These Boots Were Made For… Gardening!

As the cold mornings and autumnal drizzle wash away all remnants of this year’s warm summer, one could be forgiven for thinking that gardening activity has also been packed up for the year, but nothing could be further from the truth!  One of the things I love about being a gardener is that there’s always something to do, whatever the season, or weather: you just need to ensure that you have the right gear!

While summer gardening is spent standing on firm turf and dry soil, the autumnal months of September, October and  November are often spent in wet soil, muddy flower beds and tramping around in piles of wet and slipper leaves, making the right gardening footwear essential.

Luckily, the unisex Aigle Benyl wellington boots make gardening in the cold and wet a doddle.  Hand-made in France by master craftsmen from natural rubber, the Aigle Benyl is an excellent boot for general use.  Its natural rubber upper keeps you dry, while its polyamide knit, rot-proof washable and fast-drying lining keeps you warm.

So there really are no excuses this autumn: as the old adage goes, there’s no such thing as bad weather; just unsuitable clothing!  So make sure you’re prepared for an autumn and winter of gardening duties this year with the Aigle Benyl wellington boot. 

It's 2013: why not get a robot to mow your lawn?

Whilst gardening is perceived by many to be a timeless, traditional and rather quaint pastime, the gardener of 2013 can call upon  a truly diverse range of technological gadgets and wizardry to help save time or, if desired, effort!  Take the cutting edge robot lawn mower, the Honda Miimo for example.  Yes, you read heard me correctly: a robot lawn mower!

A wonderful new piece of machinery to help automate the aesthetic beauty of your garden, the Honda Miimo is a truly impressive piece of kit.  A robot lawn mower, this little beauty will run around doing the hard work so that you don’t have to!

While many of you may be worrying about a robot flying off and chopping your flowerbeds up, you needn’t worry!  A full set of cutting patterns can be easily programmed in to give a combination of patterns on your lawn, while the Miimo’s ‘random pattern’ ensures an even overall finish to your lawn.  The Miimo even produced less stress for your grass, ensuring a healthier, happier lawn.

The Honda Miimo will also work for as long as you want it to, thanks to its intelligent charging system.  While its lithium ion battery lasts twice as long as more traditional batteries, it also knows when it needs to re-charge and wheels itself off to the docking station, which can be placed anywhere in your garden, thus ensuring it’s charged and ready to keep mowing!

The intelligence of the Honda Miimo does not stop here however: as with all Honda products, superb design and intelligence has been crafted into the machine.  Rather than having to empty great buckets of grass clippings, the Miimo’s clever automation continues effortlessly.  The machine spreads tiny grass particles, which fall down and are locked under the thatch of the grass.  Not only does this save us gardeners the laborious task of raking up clippings or emptying the machine every five minutes, but it is actually beneficial for the garden itself, fertilising the lawn and reducing weeds on the surface.

Those of you with children or pets may have visions of a rampaging robot running over various animals and children, but this is not the case!  The Honda Miimo has a 360° floating cover, which means it is able to sense contact and will stop the moment it touches a person or a pet, making it a safe and reliable product to enjoy as part of your family life in the garden.

And as we approach autumn, it’s also important to note that the Miimo is completely rainproof, thanks to its sealed inner workings, meaning that you don’t have to keep putting it away in the garden: especially useful for those of you that live in the rainy Peak District like me!

So if you want to enjoy a perfect lawn without the back-breaking work of constant mowing, raking and cutting-collecting, then the Honda Miimo is the perfect product for you.

Top Tips To Get Your Garden Winter-Ready This Autumn

It all happened so quickly; one moment you’re relaxing in a deckchair in the sun, the next you’re wrapping up warm and sweeping leaves off the drive. It may have been a sudden transition this year but autumn is certainly upon us. Next thing we know, we’ll be shivering away in hats and scarves in the biting cold of winter. And that means that in order to get the best from your garden, you should be changing your gardening habits now, in line with the season to ensure that your plants get through the cold winter months to come. Here are a few things to try.

Plant Your Bulbs

Now is the time to get planting your spring bulbs, in order to give them adequate time to grow. Treat yourself to some hyacinths, crocus, iris and daffodils and you can look forward to a colourful springtime during the bleak winter months. To add some colour all year round, you can also try planting some evergreens such as conifers. The warm autumn soil will help your plants get rooted.

Look After Your Lawn

After the hot summer, your lawn may be looking a little dried out, so autumn is the perfect time to give it some good old fashioned TLC. With the warm soil and plenty of water from the rain, autumn is a great time for re-seeding your lawn. Ensure that the ground is level, spread seeds over the area and keep it moist for a few week; you’ll soon be rewarded with a luscious new green lawn. If you’re not planning on getting the mower out over the winter month, it may also be worth getting it serviced and checking the blades ready for next year.

Feed The Birds

If you have a large garden which often attracts birds, give your feathered friends a fighting chance over winter. You can pick up bird seed mixtures and even cake and food bars at your local pet shop, or just provide them with leftover rice and oats. Set up a bird table or purchase a feeder and enjoy some extra garden decoration from these beautiful creatures.

Tidy Up

Now really is the time to keep on top of your garden before the winter months when you’ll be more reluctant to venture outside. Make sure that you are up to date on your weeding, and trim back any hedges to stop them becoming overgrown. Once the leaves start falling, try to sweep them regularly – about once a week. Dead leaves can attract pests, and you’ll find it much easier to keep on top of things if you don’t allow them to pile up. It is also a great time to clear your shed out; get rid of any rusty old equipment, and disinfect everything else before it goes away for winter.

Invest In A Wheelbarrow

The wheelbarrow is your new best friend during the autumn months; allowing you to easily transport new bulbs, soil, fertiliser, weeds, leaves and more. When choosing a wheelbarrow, consider whether you would prefer a single-wheel barrow – which is easy to manoeuver but can topple easily – or a dual-wheel model, which is stable but more difficult. Invest in a sturdy wheelbarrow of your choice, with puncture-proof, pneumatic tyre wheels to make all those gardening jobs a little bit easier.

This guest post was written by Emma Williams on behalf of Rolltek International LTD. Rolltek are suppliers of high quality wheels, suitable for wheelbarrows, garden trolleys and sack trucks – perfect for all garden work this autumn.