7 Landscaping Jobs to Get Done Before Spring

Spring is just around the corner, and in Northland, that means gardens are about to burst back into life. With our warmer climate and longer growing season, gardens around Kerikeri can start getting busy earlier than many parts of New Zealand. If you've been putting off those bigger outdoor jobs over winter, now is a great time to get organised before the garden really gets going. From refreshing tired garden beds to creating new outdoor living spaces, here are seven landscaping jobs worth tackling before spring arrives.

1. Give tired garden beds a makeover

Winter is a great time to take a fresh look at your existing garden beds. Over time, gardens can become overcrowded, plants can outgrow their spaces and the original design can lose its impact. Removing plants that aren't performing, reshaping beds and introducing new planting can make an enormous difference without completely starting again. Think about colour, texture, height and how the garden will look throughout the year rather than simply filling empty spaces. A well-designed garden should evolve with the property rather than becoming a collection of plants that have gradually accumulated over time.

2. Plant trees and larger plants

Late winter is a great time to get larger plants and trees established before the warmer months arrive. Planting while the soil is moist gives new plants an opportunity to establish their root systems before the heat of summer. In Northland, we have a particularly good range of native and exotic plants that can thrive in our conditions.

Think beyond just ornamental plants too. Fruit trees, shade trees and native species can all add long-term value to a property. If you're considering planting larger trees, it's also worth thinking ahead about their eventual size and position. The right tree in the right place can become a feature for decades, while the wrong one can create problems later.

3. Refresh your lawn

Spring is when lawns really start to come back to life, making late winter a good time to assess whether yours needs some attention. Look for bare patches, compacted areas, weeds or sections where the grass has become thin and unhealthy.

Depending on the condition of the lawn, you might be better off repairing selected areas or starting again with a new lawn. For larger areas, preparing the ground properly before laying turf or sowing seed can make a significant difference to the finished result. A healthy lawn also provides a great foundation for the rest of your landscaping, particularly if you have children or pets using the garden.

4. Improve your pathways and access

Winter is a good time to think about whether you actually enjoy moving around your garden. Are there areas that are difficult to access? Do you have muddy shortcuts across the lawn? Could a pathway make the garden easier to navigate? Would some steps make a sloping section more usable? Thoughtfully designed pathways can do much more than get you from A to B. They can guide people through the garden, connect different outdoor areas and make previously underused parts of a property more accessible. Materials such as concrete, stone, gravel or timber can also become design features in their own right.

5. Create or upgrade an outdoor entertaining area

As spring approaches, thoughts naturally turn towards spending more time outside.

If your outdoor area isn't currently working for the way you use your home, now is a good time to start planning improvements. Perhaps you'd like a larger deck, a covered entertaining area, an outdoor kitchen, built-in seating or a better connection between your indoor and outdoor spaces. Good landscape design can turn an unused section of the property into somewhere you'll actually want to spend time. Getting started before summer also means you can enjoy the finished space when the warmer weather arrives.

6. Tackle those awkward or unused spaces

Almost every property has an area that isn't being used particularly well. It might be a steep bank, an untidy side passage, an empty corner or a section of the garden that has become difficult to maintain. Rather than simply working around these spaces, consider what they could become. A steep area might be transformed with terracing. An unused corner could become a feature garden. A narrow side passage could be turned into a practical accessway. Even a small area can have a purpose when it's included in the overall garden design. Sometimes the biggest improvement to a property comes from making better use of the space you already have.

7. Plan your spring planting and landscaping now

The final job is perhaps the most important: make a plan. Rather than heading to the garden centre in spring and buying plants on impulse, think about what you want your garden to look and feel like over the next few years.

Consider:

• Which areas need more privacy?

• Where would you like shade?

• Do you want more native planting?

• Which areas need less maintenance?

• Could you create better outdoor entertaining spaces?

• Are there areas that need new planting or landscaping?

• How will the garden look as plants mature?

  
  

Having a clear plan makes it easier to create a cohesive garden rather than tackling one small project at a time.

Make the most of spring in your garden

Spring is one of the most exciting times of year for gardening in the Bay of Islands, but it can also be one of the busiest. Getting the bigger landscaping jobs planned now means you can spend more of spring enjoying the results rather than trying to organise everything at once. Whether you're looking for a complete garden makeover, a new lawn, better pathways, additional planting or an outdoor entertaining area, Kererū Development can help bring your ideas together. A great garden doesn't happen overnight. A little planning now can make a big difference when spring arrives.