Preparing Your Garden for Spring

With the winter frost thawing out and the days getting longer, now is the perfect time to get outside and prepare your garden for spring, and the rest of the year. Your garden is the ideal space to enjoy the summer weather – we recommend getting stuck in now and making your garden a desirable space again! Here, we’ll give you our top tips for preparing your garden for spring.

Preparing your decking for spring

Sweeping

Before you can give your decking a good clean and inspect the wood and fittings, you first need to clear away debris that has built up over the winter. Use a yard brush for this task.

Inspection

Your should inspect your decking to ensure all aspects of safety. Take a good look at your joints and posts, the banisters and stairs if you have them. You should also pay close attention to the main surface – is there anything that might harm someone, such as cracking, a raised screw head or splinters? Make sure you do any sanding and repairs before cleaning your deck.

Cleaning

After you have ensured the safety of your deck, it’s now time to give it a good clean. This is not only to make it look more attractive, but to protect and preserve it by removing grime and water which can cause rotting. Either use a dedicated deck cleaner or a 1:1 water to bleach solution and apply to your deck using a stiff brush, before rinsing off with a hose. You could also use a pressure washer here. If you plan to do this, we recommend washing one small area first to ensure that the pressure won’t cause any lasting damage to your decking.

Protection

After you’ve cleaned your deck, give it 48 hours to dry, and then seal it with a protective finish. It’s entirely up to you to to decide whether you’d like to stain your decking with a semi-transparent stain to enhance the finish, or if you’d rather use a transparent stain and let the natural texture show.

Regardless of staining, it is very important that you treat you deck with water repellent. This will prevent water from getting in the wood – which can cause issues like shrinking, warping, cracking and rotting.

Decking from John Bright Fencing

Does your decking need replacing, or are you looking to install your first deck to enhance the look and feel of your garden? John Bright supply and fit garden decking in Dorset! Why not give us a call and chat to our helpful, friendly team about your new garden deck.

Pictured: John Bright garden decking, using DuraPost.

Preparing your poultry for spring

De-winterise and inspect the coop

If you took steps to prepare your poultry coop for winter, it’s time to reverse this process. Remove any extra insulation you previously added. This will ensure adequate airflow which will be important in the warmer months. You should also check the coop is in good health – make sure there are no loose boards and the lock is in good condition. The cold weather can sometimes make boards expand, so ensuring the coop is secure is essential going into spring. The same rules apply for other wood-based pet enclosures like rabbit hutches.

Deep clean the coop

Scrape out any debris and droppings and use a poultry-friendly disinfectant to give the coop a deep clean.

Poultry Houses and Runs at John Bright

If you need to replace your poultry house or run, look no further than John Bright. We can supply enclosures in nearly all sizes as most are created in our own workshop. Lots of time has gone into designing our poultry houses, so we’re very proud of them – and hope you’ll love them as much as we do.

Preparing your timber fence and garden furniture for spring

We always recommend protecting your timber fences and furniture a few times a year – and after the harsh weather of the winter, spring is the perfect time to give your timber some TLC!

Heavy rain and the sub-zero temperatures of the winter can weaken your timber fence and garden furniture. It’s common for mildew, mould or algae to build up during the low season – and it’s in your best interest to remove this immediately so you can ensure the structural integrity of your timber.

Clean your timber fencing and furniture

Either use a ready-made cleaning solution or make your own solution using 1:5 bleach to water ratio. Use large sponges or rags to scrub your fence and allow the solution to seep into the timber. We then recommend pressure washing your fence or furniture to remove the solution and any grime that is left behind.

Preserve your timber

To ensure that your fence is well protected and stands the test of time, we recommend using a water-repellent preservative or a sealant on your timber fence or furniture. You might then want to stain or paint your timber to add an extra layer of protection and an attractive finish to it.

Timber fencing at John Brights

We supply a range of timber fencing options from our base in Bridport, Dorset. There are many benefits of replacing your featheredge fencing, and we only use the highest quality fencing boards on our fences. These fences are durable, cost effective and offer the opportunity to replace individual slats if required.

Upgrade your garden furniture at John Brights

If your garden furniture is looking old and tired, or you’d like to make a new addition to your outdoor space, why not revitalise your garden with some new furniture? We supply a range of sheds, houses, gazebos and furniture at John Brights.

Garden buildings and furniture

Whether you’d like to hide your bins with a bin storage unit, add a shed for storage or even a greenhouse, we stock the timber solution you need at John Brights.

We understand that you want your garden to be a space where the family can gather and spend time together, which is why we’re very proud of our range of summerhouses, gazebos and furniture. We know from our 40 years experience that our timber garden buildings and furniture are built to last. Why not give your garden a new lease of life with a trendy Amazona, hardwood bench, picnic table or an Alexander Rose furniture set?