Whether you want your landscape plush with healthy grass, county fair award-winning flowers or a back yard filled with fresh vegetables, you need to know how to reap a glorious garden. This article contains many tips to help you do just that, and if you don't already have a green thumb, you will by the time you're done reading.
Planting a bare-root rose. Bare-root roses are best planted at the beginning of their dormant period to lessen the shock of transplanting. If the roots look dry, soak them in a bucket of water for a few hours before planting. Remove diseased or damaged stems, and trim any thick roots by a third. Place the rose in a freshly dug hole, spreading out the roots and checking that the bud union is slightly above ground level. Backfill with soil and water thoroughly.
A good tip of what to plant in the garden is to plant high-value crops. Value is a subjective term, but plant the things that are most costly to buy, as long as they are suited to the climate. The whole garden does not have to be devoted to this, but if an area is earmarked for this type of crop, it can save money in the coming season when prices are sky high for certain crops.
Make use of rain buckets and barrels around your home. You can later use this collected rainwater on your garden to grow healthier plants, while saving the planet. This method also reduces your water bill, as you can't be charged for using the water that runs off your roof!
Growing compost piles are a great alternative to buying traditional fertilizer. Compost piles are composed of organic material that slowly deteriorates making a nutrient-rich soil. It presents both a great way of ridding yourself of banana peels and other organic compounds, while providing your plants with a nitrogen rich mixture that will promote increased growth.
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!
During fall, you should plant cold weather vegetables. Instead of a clay pot, show some fall spirit by using a hollow pumpkin to plant your lettuce or kale in. After cutting an opening and removing the meat and seeds from inside the pumpkin, use Wilt-Pruf, sprayed throughout the inside and cut edges, and prevent rot from occurring. Now you can use the pumpkin as a planter.
When planting tomato seedlings, be sure to plant them all the way up to the first set of leaves. This allows the plant to grow a larger and deeper root system. The more roots your plant sprouts, the more tomatoes the plant will be capable of supporting and the more flavorful they will be.
Now that you know what it takes to achieve all of your gardening goals, you are ready to go outside make them happen. Go grow your ten-foot tall sunflowers, plant those tomatoes that you've wanted to grow forever or create a front lawn that makes every neighbor on the block jealous. Enjoy your new green thumb.
