Garden & Outdoor

How to choose garden furniture that survives a British winter

Garden furniture in the UK spends more of the year in weather than in use, and that's what determines whether it lasts three years or ten.

• PE and poly rattan is synthetic and handles rain, frost and UV far better than natural rattan, which is an indoor material and will not survive outside. Check the description says PE, poly or all-weather.
• Powder-coated aluminium frames don't rust. Steel frames do, once the coating chips, and it chips where chairs stack and scrape.
• Acacia and hardwood tops need oiling once or twice a year to stop them greying and splitting. That's a genuine maintenance commitment, not a suggestion.
• Glass tops should be tempered. It's standard on garden sets but worth confirming.

Cushions are the weak point

Cushions fail long before frames. Bring them in when not in use, or at minimum store them in a waterproof box, a cushion left out through October is mouldy by November, and the covers rarely recover. A cheap storage box costs less than replacing a set of cushions once.

How to measure your space before buying

Garden furniture is consistently bigger in a real garden than it looks in a photograph.

• Mark it out with string or chalk at the actual dimensions before ordering
• Leave 70-90cm behind each chair so people can push back and stand up without hitting a wall or a plant
• Check the route through the house or side gate. A 9-piece dining set arrives in several large boxes
• Consider the surface. Furniture on grass sinks and wobbles; a patio, deck or slab base is what these sets are designed for

How to choose a cordless strimmer

• Voltage indicates power. 18-21V handles light garden edges and long grass around obstacles. 24V and above copes with tougher growth and larger areas.
• Two batteries is the meaningful upgrade, not a bigger motor. Most cordless strimmers run 20-40 minutes; a second battery doubles your working session and charges while you use the other.
• Blades versus line. Plastic blades last longer than nylon line on tough growth and are easier to replace, but line is gentler around trees and fence posts.
• Check the weight and the handle. Strimming is done at arm's length, and a kilo of difference is felt within ten minutes.

Using one safely

Wear eye protection and sturdy shoes: strimmers throw stones and debris at speed. Keep children and pets well clear, check the area for hidden obstacles before starting, and never use one in wet grass with an extension lead.

How to set up garden irrigation

Drip irrigation uses far less water than a hose and puts it where plants need it, at the root rather than the leaves.

• Lay the main hose along the bed and run smaller feeder tubes to individual plants
• Water early morning or evening. Midday watering loses much of it to evaporation before it reaches the roots
• A timer turns it into a system rather than a chore, and matters most when you're away
• Drain it before the first frost. Water left in tubing expands as it freezes and splits the hose

How to get more use out of a British garden

The season is short, and a few things genuinely extend it:

• A swing or hammock in a sheltered corner gets used on days when the middle of the garden is too windy
• Furniture near the house gets used far more than furniture at the bottom of the garden, proximity beats the better view
• Something to sit on that stays dry means a break in the weather can be used immediately rather than after drying everything off