5 garden hacks to boost your home security

If you have a garden, it’s your first line of defence against potential house break-ins.

So, if you consider yourself a bit of a green thumb, there are some simple steps you can take with your garden to improve security around your home and make it harder for a theft to get in.

And the best part is, you won’t need sacrifice how fabulous your garden looks. 

1. Grow spiky plants

Place low-growing prickly, thorny or spiky plants around borders, along the bottom of fences and under windows to make your home less appealing to thieves looking for someone to break in. You can also grow thorny climbing plants up the side of your home or against rear and side fences.

Be careful that plants don’t conceal windows, entries and doors or block off emergency escape routes.

While cacti and roses are some of the best-known spiky plants, some Australian natives to consider include:

• Mount Blackwood Holly (Graptophyllum ilicifolium)
• Rosemary Grevillea (Grevillea rosmarinifolia cultivars)
• Grevillea Winpara (Grevillea Winparra cultivars)
• Bushy Needlewood (Hakea Serica)
• Blackthorn (Busaria Spinosa)
• Prickly Moses Wattle (Acacia pulchella)
• Tree violet (Hymenanthera dentata)
• Grevillea Molonglo (Grevillea juniperina cultivars)
• Juniper Wattle (Acacia ulicifolia)
• Kangaroo Thorn or Hedge Wattle (Acacia paradoxa)
• Spike Wattle (Acacia oxycedrus)
• Mountain Devil (Lambertia Formosa)
• Dagger Hakea (Hakea teretifolia)
• Prickly Bush Pea (Pultenaea artista)
• Native Raspberry (Rubus Probus)

An added benefit is that spikey dense plants are an ideal habitat for small birds. 

2. Keep shrubs and hedges trimmed.

Crooks don’t want to be seen. So, keeping your front garden tidy, the lawns mowed, shrubs trimmed, and hedges low ensures that intruders have nowhere to hide. 

A well-maintained garden: 

• Lets passers-by know the home is occupied and looked after.
• Removes any easy hiding spots for potential offenders. 
• Increases the chance that intruders will be seen if they enter

If gardening’s not your thing, try growing a low-maintenance garden that pretty much takes care of itself.

3. Use plants as barriers to keep intruders out.

If you don’t have a front fence, consider putting low-growing plants along the front of your property to create a natural boundary, so there’s a clear delineation between your private property and public space. 

A spiky hedge can provide a decorative natural barrier but be sure to keep it under 1 metre so burglars can’t hide behind them. 

Add lightweight trellises to the tops of rear and side fences and side gates, then grow spiky climbing plants on them, to make it harder for burglars to climb over. 

4. Install lights in your garden.

A well-lit garden will help deter potential offenders from entering your property. 

Install motion sensor lights in the driveway, near sheds or in any dark spots in your yard. You can also set up LED lights along garden beds, beside pathways, around garden features and next to your shed or garage. You can get good quality solar options from your nearest hardware store. 

5. Use gravel to your advantage.

Lay gravel on pathways and around windows so that it makes a crunching noise whenever someone walks on it. That way if an intruder sets foot in your yard, you’re more likely to hear them. It’s a lot harder for a burglar to sneak up quietly if they’re walking across gravel. 

More handy garden security tips

• Don’t leave valuable garden tools or ladders lying around. Lock them away securely in a shed.
• If you have expensive plants in pots, consider bolting the pots to the ground, cementing them in place or chaining them to a fixed object. Some thieves have been known to steal a pricey plant to sell for cash.