4. Mulch the bare soil
Bare soil is what makes a front garden look unfinished, and it is also where the weeds come from. Mulching fixes both at once and is the best value per dollar of anything in this list.
Weed the bed thoroughly first, roots and all — mulch suppresses seedlings but does not stop established perennial weeds like bindweed or dandelion pushing through. Water the bed if the soil is dry, because mulch laid on dry ground keeps it dry.
Then spread a layer 2 to 3 inches deep. Thinner than 2 inches will not suppress weeds; much thicker can starve the soil of air. A bulk bag covers roughly 10 to 15 square metres at that depth and costs $40 to $70, CA$60 to CA$95 or £35 to £55 delivered, which is far cheaper than buying small bags.
Choose the material for the look you want. Composted bark is soft, dark and improves the soil as it breaks down, and it suits planted beds. Gravel or slate chippings suit a contemporary or low-water scheme and last indefinitely, though they are awkward to remove later. Both want a weed membrane underneath only if you are not planning to plant into the bed afterwards — membrane under a bed you will keep planting becomes a tangled nuisance within two years.
Keep the mulch clear of plant stems and tree trunks by a couple of inches. Piled against a stem it traps moisture and rots the bark.
Top up annually in spring. Bark settles and breaks down, so a bed mulched once looks tired by the second summer.