GETTING your garden ready for summer can be tricky, especially if you are on a tight budget or have limited time.
One gardening pro, however, has revealed how he added a raised flowerbed for free – using an item he’d usually recycle.
In fact, this hack is perfect for those that aren’t green-fingered.
Like many of us, influencer Jon Irwin was keen to get his outdoor space ready for the summer and wanted to add a raised flower bed.
Better known as @revivehometips on social media, the amatuer decided to use a hack he’d seen online.
Rather than spending a small fortune on the space, the home renovation expert used cardboard boxes to kick-start his summer garden.
Armed with just a few large boxes and a shovel, the content creator began by clearing the area for the flower bed.
Having removed the top layer of soil, roughly 6 inches, Jon then broke apart the boxes and laid them over the exposed earth to marking out where the flower bed would be.
While this might seem strange, the old boxes will break down over the coming months and add carbon, along with other nutrients, to the soil.
It’s a great way to start your raised flower bed, as your plants will have extra minerals to help them thrive over the dry summer months.
The hack also has the added advantage of blocking weeds from growing, as the cardboard breaks down.
Instead of just covering it in topsoil though, the gardener made sure to use small stakes to keep the boxes in place before tidying up the flower bed’s edge with a strimmer.
After adding bark chips over the top, the doting dad even got the kids involved with them watering the flower bed to help the cardboard break down faster.
With the flower bed now complete, the patch will be ready to add fresh flowers and shrubs in just a few weeks.
Unsurprisingly, the hack has gone viral with over 1 million people seeing the video on his TikTok page (@revivehometips).
Many raved in the comments about the hack, with some even sharing that they’d tested this method before.
One wrote: “I always wet cardboard. Works great.”
“I did this last fall and the cardboard did what it needed to do, and I just added my 1st plants of the season,” added another.
A third even argued: “This is actually more effective than root barrier.”
Others suggested using newspaper, with a fourth explaining: “Literally the best blooms my parents’ garden got when I was a kid was doing this with newspaper.”
For anyone who is tempted to try this method, you can often find broken-down cardboard boxes at your local supermarket for free.
You just ask the staff if they have any left over.
Alternatively, you can use boxes from deliveries or even old newspapers.
With this gardening tip, your outdoor space will be blooming lovely in no time.
If you are looking for a bit of gardening inspiration, here are five plants you can easily grow in your raised flower bed.
