Gardening makes you able to harvest fresh fruits and vegetables from your very own yard instead of driving to the store. There’s nothing quite like going outside and grabbing some toppings for your salad, or better yet the whole salad. A wide variety of information is available online, in magazines and in gardening books to help you grow a healthy, luscious garden.
Use your tool handles as rulers in the garden. Tools that have long handles such as rakes, hoes and shovels can be used in place of a measuring stick. All you have to do is lay them on the floor then use a measuring tape to measure their length. Label the distances using a permanent marker. Now, the next time you’re down in the garden, you’ll have a handy ruler without needing to look anywhere else.
Insects and various garden pests can be avoided by making your soil healthy. Healthy plants can better ward off pests and diseases. So if you want your garden to provide plants that are as healthy as possible, you need a good quality soil that contains few chemicals and that can accumulate salts over time.
Carbon dioxide, or CO2, is essential to the growth of plants because of its role in photosynthesis. More CO2 generally produces more luxurious plant growth. Greenhouses typically provide plants with high levels of CO2. CO2 levels are best kept high, in order to provide optimal growing conditions for your plants.
It’s easy to just jump in and start gardening without thought, but it’s important to plan your garden first. Planning gives you a map of your garden. When your plants begin sprouting and all look alike, you can refer to your plan to remind yourself of which plants are which. The plan will also help you keep track of your more diminutive plants and smaller groups that could otherwise become lost among a sea of larger plantings.
Try dousing weeds in your garden with boiling water to get rid of them. The safest herbicide that you can probably find is a cup of boiling water. Douse the weeds with this pot, just avoid the nearby plants. Boiling water kills weeds by destroying their roots. Weeds won’t be able to survive, never mind grow, with damaged weeds.
In order to rid your garden of pests, take advantage of plant materials and other organic matter. A border of onions or marigolds around a vegetable garden can repel slug. Insects can be deterred if you use wood ash instead of mulch around trees and shrub seedlings. Natural remedies, like the ones listed, will help reduce the need and usage of harsh chemical pesticides.
Be smart about how you water your garden. Put down the watering can or garden hose, and spread out a time-saving soaker hose instead. Be sure to keep the pressure of the water on low so that the hose does not damage the tender plants. Watering your garden for a couple hours while you are working on other tasks is an efficient use of your time.
In the hottest time of the day, most vegetables are less firm; even the act of harvesting the veggies may cause bruising. See to it that you cut their connection to the vine as opposed to twisting them, because twisting could hurt the plant.
Make sure you protect your knees well while you are gardening. Bending for extended time periods causes pain for many people. Kneeling allows you to reach your plants easily and is healthier for your back and legs. You can get a knee pad to place on the ground to kneel on so that you do not feel pain in your knees.
The hobby of gardening not only gives you something enjoyable to do, but produces tasty vegetables, herbs and fruit right at home. If you use these ingredients when you cook, you will have a sense of pride in your dishes. Use what you have learned from this article to give yourself the best gardening experience ever!