the lawn; St Augustine Floratem — usually planted as plugs — is best cut to a minimum height of three inches, it is therefore not a good grass for regular foot traffic, but more of a show lawn giving a carpet effect. It is also tolerant to an extent to coastal areas. Bermuda grass — usually established via seeding — is a good old format for a green patch in the garden; it can be cut short or long. Zoysia a much maligned grass — mainly because it is not maintained correctly — creates a fine lawn when mown close and stripped or boxed, it is however a high maintenance grass and should be mowed with a reel mower not a rotary mower.

Hard landscaping will complement the garden if thought out as to layout and interplay with the surrounding areas, Bermuda offers long periods of sunny weather in which the outdoors can be well utilised be it by the pool or lounging around on the chaise longue waiting for the BBQ to kick in.

Vistas are oft best viewed from a patio or deck and will not succumb to the wear and tear that a lawn would. To reduce the maintenance required consider converting parts of the more difficult parts of the garden to “hard areas” such as steps or a ramp instead of grass slopes. Incorporate containers in varying sizes and shapes in both plant beds and on patios and paths with a mix of seasonal of permanent plantings that fit the area. The question of shade mentioned earlier, can also be addressed by using pergolas or gazebos in the garden setting, with the latter being an entity itself when used for entertaining.

Enjoy the summer and garden in comfort. It’s yours, you paid for it!