Basic Gardening Tips
Most families are trying to save money any way they can, and gardening may be one of the best ways to do that! You can grow healthy food right in your backyard. Not only will you be able to walk outside your door for fresh vegetables or flowers, you will know exactly what has gone into the food your family is eating. You can grow healthy organic food just steps from your kitchen window!
Start the gardening process by planning the type of garden you would like. Do you want herbs, flowers vegetables, or a mix of all three? If you choose flowers, do you want annuals that need to be planted every year, or perennials that have a shorter blooming period but will come back next year? Also consider the region in which you live. Some plants are more likely to thrive in certain areas of the nation. Often seed packets indicate which areas of the country produce the best results. Your local gardening center or county co-op will also be able to point you in the right direction.
Once you decide what you want to plant, you need to find the best spot in your yard. Look for a place with easy access to water, appropriate drainage and direct sunshine. Consider putting the garden in a spot that you look at every day, such as outside a kitchen or bathroom window. It will not only be a lovely sight, but will help remind you when the garden needs water and weeding.
Now that you’ve chosen the spot, it is time to start digging. It is important to find the right time for this job. You can ruin the soil’s structure if you begin digging when it is too wet or too dry. A good rule of thumb is to dig only when the soil is moist enough to create a dirt ball in your hand, but dry enough that the ball will fall apart when dropped. Use a spade or spade fork to turn over eight to twelve inches of soil, and mix in organic matter as you work. Continue to mix organic matter with the soil for approximately three weeks before planting your seeds. This will improve your soil’s water retention and soil buffering. Test your soil’s pH before you plant. Some plants prefer more acidic soil, some prefer more alkaline, and some are happiest in neutral soil. Getting the right soil pH may mean the difference between a thriving garden and failing one.
While you are improving the soil in your garden, start shopping for plants. Visit your local gardening center, read magazines and brochures, or surf the Internet to find inspiration for what you would like to plant in your backyard. There are plenty of annuals, perennials and vegetables that are great for beginning gardeners. Cosmos, marigolds, impatiens, geraniums, sunflowers and zinnias are perfect first-time annuals. Beginner’s perennials include lambs ear, lazy susans, coneflowers and daylilies. If you are interested in vegetables, consider planting lettuce, peppers, tomatoes or cucumbers in your first garden.
If you purchased small plants instead of seeds, gradually introduce them to bright sunlight. Many greenhouses and gardening stores keep their plants inside and away from direct sun. Start by putting the plants on a covered porch, then move them to an area that gets sunlight for a portion of the day and finally plant them in the ground.
Water your plants only weekly, at first. Use a soaker hose in the mornings for the best results. Any more water and you will run the risk of drowning your plants. Once they are well established, water according to the guidelines for each plant, as well as your area’s rainfall.
Don’t forget to keep your garden tools clean! While this may seem counterintuitive since you use the tools in dirt, it is important. Dirty gardening tools can attract microbes that will harm your plants. Using clean gardening tools is one of the easiest ways to keep your plants free from disease and infestation.
If a backyard garden sounds too ambitious, consider container gardening or square foot gardening. Container gardens are a great way to reuse old porcelain bowls, tires or other items you no longer need. First, decide whether you would like to keep your plants inside or outside, then you can choose the containers you want. When picking a container, there are a few considerations to keep in mind. The height of the plant at maturity, whether it needs partial or full sun and the length of the bloom time are all factors that will help you decide which kind of container you will need.
Square foot gardening is another great option. These are small, intensely planted gardens. It is a form of organic gardening done in closely planted, raised beds. Square foot gardening is a fine option for people who live in areas with bad soil, first-time gardeners or those with disabilities that prevent them from caring for a traditional garden. Square foot gardens require less weeding, less water and fewer pesticides than conventional gardens.
Now you are ready to begin planting! Gardening is a fun way to connect with nature and to give your family fresh vegetables, herbs and flowers to enjoy all summer long.
The Basics of Organic Gardening
What is organic gardening?
Organic gardening brings the principles of organic agriculture to your garden. This involves matters such as how soil is built, how soil is conserved, and how pests are managed. From a big picture point of view, organic gardening involves working in cooperation with nature. It involves viewing your garden as part of nature as a whole.
