Hi there! Are you a gardening disaster, unable to keep even the most vicious of WEEDS growing? Do you have two left thumbsyearning to become two green thumbs with regards to YOUR OWN successful backyard garden? Yes? Good, because thats what I want to share with you. . . how I knew NOTHING about the basics of lawn maintenance and gardening, and transformed myself into a knowledgeable backyard gardener that has begun the process of cultivating my own little patch of Heaven to enjoy with my wife and kids.
How about you?
Are you looking to learn the basics? Want to revamp your existing, lifeless and limp garden into a vibrant and flourishing haven? What about that dream of always having your very own vegetable garden? Are you thinking of quitting to soon, when it comes to learning how to cultivate your own homemade fruits that you loving would be eager to share with friends and neighbors?
The starting point is to determine the finish line for you.
In the words of Stephen Covey--Begin with the end in mind! Its okay to give yourself permission to dream a little bit. Whens the last time you walked around the family homestead, whether thats a real acre or more of raw land or maybe just a small patch of dirt off the apartment patio?
I have learned the basics on a variety of garden topics and have started to turn my knowledge into action with my own backyard!
Lets just be upfront that NO ONE can become a master gardener without years of experience and increasing their knowledge base. BUT, as is my case, I can guarantee that YOU can raise yourself to a backyard gardener standard by absorbing the experience and knowledge of other successful gardeners!
I am doing ityou can too!
Let me summarize some of what I have been able to learn and apply in my own life by giving a little demonstration of my own before and after knowledge:
THE BEFORE PICTURE:
Grass & Lawn careGrass is what the yard is made up of. I know there are a couple of different kinds, only one I can think off of the top of my head is crab grass. Also know how to use a lawn mower and a weed eater to trim along the driveway and sidewalks.
FlowersBought in a pot or planter of some sort from the nearest Home Depot or Lowes store. Require watering; but degree of shade and life cycle of a certain flower . . . whats that? ;-)
VegetablesWHEN we eat them with dinner, they come straight from the market (usually in a can or a frozen back, right?). Of course, being from Indiana, I was raised on corn, green beans, peas, etc. Dont give me any of that foo-foo California vegetables and stufflike asparagus and such that my wife, native Southern California girl that she is, just LOVES! :-) And growing them? Foget bout it!
FruitsPeaches, oranges and apples are an easy to think of since the fruit is right there hanging off the tree for the taking, BUT starting from scratch, who has the time and patience to MAINTAIN these bad boys?
The SeasonsSpring, Summer, Fall and Winter, right? But what about zones for differences in climate and environment across the U.S.? I have no idea EXCEPT that palm trees seem to do really well in Southern California! ;-)
Gardening ToolsA spade? Thats either a little hand shovel or its a type of symbol when playing cards. . . as mentioned above, my tool knowledge consisted of the lawn mower, a weed eater and a pair of gloves. Not anymore!
THE AFTER PICTURE:
Grass & Lawn careLawns tend to be one of the most labor intensive and repetitive jobs in your landscaping endeavors. By the way, most lawns are a mixture of grass types, and allows for the ol survival of the fittest to take place. Reducing your lawn area by using different types of ground cover or flower beds will provide some enhanced beauty and lessen the overall work load! Ground cover is foliage that applies to many types of plants. Though many different kinds for different uses, they all tend to spread horizontally very rapidly often by vining or creeping plants.
FlowersThere are several types of flowers to plan into your patch but one of the regular favorites is annuals because they bloom so fully, and the amazing color. The essence of an annual is that it germinates from a seed, growing into a mature plant that flowers, then sets its seed and finally dies. All of this happens in a single growing season. I also know now that deadheading is when you remove the fading flowers so that you prevent the seed formation and the bulbs will keep flowering!
VegetablesWhen planning a vegetable garden, like my wife and I are currently doing, we have learned to focus on two things: 1.) creating a rich, abundant soil and 2.) spacing plants in beds instead of rows. Growing plants together will allow them to shade the ground, reducing evaporation from the soil and discouraging weeds. Also keep in mind that you dont want to have to recruit an army of workers come harvest time! Planning and organizing your goals with regards to vegetables will help create a fun and enticing experience with less back breaking chores to upkeep!
FruitsI have learned what one of the MOST FRIENDLY types of fruits a weekend gardener, like us, can grow is . . . Do you know what it is? Its blueberries! Why? Because they require very little pruning and that pruning needs very little skill to accomplish. Just my cup of tealow maintenance and a hearty enough fruit to survive my inexperience and low skill level!
The SeasonsOriginally I only thought of gardening when it came to Springtime and all the new life to enjoythe flowers blooming, the bees working their way from one to the next, sunshine and fresh air! Not the case! Little did I know or even think about was the fact that you can do some good work all year long that will enable your garden to flourish and expand even more so during the blossom time.
Gardening ToolsA spade, the traditional English digging tool, has a flat, rectangular blade, attached at an angle to a short handle. They are useful for digging up the ground with your weight behind them. Mattocks are a digging tool that looks like a thick axe head and can be used to cut roots and for difficult soil types like rocky, hard-baked clay. A bulb planter cuts out a circle of earth as you jam it into the soil. You then insert the bulb and knock the soil back in to cover.
See, its just a matter of learning the basics! Again, if I can do itthen so can you! And these are just the starting tools.
See? What did I tell ya? Ive gone from a know-nothing farm boy and changed myself into a somewhat knowledgeable weekend gardener in hardly anytime at all.
Of course, this is just the beginning. I am just getting started with the planning and planting! BUT, the great thing is that this has now given my wife and my boys something to have the whole family involved with! What can we come up with as a family to grow together?!? Its very exciting and awesome to now be able to spend some great time together outside and enjoy Gods creation by being part of the growing cycle.
I hope you find enjoyment and happiness in developing your own weekend gardening skills and knowledge. Just get started! Thats what I did, and you can too!
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