Energy saving ideas for your garden

Energy saving ideas for your garden 

World Earth Day (22^nd April) is fast approaching and one of the ways you can take part this year is to make some changes to your garden with the future of the planet in mind. These options range from simple to radical, but each one of them is a viable energy saving alternative.

Solar power

Solar lights are an attractive option purely because they accumulate their power from the sun, a renewable energy source, making them a simple investment to save energy. Rarely needing to be replaced, they are likely to outlive their electricity-powered counterparts whilst helping you save money on your electricity bills.

Man over machine

The most energy guzzling facet of maintaining a garden is the plethora of machines that can be used. A far more energy efficient alternative is to do the tasks that would otherwise be done by machine, by hand. Whilst this seems like an arduous step to take, there are a multitude of quality tools that can make your job that bit easier.

Prevent water loss via evaporation

Adding mulch to your flowerbeds is an easy way to save energy in your garden. Mulch helps plants to retain the water that would otherwise be lost to evaporation by lowering the ground temperature. Mulch can take a variety of forms but wood chips are perhaps the most effective organic option.

Re-use rainwater

The thought of collecting rainwater seems like an outdated and troublesome task. In reality, however, it can be very straight-forward, not to mention a great money-saving hack. Garden equipment such as water butts can be installed to automatically store the water that naturally collects in drainpipes; giving you a steady supply of water with which to water plants and wash your car.

Water in the morning

The most efficient time to water your plants is in the morning as less water will be lost through evaporation when the temperature is lower. Because of the lawn diseases caused by water droplets clinging to grass overnight, watering at night is also best avoided.

Xeriscaping

The most drastic step you could take would be to adopt a Xeriscaping approach. Aiming to completely eliminate the need for supplemental water to maintain a healthy and prosperous garden, xeriscaping largely focuses on selecting low-water consuming plants.

Contrary to popular opinion, xeriscaping need not result in the production of a characterless cactus and gravel filled garden in the vein of the desert ridden areas of the South-western United States. Stones and pebbles can be interspersed with a range of drought-resistant plants to startling visual effect. Coneflower, lantana, lavender, day lilies, and penstemon are just five stunning examples of drought-resistant plants that would brighten up any garden.

Hopefully this article has given you a grounding in how you can make a significant contribution to World Earth Day by making some energy-saving changes to your garden.

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