Horticulture is a relaxing, rewarding pastime for many and offers a long list of benefits. It does not matter if you grow vegetable or flowers, just the act of taking care of a garden and caring for your plants will offer many rewards. This guide can give you insight and pointers that you will need for gardening.
Plant vines like ivy to cover fences and dividing walls. You can hide an unsightly wall or fence, in as little as one growing season, with the right selection of climbing plant. They also work to cover up old, and possibly dead, vegetation. Some need to be tied to a support, whereas certain climbers attach themselves to a surface with tendrils or twining stems. Reliable varieties include clematis, honeysuckle, wisteria, jasmine and climbing roses.
Transplanting plants and bringing them indoors can protect them from harsh winters. You may want to save the most beautiful or expensive ones. Carefully dig up the plants, using caution not to disturb the roots, then transfer into a pot.
Try growing wheat grass or cat grass in the area of the plants your cat wants to eat. You can also put something on top of the soil around the plants that has an offensive smell to cats, such as mothballs or citrus peel.
If you learn that your soil has a high amount of alkaline, mix some used coffee grounds into it. This is an easy and inexpensive solution to increase the acid content back into the soil. The greens and vegetables need the proper balance and will grow bigger and stronger with the right mix.
Use natural pest control when possible. A border of marigolds or onions around your veggies can prevent slugs. You can also mulch around trees and shrubs with wood ash, which drives away insects. When done naturally, there is no need for pesticides with harsh, and sometimes dangerous, chemicals
Protect the soil around your vegetable plants with an inch or two of organic mulch. The mulch will help keep the dirt around the plants more moist. This method will also prevent weeds. This will save you tons of time from pulling out tons of weeds.
It is particularly important for new gardeners to read and follow instructions that come with tools, as well as chemicals. If you don’t do this, you could cause unnecessary skin irritations, which are very painful. Prevent issues, and use your garden chemicals safely.
Beneficial Bugs
Do not use broad-spectrum pesticides within your garden. Broad-spectrum pesticides will kill insects that are helpful to your garden as well as the harmful ones. Beneficial bugs usually have more sensitivity towards pesticides than bad ones. Therefore, if the number of beneficial bugs drops, the problem with pests can get bigger. You will need even more pesticides to deal with the problem, and it will never really go away.
Gardening is a wonderful hobby that can be very rewarding. Even just working in the fresh air can lift your spirits. Take your gardening to greater heights of enjoyment with the tips you’ve gotten here.
Originally posted 2014-11-09 08:55:21.
