Gardening is a complex hobby, but it doesn’t have to be confusing or difficult. Once you have decided to garden organically, you need to learn about your soil’s pH balance, as well as things like natural pesticides. Growing an organic garden can be hard for someone inexperienced. Be successful by using the following tips.
Planting organic strawberries is a great way to encourage your children to get involved. Your children will enjoy being able to pick strawberries and will be ready to help you if they can get something sweet to eat.
It’s simple to lay a new perennial bed. You just need to use your garden spade for slicing underneath the turf, then flip it, and finally spread about three or four inch deep piles of wood chips. Allow a few weeks to pass by before you dig down into the applied soil.
Keep your garden tools close at hand to make the most of your gardening time. Put them into a basket you carry with you, or use an apron with many pockets and hanging loops. Keep common tools such as your gloves or your pruning shears within reach so that you can quickly and easily maintain your garden whenever you need to.
Pine Needles
For some plants, pine needles makes an ideal mulch. Some plants like acidic soil because they have high acidity. When you have plants like this, nothing is easier than to gather pine needles for your beds. Cover the beds with a couple inches of needles and as they decompose, they will disperse acid to the soil.
Spacing is essential when planting an organic garden. You can easily underestimate how much space the plants need until they begin to grow. Air circulation and room to grow is important for any plant. Plan your garden carefully and leave enough space between the seeds.
Use an old laundry basket to collect your produce. An old basket will act like a strainer does. You can rinse your produce off while it is in the basket, and the excess water will strain through the holes of your laundry basket.
Don’t use pesticides – kill your weeds naturally! Pile newspapers on top of each other to kill weeds. Like any other plant, weeds need to be exposed to the sun. If you place sheets of newspaper over the weeds, they will die due to a lack of sunlight. The paper will break down quickly and cleanly, adding to your compost. In order to improve its attractiveness, add one mulch layer.
One odd but apparently useful tip for growing organic plants, is to lightly brush your plants with your fingers or a piece of cardboard 1-2 times a day. Even though it sounds strange, it will help plants get bigger.
Use a beer trap to get rid of unwanted pests, like slugs. Bury a jar in the garden with it’s mouth open and level to the ground. Pour beer into the jar until it is an inch from the top. Beer is especially attractive to slugs; they will lured to it and trapped.
Use untreated wood, stone, or brick to build a raised bed. When selecting wood, make certain you pick untreated products that have a natural resistance to rot. The best varieties include cedar, locust and cypress wood. Never use compost from treated woods in a veggie garden; the chemicals can contaminate your food. If you are already using treated lumber, you can use plastic liners, or a different barrier, in order to protect your garden.
If you’d like to improve the health of your soil, try adding some mulch. The soil can be greatly enhanced by adding a good layer of mulch to it. It can also keep the ground from overheating during hot weather, which will protect the roots of your plants from damage. Since it decreases the rate at which moisture evaporates, the soil also stays more moist. It can also help alleviate any weed issues.
Over-watering your plants is not healthy because too much water may inhibit the roots from getting nutrients out of the soil. Before watering your plants outdoors, check to see if there is rain in the forecast. Skip watering your plants for a couple of days if a heavy rainstorm has descended; natural rainwater can be particularly good for your plants as well.
Now, you shouldn’t get your hopes up and believe that a few tips are going to turn you into an instant professional gardener. However, these tips are a great starting point if you do plan to grow organically. As you implement these tips and hone your skills, you’ll be a professional green-thumb-holder in no time.