Make your garden more interesting by adding any number of easy garden projects. The simplest is to simply add a chair, bench or table under a tree or in a shady spot. This will encourage use of and pleasure in your garden. Children and older people will feel welcomed because they can sit in comfort and enjoy the scenery.

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But don’t stop there – read on for many other easy garden projects.

Here are some more easy garden projects that can be done in a day or a weekend.

BAMBOO PARTY LIGHTS

Got a special garden or pool party coming up? Split one end of a thick bamboo stake into 4 equal parts. Carefully spread the four ends and insert a small drinking glass. Ie wire firmly around the bamboo a few inches below the glass and at the rim, then trim off the excess above the rim. Use kitchen tongs to insert a tea light into the glass. Tie to the pool fence or push into soft soil in the garden. Repeat for more lights.

STEPPING STONES

This easy garden project will make your children feel special, with their very own names on a stepping-stone. Spread about 1 cm of sand into a pizza box. Use pebbles or marbles to make your child’s name in the sand. Make sure they are no more than half buried in the sand. Carefully pour rapid-set concrete mix on top of the sand to cover the pebbles. Lay a piece of wire mesh over the cement and fill up the box with the cement mix. Allow to set for 24 hours, then tip out of box and brush away sand with a wire brush. Remember to make the name BACKWARDS in the box, so it will come out the right way. You could also get your child to make a hand print in the dampened sand first.

Stepping stones can lead to your child’s very own piece of garden and help to keep those adventurous feet off your precious plants. Plant a cherry tomato, corn or some strawberries at the end especially for your child to eat.

DRY CREEK BED

An easy garden project that the children can help you with is to make a dry creek bed. It can be as long or wide as you choose, but a curved shape is great and can give the appearance of length as it disappeared around a bush.

Rake out a shallow shape in your garden. Lay down black plastic to fit and poke a few drainage holes through at the lowest part. Cover with a mix of river sand, small and larger pebbles and rocks. Add a small wooden bridge if liked, or some driftwood collected on a trip. A few grasses or ferns at the edges will aid a soft and natural look. Great for dryer areas.

PATIO POND

This is a very decorative and yet easy garden project. Fill a half wine cask with water and add a pot containing an aqua plant. Pop in a few goldfish to keep the mosquitoes from breeding. Surround with foliage plants and/or rocks and add a statue of a bird, rabbit, dwarf, or whatever takes your fancy. A submersible pump will help to keep the water aerated, but is not strictly necessary.

A hollow piece of pipe in the bottom will make a safe place for fish to hide from hungry birds or cats until the plant grows bigger. This can also be placed in a shady part of the garden, but put it up on bricks so the bottom doesn’t rot out. Take care if you have toddlers. Make sure you scrub the cask out first using plain water only.

LIVING MOSAIC

This easy garden project will add interest to that bare wall or the fence above your garden. Lay out eight bamboo stakes, four of them in a vertical position and four others across them in a horizontal position. Glue, nail or wire them together where they cross.

You will have nine squares. Hang this shape either by one side – or one corner for a diamond pattern – on the wall so that you can still reach the topmost part. Plant a Chinese star jasmine below it and train it along the bamboo. Prune it carefully to maintain the shape of the nine squares.