7 Gardening Tips to Help You Bloom Your Backyard
The more you garden, the more you'll figure out what works. For now, check out these basic gardening tips to answer common beginner questions. Read More
Introduction
Starting with gardening might feel overwhelming, with numerous questions popping up. How to plant veggies? What soil is best? When to prune hydrangeas or split hostas? Is everything getting enough sunlight and water? The good news is, nature is a great teacher.
The more you garden, the more you'll figure out what works. For now, check out these basic gardening tips to answer common beginner questions. And most importantly, enjoy growing your own food and beautiful flowers in your yard!
What Are the Benefit of Having a Garden?
I mean, yes, you can get cheap flower delivery in Paris without too much inconvenience. But, still, creating something by yourself is an exciting venture.
Growing veggies and flowers brings a unique joy and fulfillment. For some, gardening isn't just a hobby; it goes beyond decorating a home—it stabilizes mood and health.
Nature and humans are connected, impacting our well-being.
The COVID-19 lockdown showed us the joy of nature, with many turning to gardening. Spending daily time with nature is beneficial.
It brings satisfaction and peace, improving both mental and physical health. Gardens have always been sanctuaries, offering an escape from life's stresses.
1. It Can Boost Your Mood
Ever given gardening a shot and felt joy? You're not alone. Spending time in your garden can lower anxiety and lift your spirits. It's a form of exercise that releases endorphins, making you feel satisfied and relaxed. Plus, soaking up sunlight directly can brighten your mood.
2. Might Lower Stress Level and Improve Quality of Life
Gardening is a great stress reliever, helping you recover after a tough time. Studies even show that gardening might lower cortisol, the stress hormone. Thus, the more time you spend there, the better your life’s quality will be. It’s a win-win situation, basically.
3. Will Encourage Mindfulness
Staying mindful, keeping our minds focused on the present, is usually done through things like meditation and yoga. But guess what?
Gardening is a great form of meditation that makes you happy. When you garden, you get totally absorbed in what you're doing. It demands your full attention, and you might lose track of time while making sure everything in your garden is doing well.
4. Can Enhance Your Immune System and Burn Calories
You and your plants both love sunlight. Plants use it for photosynthesis to make their food. Similarly, when you're gardening, your skin absorbs vitamin D. It, in turn, helps your body absorb calcium, keeping your bones strong and your immune system healthy.
Besides, Gardening is almost like exercise, especially with a big garden. Just one hour of simple gardening can burn up to 330 calories, making it a great workout for those who prefer low-intensity exercise. The NIH suggests 30 minutes of gardening three to five times a week.
5. Can Strengthen Your Bones and Lower Blood Pressure
As you get older, your bones may weaken. Your vitamin D and calcium levels drop, and your body needs more of them. Regular gardening can provide a brilliant dose of the same, keeping your bones healthy. This might help you out as you grow older and older.
Gardening is good exercise for folks with diabetes, helping control blood sugar levels. Studies show that combining exercise with a healthy diet significantly lowers the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in those at risk.
Types of Gardening
Gardening isn't just about flowers. You can create different types: a special garden, plants for butterflies, a pond, or even a garden for growing your own food.
Let’s learn more about them.
1. In-Ground Gardening
The backyard in-ground garden is the most common type.
It's great if you have space and easy access to water. However, these gardens, whether for landscaping or growing fruits and veggies, can face challenges from animals and weather. Watch out for weather conditions that might require plant protection.
Choosing the right spot for a plant can be tricky. In this type of garden, you can only grow plants and trees that are native to or suitable for your area.
2. Kitchen Gardening
Kitchen gardening is like a separate area in your backyard, with decorative plants and grassy spaces. This is where you can grow all of your herbs, fruits, and veggies that might be used in cooking later on. So, you can easily customize it based on your choices.
Make the most of limited space by using containers and climbers. It's best to put your kitchen garden in a sunny spot, close to water, and near the kitchen for convenience.
3. Herb Gardening
Herb gardens are spots filled with useful plants for cooking and medicine. Interestingly, these plants are often overlooked in landscaping.
Herbs are valuable not just for enhancing food but also for their pleasant smells and pretty flowers. They add a touch of color to a garden, like calendula and borage.
Most herbs are easy to grow, typically lasting a season. Once in the right soil, they flourish without needing much daily care. Herbs do well in containers and raised beds. Just make sure the soil and container match the type of herb you're growing to avoid overwatering the roots.
4. Water Gardening
A lovely water garden provides a chance to see reflections in the pool and various brightly colored plants around the edges.
When planning, the first thing to think about is having enough freshwater and figuring out how to get rid of excess water – crucial stuff.
If you can't manage stagnant water, which can be a health risk, it's best to avoid planting.
Creating a water garden isn't just about fish and animals. Even a small container with swaying plants can be a charming water feature, like a watercourse or a fountain. Using copper sulfate or bio-filtration is a good way to keep your water safe.
5. Indoor Gardening
Having indoor gardens helps keep a connection with nature by bringing the outdoors inside. Houseplants come in various sizes, shapes, and colors, and they need less fertilizer.
Most indoor plants are evergreens and prefer a good amount of light. The light quantity in a specific spot can vary depending on the season, sun angle, day length, and wall color.
Excessive light can damage plants, making leaves bleach, scald, or dry up. This happens when plants aren't slowly moved from inside to outside or vice versa. Common houseplants include agaves, monsteras, ferns, dracaenas, philodendrons, and dieffenbachias.
