YOUR GARDEN Beat those blots for a perfect plot

Sheds, wheelie bins, fences and oil tanks are all vying to spoil your garden paradise. While winter may leave them exposed, try these tips to fight the blight... like a sore thumb. But help is at hand. Vinyl stickers are your easiest option – they can either help camouflage bins to make them blend in, or go the other way and make them bright and fun. They’re cheap and easy to apply.

Wooden bin hideaways are brilliant too, and you can either buy one if you’ve got the cash, or build one if you’re handy with your tools.

There are loads of ways to make them interesting too. You can make a green planted roof, perhaps with herbs to help neutralise any bad odours.

You can also create a bug hotel on the side, which looks great and also supports beneficial insects.

To screen them off, large evergreen shrubs like photinia escallonia or elaeagnus are brilliant foliage covers. trim is really popular with designers at the moment, as are two contrasting shades of the same colour.

Or if you’re feeling really creative, try a mural or stencil.

It’s loads of fun – and part of a growing trend that is seeing more and more people decorating the garden in the same way as they individualise their home.

Shed or garage walls also look superb when adorned with a garden mirror – they can make the whole space feel bigger and brighter.

Just angle them down a little so that they don’t dazzle you with sun.

You can buy garden-standard mirrors from most DIY stores. They’re plastic, so will happily take a whack from a football without any damage. WHILE you’ve got the paintbrushes out, it’s a good chance to give any sorry-looking fencing a brush over as well.

And if you’ve been stuck with an unsightly chain link or wire fence, use climbers or vines to make it into an attractive feature.

Trumpet vine, clematis, honeysuckle or jasmine are all beautiful flowering vines that will turn your ugly fence into a wonderful feature.

If you want something simple and evergreen you can go with classic English ivy (though ivy will struggle THESE will usually only be an issue if you live out in the sticks and are not on the mains supply.

Because you need access, you can’t necessarily cover up a tank with fencing or plant around them.

So instead, put a trellis around them and plant growing climbers through the trellis. I would choose evergreen or semi-evergreen climbers to give you plenty of cover all year round.

Honeysuckle is a good semievergreen with a lovely scent. Winter-flowering jasmine is another. Or try the beautiful berrying shrub, pyracantha. They great thing is, once any of these have established they’ll give you a beautiful plant to look at and enjoy – rather than staring at an ugly unit.