Garden Security Alert!

Much as we might all revel in the joys of extended summer evenings, according to insurance company Aviva, the welcome additional hours of daylight can signal a distinctly unwelcome flurry of activity from opportunist thieves. 

New figures from Aviva predict a 25% rise in the number of backyards, garages and sheds being targeted as soon as Britain’s clocks go forward for British Summer Time. 

Bicycles, lawnmowers, garden tools and children’s outdoor toys represent the most likely targets, with the average haul at this time of year usually totalling around £900 worth of goods. 

Aviva estimates that thefts from outside the house can increase as much as 10% once the evenings get lighter, compared with the dark nights of January. Household underwriter at Aviva, Jonathan Cracknell says “Extra light means that all those expensive power tools, bikes and golf clubs could now be on full show for everyone to see, including a passing criminal … Garden security or lack of it, is much more visible so we would urge all homeowners to make sure their sheds and summerhouses are properly secured and remember to clear up the garden every evening so there is nothing left lying around to tempt the opportunist thief”.

You have been warned!

Get Garden Fit!

Most of us feel like we’ve put in a good day’s work, after gardening for hours on end. But can gardening really be considered as good exercise? According to the University of Virginia, gardening rates up there with other moderate to strenuous forms of exercise, like walking and bicycling. Naturally, this will all depend on what gardening task you are doing and for how long. Like any other form of exercise, you have to be active for at least 30 minutes to see a direct benefit. Although you may not always realize it, while enjoying yourself in the garden, you are also working all the major muscle groups: legs, buttocks, arms, shoulders, neck, back and abdomen. Gardening tasks that use these muscles build strength and burn calories.

Besides the exertion involved, gardening has other pluses that make it a good means of exercise and calorie burning. There can be a great deal of stretching involved with gardening, like reaching for weeds or tall branches, bending to plant and extending a rake. Lifting bags of mulch, pushing wheelbarrows and shoveling all provide resistance training similar to weight lifting, which leads to healthier bones and joints. Yet while doing all this, there is minimal jarring and stress on the body, unlike aerobics or jogging.

And if you want to shed some pounds to prepare for the potential feasting frenzy that is Christmas, take note of the following research from Iowa State University, which shows how some of the more strenuous gardening tasks can really burn calories.

• Digging Holes - Men: 197 calories, Women: 150 calories
• Planting - Men: 177 calories, Women: 135 calories
• Weeding - Men: 157 calories, Women: 156 calories

In addition, further research shows that gardening for just 30 minutes daily will help:

• Increase flexibility
• Strengthen joints
• Decrease blood pressure and cholesterol levels
• Lower your risk for diabetes
• Slow osteoporosis

So if you are planning to tuck into mountains of mince pies and tones of turkey , - you know exactly what to do if you want to avoid starting 2011 with an uncomfortably tight waistband!!

Courting Kerb Appeal

September often marks a window of opportunity in the property market, capitalizing on the period when the mayhem of summer is over and the chaos of Christmas still looms in the future.  If you are thinking of putting your house on the market, remember the importance of ‘kerb appeal’ if you want your property to attract potential buyers. 

Initial impressions really do matter so if the first feature that catches a prospective purchaser’s eye is an unkempt front garden, scruffy path and battered gate – there is a good chance they may just drive on!  Property Ladder TV presenter Sarah Beeny advises "Imagine if the garden was over run with brambles and there was rubbish blocking the pathway. First impressions count for a lot. A bad appearance can do a lot of damage." It doesn't take a great deal of effort to change this though, Sarah suggests

 "However small the space is, add some greenery. You don't need a big garden to plant a creeper, and houses look beautiful with plants trailing up them. And you can easily make window boxes yourself. Just paint a plastic planter and plant it with some draping ivy. Landscaped beds with colourful planting and box hedges set off the front of a house; or for smaller spaces, such as either side of the front door, think about investing in some planters with box topiary.” 

Why not talk to a member of our design team to find out how you can enhance your property’s kerb appeal!

Merging Indoor Living with Outdoor Living

A recent article in The Independent drew attention to the number of hours we can sometimes spend choosing planting schemes and agonizing over paving materials for the garden, which is sometimes in sharp contrast to the lack of effort put into selecting the  furniture which will adorn the outdoor room. 

Given that a sizeable chunk of our well earned ‘garden’ down time is likely to entail eating, drinking or simply chilling, it seems ridiculous that  we are content to compromise on such a significant detail.  However, as the trend for outdoor living spaces continues to gather momentum, there is a growing body of designers who take pride in incorporating bespoke seating into their plans to achieve not only the delivery of a functional practical seating solution but to also provide a striking stylish focal point for the outside room. 

Choice of material, colour and the all important comfort factor are important points to consider when reviewing built in seating options and in our wonderful British climate, it is also advisable to incorporate some easy to access storage options to house any cushions during the less sunny months!  Speak to a member of our design team to find out more on this subject ….

Brit's Love their gardens - It's Official!

Yes, we Brits do love a good garden. A recent study by Yorkshire Bank showed that UK homeowners who do not have a garden would be willing to pay about a third of their annual income in order to add a green space to their home. Add to that the impact the recession and the emergence of the “conscience consumer” has had in terms of fuelling the growth of the “Grow your own revolution”(garden centres report a 60% increase in sales of vegetable seeds in the last year) and it is evident that an accessible, welcoming outdoor space is fast becoming a must-have for UK house buyers.

Keep Healthy, Grab some Garden Living

We all know the benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle and since the nation is currently on a red alert due to the outbreak of Swine Flu, never has it been more important to make sure you and your family take all the necessary precautions to stay well. Advice from NHS 24 suggests “staying at home and avoiding crowds of people could help you to avoid the virus” and that “leading a healthy lifestyle will help you to be better equipped to fight off infection… taking regular exercise, will help to keep you fit and healthy”. Taking on board this advice, coupled with the knowledge that stress can weaken the immune system leaving us vulnerable to infection, and it seems that spending more time in our very own stress free garden sanctuary is a sensible health savvy decision.