Being a gardener is all about continuous learning over your lifetime – from the time you start as a rookie to the point where you consider yourself a pro, you’ll come across various techniques that help you improve the quality and quantity of your yield. Here are a few that I’ve discovered along the way – I’m sharing them in the hopes of that they’ll help you out too.
Start Small
When gardening for the first times, it is suggested to plant varieties that grow easily in conventional pots or containers. These include herbs and vegetables like rosemary, thyme, lavender, peppers, chilies, tomatoes and lettuce. Besides being easy to grow, they’ll also put healthy organic food on your table without the expense of getting them from a grocery store.
Remember, staying confident during your journey towards becoming a pro gardener is important. Most rookie gardeners lose their ambition despite their potential because they choose to grow a tough plant on the first attempt.
Use a Good Quality Potting Mix
Your seedlings need all the nutrients they can get to aid proper growth and have better yield. For this, you will need to use a good quality potting mix. If your chosen plants are to be grown in containers, opting for regular garden soil may not be the wisest choice for a couple of reasons.
Since your plants will be watered regularly, their roots need ample area to grow in. Garden soils will most likely compress, hindering root growth. Soil from the ground would increase pests for your plants which could wreak havoc in the limited space provided by a container.
Sun-Loving vs Shade-Loving Plants
It is crucial to be aware of whether your plants do well in the warm sunlight or prefer light shade. Carrots, radishes and zucchini are some vegetables that grow in full sun; whereas lettuce and capsicum thrive in shaded areas of your garden.
Proper Irrigation
Plants need to be watered often and attentively, instead of leaving them on the mercy of nature. You must also avoid flooding the soil to the point that it becomes waterlogged — a safe rule is to water your plants only when the top layer of the soil feels dry to the touch. Pots or containers with holes should be used so that the soil does not retain water for longer periods of time and drains out at a suitable pace.
If you’re looking for a precise irrigation approach, a handheld hose is preferable over an automated watering mechanism – opt for the best garden hose nozzle you can afford for maximum control over the direction, quantity and flow of your watering efforts.
Timing and Climate
It is important to know the time of the year that is best for growing the type of plant/s you wish to have in your garden. You can find this out by researching plant zone maps of your country or state.
Trim and Prune Your Plants
Plant maintenance should not be overlooked. Apart from making your garden look more presentable, it also promotes better growth and health of your plant. Pruning will allow your plant to receive light more evenly, prevent it from getting lopsided by removing excess leaders, and save its leaves from deterioration as a result of accumulated precipitation on the surface.
Pest Control
It can be a bummer to see your hard work being attacked by tiny insect invaders, the most obvious symptoms of which are holes in the leaves. While this can be guarded against by using pesticides, you can also go with a more organic approach: certain plants can repel pests naturally e.g. catnip. Companion planting is also an ingenious way to prevent pests from ruining your plants, as while one plant may be fertilizing the soil, the other would repel any pests.
Mulching
Weeds are another nuisance that can jeopardize the growth of your seedlings by consuming nutrients for the soil that are in fact meant for the latter. Mulching would not only make your garden look well-kept but will also prevent weeds and aid in retaining soil water. Biodegradable organic mulch will counter soil erosion, and attract insects such as beetles and spiders that devour pests. Furthermore, it aids to fuel the soil as it rots down, nourishing it for your plants to feed on.
Read and Talk
If you have some free time in your hands, grab some books on gardening from your local library. Share the new information with your friends who share your passion in gardening. This collaborative approach can give you a deeper insight into the experiences of other gardeners.
Be Positive
When things steer in the wrong direction, you may think that you’re not cut out for gardening work – we’ve all been there. It’s important to realize that failure does not mean that you don’t possess the capability to sprout a healthy tomato. It simply means there is more to learn about garden planning and care. Go through everything and see what needs to be improved in your approach. Once that’s done, you’ll be able to bounce back as a better and wiser gardener!