Halloween Gardens 2021
Halloween may have started as a US tradition, but over the years we have come to celebrate the holiday more and more in the UK. Especially those who have children or grandchildren.
Last year, many children were left disappointed when they couldn’t go out trick or treating in the local area. So this year, why not give your children, or even the local children, something to enjoy by bringing Halloween to your garden!
Front To Back
When it comes to creating a Halloween garden, the choice is yours whether you use your front or back garden. Your back garden allows your children, family and friends to enjoy the garden in private. While the front garden offers the local area somewhere to enjoy and get them talking about Halloween! You will need to make some adjustments to what can be used in the front garden as opposed to the back garden.
Pumpkin Patch
Now, not all of us will have been growing pumpkins ready for this season, but that doesn’t mean you can’t introduce a pumpkin patch! Head over to your local farm shop, fruit and veg stall, or even your local supermarket and grab yourself a selection of different sized pumpkins. You can either leave these whole and intact, or you can cut them into Jack-O-Lanterns and pop in a candle or solar light to bring them to life at night. Grouping them together gives them one big impact, or dot them around the garden for a game of count the pumpkins!
Spider Season
This time of year usually sees spiders heading inside where it’s warm and dry. So why not create your own spiders for the garden. Gather together small twigs, and tie them together with a bit of black wool to create garden spiders. You can then suspend them from trees, sheds, gutters or even the washing line with some white cotton to make them dangle in the faces of smaller children.
You can even go one step further by adding a few ghost spiders. The Hymenocallis littoralis (AKA the beach spider lily) looks like ghost spiders while in flower. Consider adding a few of these in your pumpkin patch for added effect. Please note that this flowers from late summer through the start of autumn. This means that it should be in flower for Halloween, but may not be for long after.
Who’s That Figure?
If you are feeling a bit inventive this year, you might want to get yourself some chicken wire and tin snips. Using chicken wire you can create yourself a range of ghostly figures for your garden. Some opt for a simple ghost shape, while others go all out and create a human shape, or maybe even some animals to stalk the garden. When dusk hits and the lights a little hazy, you’ll find them looking like ghostly figures lurking in the garden. Please take care when doing this as the chicken wire can be sharp.
Berry Blood
If you have berries in your garden, you might have found that some of them have gone bad while on the bush. Halloween is the perfect time to make use of these berries by turning them into berry blood! It’s a much safer alternative to fake blood for the wildlife in your garden, while still looking realistic.
Hit The Shops
If all else fails when trying to use garden produce and natural products to create your Halloween garden, you can always head to the shops. Most stores now offer a selection of garden safe Halloween products that you can use to create the right atmosphere. Try heading to garden centres first and foremost as these will have the best outdoor products while considering the local wildlife.
If you are ever unsure if a product is going to be safe for wildlife in your garden, please avoid using it. Likewise, any spray colours as these can also damage the plants in your garden and contaminate the soil.
We hope you enjoy celebrating Halloween this year, whether it’s with the kids or just a time of year you enjoy. If you need any assistance in your garden in the coming months, please get in touch with the team today who will be happy to assist you.