5 Simple Steps to a Smart Front Yard This Spring – They’re All Easy to Do, Even If You’re a Beginner Gardener

Front yards don't have to be hard work to look fabulous. These simple steps will prep your lawn and borders so plants grow well, and not only get rid of weeds but keep them out. Then a trio of quick upgrades will give your front yard the facelift it deserves for plenty of curb appeal – and while these mini glow-ups are easy to do, they all have a huge impact.

None of these front yard ideas are difficult or expensive, and you can get them all done in a weekend. Ready to smarten up your front yard? Let's get cracking!

1. Prep Your Lawn For Lush Growth

Your lawn is the crowning glory of your front yard and if you spend a couple of hours prepping it in spring, it’ll look so much better for the rest of the year. First off, get rid of weeds – and this doesn’t need to be an arduous task, you just need the right tool for the job. Perennial lawn weeds have long tap roots and to get rid of them once and for all, you need to get that root up out of the ground rather than snap it off. Use an angled, notched weed puller like this hand tool from Amazon (rather than one with rake-like prongs – that’s designed for getting rid of shallow-rooted weeds). A long-handled weed puller with a claw tip like this one from Amazon makes it even easier as you don’t have to bend or kneel down.

Next, mow your lawn. Sharpen your mower blades first as you’ll get a much better result and it’ll take less time to mow – a foolproof tool like this from Amazon makes it a five-minute job. Keep the blades around 1½ inches high in spring to encourage strong grass growth, gradually lowering to 1 inch by summer for a neat finish.

If you’ve got a mulching mode on your lawnmower that chops the clippings into a super-fine mulch, use that to feed the grass. Spring grass is full of nitrogen, so you can use the clippings as a fertilizer. If not, then sprinkle on a lawn fertilizer that promotes roots as well as shoots, like this one from Amazon.

These three simple tasks bring a great return for your time so, once you see how easy lawn care is and what a huge difference it makes, consider aerating, overseeding and removing moss for an even lusher look.

2. Mulch Borders To Suppress Weeds

No-one wants to spend much time gardening in their front yard, weeding borders for all the world to see! A super-easy way to keep weeds out of your borders is to mulch them. This simply means spreading a 2–3 inch layer of any organic matter over the soil surface. It not only suppresses weeds but locks moisture into the ground so you can water less, and it slowly rots down to nourish your plants for better growth while improving the soil structure for better drainage.

The best mulch to use is pretty much down to aesthetics, and you don’t have to use purpose-made mulch – just as long as it’s a natural material, it’s fine to use. If you want an even appearance then use a fine mulch such as Back To Roots Organic Mulch, available from Amazon, or any compost, including homemade. If you’d like more texture then use bark chips or wood mulch, also available from Amazon. Coconut husk chips such as these from Amazon work well as a mulch too, and are an economical choice as a 58-quart bale expands to over 2 cubic feet of mulch. These chips are lighter in weight though so are best kept for a sheltered spot.

The only exception is if you’re growing plants that like acidic soil such as azaleas or rhododendrons. To maintain the acidity of the soil, use a mulch of pine bark or needles, often called pine straw, such as this from Amazon.

3. Play Up the Pathway With a Groundcover Gem

Edging a pathway with a groundcover plant that’ll creep into gravel, fill gaps between pavers and scamper around stepping stones is such an easy win. It adds color, keeps out weeds and turns any walkway into a real feature, leading visitors’ eyes up to the house. And, if you choose the right plant, you can add fragrance, too.

There’s no better plant to edge a pathway than creeping thyme, and it thrives in zones 3–9. It’s perennial and evergreen so looks good year in, year out, year-round. It’s a dwarf plant, only growing to 3 inches high and spreads slowly to a foot wide, so it won’t ever get out of control. And the carpet of tiny leaves is smothered in petite, pretty flowers from late spring to late summer, which butterflies adore. But its best feature is its fresh, lemony fragrance, released from its leaves when crushed underfoot. Imagine being greeted by that feel-good scent every time you return home!

Spring is the perfect time to add this low-maintenance plant to your garden. Regular creeping thyme has light purple flowers and is straightforward and cheap to grow from seed, available from Burpee. For a faster result, buy plants. This is still really cost-effective as creeping thyme is super-easy to propagate by division – just dig up the plant, divide it into sections, and replant, to create more plants for free.

'Elfin' is a delightful variety with pinkish lavender blooms and plants are available from Nature Hills, while the ‘Coccineus’ variety is smothered in rosy-red blooms, and is also available from Nature Hills.

4. Install Window Boxes For an Effortless Dose of Elegance

There's no law that states windowboxes have to spill with a sea of super-bright plants – though that's a great way to add a pop of easy color to your front yard if you want to! You can make windowboxes beautifully elegant by simply sticking to one plant choice. Pansies such as these flower for months on end, and you can swap in cheap bedding plug-plants such as petunias and million bells, bought from grocery stores.

You don’t need huge windowsills to enjoy windowbox planters either. Fit metal planter brackets like these from Amazon and you can fix a windowbox to any window.

5. Light Up Walkways For After-Dark Appeal

Push-in solar pathway stakes take seconds to install and seriously smarten up a walkway or drive edge. There’s a huge range of solar stakes on the market from simply decorative to functional designs that provide a useful level of light to see where you’re going. There’s an enormous variance in pricing, too, so be sure you understand IP waterproof ratings and lumen output before you shop – that way, you’ll know exactly what you’re getting for your money.

When you’re adding pathlight stakes, water the ground really well first to loosen the soil. It not only makes it easy to push the stakes into the ground but as the soil dries out, the soil shapes around the stake for a secure fit.

Push-in disc lights such as these from Amazon are another smart option, and these are sunk at ground-level for a flush, modern finish.

And that's it, you're all done! Keep mowing your lawn regularly, once every one or two weeks, to thicken up the grass, and enjoy the warm welcome your front yard gives you every time you return home.