Bonus: Flower Gardening
Adding color, texture, and fragrance to your landscape, gardening with flowers is a delightful way. Mostly done for decoration, it involves considering trees, bushes, and ground cover in your garden plan. Elevated beds, borders, and pathways for plants should be part of the plan.
Check the temperature, sunlight, and soil quality in your outdoor space. Since flowers bloom at different times, think about how long you want yours to last before planting.
You can plant them all at once or staggered throughout the growing season.
How to Start Gardening?
1. Consider What You Want to Plant
Deciding on a garden? Vegetables, herbs, or flowers?
If it's veggies and herbs for your table, pick ones your family enjoys. For colorful and fragrant flowers, choose between annuals that bloom all summer but need replanting each spring, or perennials with a shorter bloom time but come back each year.
Each choice, or a mix, can create a beautiful garden with different upkeep needs.
Tip: Begin with a small garden to understand the commitment involved.
2. Choose the Ideal Gardening Spot
For successful growth, most veggies and many flowers need 6-8 hours of full sun daily. So, be sure to keep an eye on your yard to find areas of partial shade, full sun, or shaded place.
If your yard is mostly shady, some plants like hostas and ferns can thrive. Check plant tags or ask at the garden center to understand a plant's sunlight needs.
Choose a flat spot for your garden, as dealing with a slope can be challenging and costly. Ensure easy access to water for your new garden.
3. Clear the Ground
Prepare the planting area by removing weeds and sod. For a quick result, especially in spring, use a spade to cut and remove the sod in sections.
If it's a longer-term project, consider the lasagna gardening method: Try to place five sheets of newspaper (double for Bermuda or St. Augustine grass), add a three-inch layer of compost or a mix of potting soil and topsoil, water, and wait.
It takes about four months for compost and paper to decompose, so starting in the fall will leave you with a weed-free, rich soil bed ready for spring planting.
4. Evaluate Your Soil and Improve It
To understand your soil better, consider having a soil test done by your county cooperative extension office. They'll guide you on how much soil to send from different parts of the garden, and you can use a DIY kit for a quick check on nutrient levels. Expect results in about two weeks, revealing what your soil needs.
Most residential soil, especially in new construction, lacks essential nutrients and may have drainage issues. The remedy is simple: Add plenty of organic matter. When digging a new bed, incorporate a 2- to 3-inch layer of compost into the soil.
If you're not digging or working with an existing bed, apply the organic matter on the surface, letting earthworms naturally mix it in over time.
5. Make Sure to Get Your Planting Beds Prepared
Before planting, it's beneficial to loosen the soil in new beds for better root growth and nutrient access. You can choose between tilling with a mechanical device like a rototiller or hand digging. Tilling is suitable for incorporating large amendments, but be cautious not to overdo it as it can harm the soil structure. Hand digging is practical for smaller beds.
Regardless of the method, work the soil when it's moist enough to form a loose ball but dry enough to crumble when dropped.
Avoid digging in overly dry or wet conditions to prevent soil damage. Gently turn the top 6-8 inches of soil using a spade or spading fork, incorporating organic matter from Step 4. To prevent soil compaction, use temporary plywood boards when walking on prepared beds.
6. Pick the Plants and Start Planting
Choosing plants can be approached in various ways—some enjoy browsing catalogs, while others find inspiration at the garden center. The key is to select plants suitable for your climate, soil, and sunlight conditions. You can also explore online options for plant purchases. Here are some beginner-friendly plants:
● Annuals: Calendula, geraniums, impatiens, marigolds, sunflowers, and zinnias
● Perennials: Black-eyed Susans, pansies, phlox, purple coneflowers, and Russian sage
● Vegetables: Cucumbers, lettuce, peppers, and tomatoes
Choose plants that match your local climate, soil, and sunlight conditions. Some, like pansies and kale, can handle the cold and are suitable for autumn or late winter planting. On the flip side, warmth-loving varieties such as tomatoes and most annual flowers should be planted after the risk of frost has passed. Mid-spring and mid-autumn are favorable for perennials.
Growing many annuals is a breeze by directly sowing seeds in the garden.
Refer to the seed packet for details on planting time, depth, and spacing. For an adventurous beginning, sow seeds indoors a few weeks before the last frost date.
Seedling containers and seed-starting soil mixes, available at garden centers, can aid this process. Follow the seed packet instructions, place containers in a sunny spot or under grow lights, and keep the seeds and seedlings adequately moist to prevent rot.
For a simpler start, consider buying young plants for transplanting. Follow tag instructions for digging holes in your prepared bed. Remove plants from containers by pushing up from the bottom, and if the roots are tangled, gently untangle the outer roots before placing them in the hole. Pat soil around the roots, then thoroughly water the soil.
7. Water the Plants at the Right Time
Keep seedlings consistently moist, watering them daily reducing frequency as they grow. Transplants require frequent watering, typically every other day, until their roots establish.
Beyond that, the watering frequency depends on factors like soil type, humidity, and rainfall. Starting with once a week is a good guideline.
Clay soil retains moisture longer than sandy soil, requiring less frequent watering. Sun and wind accelerate soil drying, so adjust accordingly. Unsure?
Check the soil 3-4 inches below the surface—if it feels dry, it's time to water. Water slowly and deeply in the early morning to allow proper absorption and reduce evaporation.
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