Are you getting into gardening for the first time in your life? You probably don’t even know where to start. It’s no secret that beginning to grow your own garden for the first time can be a bit overwhelming. Below are some tips that can help make growing your own garden a bit easier.
After planting your garden, maintaining it is still a work in progress. Throughout the summer season, it is a must for a gardener to continue to prune, pick or deadhead blooms. Gardening can be physically exhausting with hauling dirt and digging holes, but at the end of the day, your hard work is paid off by seeing the beauty that you have created.
Know what grows in your region. When you see the wide variety of seed packets offered online, it is easy to get sucked into the idea of growing everything and anything! In reality, though, only some of them may flourish in your regional environment. Study up on your region and what crops can survive.
Keep a garden journal and take photographs of your garden as it grows. It’s easy to start the season with high expectations for your gardening. But as the time wears on, it’s just as easy to lose steam. A journal and photos can help inspire and engage you along the way!
Buy Diatomaceous earth as an alternative to toxic pesticides or adding predatory insects to your garden. Diatomaceous earth is natural, organic, and non-toxic as well as inexpensive and easy to find. It is a green way to keep pests under control. Sprinkle over the surface of soil and water as normal.
Sow plants in succession to each other for a steady harvest. When growing vegetables such as corn, snap peas, and lettuce that mature on a very predictable schedule, make two or three sowings two weeks apart to lengthen the harvest season. You can also plant two different varieties on the same day with different maturation times to ensure a longer season.
Consider getting a soil analysis report for the dirt in your garden. This procedure is relatively inexpensive and can tell you the type of nutrients you should add to your soil in order to have a more productive garden. A local farm supply or co-op can look through the report and guide you on what to buy.
Do you ever wish that your fresh mint leaves would not grow as quickly and overcome your garden? Stunt their growth a little by planting your mint into a garden container or large pot instead. You can plant the container into the soil if you want to, but the container will restrict the roots, and make sure that the plant doesn’t run rampant in your garden.
As you have seen, gardening is not as scary as it may appear. Just think of all of the benefits it has to provide you with in regards to health and food. The above list of tips should have given you a good starting place, so that you can start growing smarter.