We’ve seen a pretty drastic change in the world in a short period of time and it’s taken a lot of us by surprise. As new lockdown rules are being put in place – a lot of people are starting to stick to their homes and yard. But just because you can’t go out, doesn’t mean you can’t still enjoy some fun and productive activities. Melbourne’s exposed aggregate experts are here to give you five things you can do in your yard that won’t require much travel. Welcome to A Better Driveway’s Quarantine Survival Guide.
1. Pruning
Now is a great time to get outside and maintain those trees and plants that you’ve been too busy to care for during the year. By pruning, you encourage healthy and proper growth of your plants. Each plant is different so you’re going to want to make sure you check out your specific one to know when and how to prune. In addition to encouraging better growth and flowering – is shapes them to look fantastic as well.
2. Sweep your driveway
Whilst this may seem like a dull task it’s actually quite important – especially since we’re in Autumn. The pigments from falling leaves can stain your exposed aggregate driveway so it’s important to maintain it by sweeping regularly. Any loose aggregates or other materials should also be kept off of it when possible to avoid build-ups and long-term damage from occurring. Since you’ll predominantly be at home, now is the perfect time to maintain your exposed aggregate driveway in Melbourne.
3. Landscaping
You can plan and enact to the best of your abilities, a backyard landscape project during your quarantine. You may not be able to complete the whole thing if you’re missing certain tools but if you have a tape measure and a shovel then you can achieve a lot more than you think.
You can perform edging with a shovel and then measure the areas you’ll want to add furnishings and other features to with the tape measure. Sketch the layout on a piece of paper along with the measurements and the list of other things you may need so you don’t forget. This way, you know what you need when the lockdown is over.
4. Deadwooding
This is a technique where you essentially cut off all the deadwood from a tree – whether they be small twigs or large branches. This can happen if a tree only receives sunlight on one side constantly whilst the other side is neglected due to an obstruction, for example.
The reason we deadwood is because it looks nicer, but it also mitigates accidents from occurring – as the dead branches will eventually fall off and could injure people walking beneath it in unlucky circumstances. Larger branches could also be taken off during harsher weather and damage property. Pests are likely to be attracted to the dead and rotting branches as well.
5. Questagame
Questagame is a mobile application that encourages outside exploration and learning by sighting different species of wildlife. This can be anything from a butterfly to an ant – just take a photo with your phone and learn about the species. You can compare your stats with people all around the globe and the results are shared with CSIRO’s Atlas of Living Australia as well as Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
Through this, experts can better understand how to adapt to protect our world’s biodiversity. So, not only are you getting outdoors and seeing wildlife in a different light, but you’re also actively contributing to the bettering of our world’s understanding and protection of biodiversity. Whilst you may be a bit limited in your yard – it’s still as good a place to start than any.
Looking to put in an exposed aggregate driveway?
A Better Driveway has not ceased their services at this point and is still able to deliver efficient and quality exposed aggregate solutions in Melbourne. We have extensive experience with concrete driveways and can help you to match yours perfectly to the rest of your home – whether you’re rejuvenating an old one or after a completely new one – our Melbourne contractors can get the job done. We also offer coloured and texturedconcreting solutions.
If you’d like to get in touch with us to organise a quote for an exposed aggregate driveway, then please feel free to contact us through our website or call 0412 537 776.