Bring your outdoors to life

Some people think it is only indoors that should look nice and in the process they forget about the outdoors. However, brightening up your outdoors can not only impress your visitors but lift your spirits, when you decide to lounge outside as well. Barbara Nakimbugwe, a florist and a landscaper, gives tips on how you can make this happen.

Hang your plants
Hang hooks in your porch arches to hang flower baskets. Hang a few flower baskets on the porch area. But you should know that the way you organise your flower pots also matters a lot. After planting your flowers, try to make the whole set-up look beautiful by using white stones to cover the soil in the baskets.

Scented plants
Choose scented plants, so that when you decide to sit outside in the evenings, you can enjoy the scents. If you do not like scented flowers, or are allergic to them, seek out a specialist who can help you choose unscented flowers.

Plant flowers such as Lilies and the Night Queen by your porch and windows to be able to enjoy their scents. Plant Roses in pots and position them in your porch and by your windows as well.

Furniture
Craft chairs and tables too, can liven up your outdoor spaces, depending on the sizes of these areas. Re-cycle your waste and put it to good use, while beautifying your outdoors at the same time. Cover used plastic bottles using their caps. Lay them on their side and cut holes in the upper sides of the bottles. The holes should be big enough to let plants grow out of them.

But for outdoor sitting areas, choose chairs and tables that are weather resistant and put cushions on them only when you are going to use them.

Bottles
Punch holes on the undersides of the bottles to allow for good drainage. Fill the bottles with soil and plant creepers or plants that do not grow too high in them.

Some plants that can liven up your outdoors do not even need soil for them to grow. They thrive better in water. To make them look beautiful, plant them in glass bottles. Examples of plants that can grow in water only are the Blue Water Lily and Bamboo.

Use colours
Moses Ssekyanzi a painter adds that another way of brightening up your outdoors is by choosing the right paint. “Paint your outdoor areas in exciting colours. Use bright colours such as lemon green, light blue and light yellow. Choose colours that reflect nature.”

Light your outdoor areas at night, to brighten them up. Install bright lights, since other areas will be dark.

Choose creepers like the Wandering Jew for your hanging baskets. They flow out at some point and will add beauty to your outdoors.’

Hakim Babara, a compound designer located along Mukwano Road in Nsambya, advises homeowners to choose appropriate grass varieties that will brighten up their lawns.

He cautions against planting certain types of grass, like the one from South Africa locally known as Jija. He says it requires a lot of water and is difficult to maintain. It may therefore end up not looking good.
He recommends another grass variety called Pemba, saying it is easier to maintain.