Quite simply, in practical terms, organic gardening means that you would not use synthetic products or chemicals, including pesticides or fertilizers. You would use sensible methods to replenish the soil like feeding the soil with composted plants, or rotating the plants that are planted in a given area to allow the soil to get enriched.
Creating and maintaining an organic garden can be fun and satisfying .
Why is the soil so important?
The soil needs to be fed and nourish, so that it can nourish our plants in turn. This simple, common sense idea is a core principle in organic gardening.
You can encounter types of soil in a garden. Clay soil is rich in nutrients and holds water better, but the soil can sometimes hold the water too well and not let enough air in. Sandy soil, on the other hand drains water well, but is usually low in nutrients. In either case, the solution is to add some organic matter to improve the soil’s texture and improve the nutrient content in the soil.
How can you eliminate pests without chemicals?
One of the common fears that a gardener has about “going organic” is the image of having to share their garden with insects and pests and worse, leaving the plants to die of disease. After all, how can one eliminate pests or treat diseases without chemicals?
Firstly, the gardener needs to remain diligent in watching over the plants in his garden, and keeping an eye on their health before matters are real bad. Secondly, the gardener has to adopt the mindset of cooperating with nature. Thirdly, the gardener has to recognize that old methods of gardening won’t necessarily be consistent with the desire to be an organic gardener, and so they have to commit to become more knowledgeable about the specific issues faced by their plants and then look for natural options to solve them.
Sometimes, with pest control, if you know the exact nature of your pest problem, you may not need to do anything at all because the invader’s time in your garden may be strictly temporary, and they’ll be gone at the end of the season forever. It is not necessary to be trigger-ready to kill the pests all the time, with this approach.
Another example, with pest control, is the use of friendly insects that would, in turn prey on the insects afflicting your plants. This is an example of using a method consistent with nature itself, where there is a natural food chain of insects that feed off other insects. Ladybugs love to eat aphids. Birds will eat grubs.
Yet another example is to use physical barriers like sticky traps to catch flying insects. Simple, yet safe and effective methods like this abound.
Here are some commonly used techniques to keep your garden thriving, organically:
- Let there be some pest damage – there is no need to strive for a 100% pest free garden always
- Select plants carefully. Choose varieties that are disease resistant.
- Use smart planting of companion crops that can discourage pests naturally
- Move crops around the garden and rotate crops from year to year to disrupt the cycles of pest reproduction
- Use row covers to protect plants during pest migrations
Becoming aware of methods like these will empower the gardener make wise choices in dealing with pests in the garden.
How can you enrich the soil without fertilizers?
There are many ways to have nutrient-rich soil , without resorting to chemical fertilizers.
You can use “green manure”. Green manure is a type of crop that is grown for a specific period, with the sole purpose of adding nutrients and organic matter to the soil. Leguminous green manures like clover and vetch fix the atmospheric nitrogen in the soil in a manner that plants can use. Other green manure crops can help increase the biomass in the soil. Some cover crops behave as natural suppressants of weeds while preventing soil erosion and compaction at the same time. Oat, Rye, Fava Beans, Clover, Mustard, Fenugreek etc. are all popular green manures.
You can use “compost”. Compost is a decomposed combination of plants, animal and other organic materials that is rich, black soil. As an additive to the soil, compost provides a rich growing medium and nutrients for plants. You can make compost yourself by using vegetable, food and other organic waste materials from your home. Compose is natural fertilizer for plants, and there are many methods and materials available for preparing compost.
You can use “mulching”. Much is a special kind of ground cover placed over the soil to help it retain its moisture, and suppress weed growth . Organic mulches also provide nutrients to the soil as the cover decays.
Summary
As an organic gardener, you work in synch with nature, and adopting nature-friendly ways to prepare your soil, nourish your soil and keep it safe and healthy. All this without ever having to resort to polluting, dangerous and toxic chemicals!
There are plenty of resources available online that you can avail by using this guide to the best Web resources on organic gardening.
For other gardening resources , please consult this gardening guide.