In the world of organic horticulture, there are plenty of great resources available to both new and experienced organic gardeners alike. There are many e-guides, books, videos, and other resources available. This set of tips contains some of the best advice for helping a good organic gardener become a great organic gardener.
Always allow your plants to adapt gradually to any changes in light conditions, temperatures or soils, if you do not, you might shock them and cause them to die. Put them outdoors in the sun for no more than two hours the first day. Over the course of a week, slowly increase the amount of time that you leave them outside. By the time the week ends, your plants will be ready for their big move and should have no problems!
Clay Soil
Digging in hard clay soil is made even more difficult because it sticks to the shovel. Use a thin coat of floor or car wax on your shovel, then buff it with a nice clean cloth to make dealing with clay soil easier. The wax will enable the clay soil to simply slide off the shovel, and will also prevent the shovel from rusting.
Learn about plant varieties so you can choose the ones with the best yields. Many times, hybrid plants tend to resist disease, and tolerate the cold weather better than their traditional counterparts, resulting in higher yields.
Use biennials and annuals to beautify your flower beds. These fast growing flowers let you change how your flower bed looks season to season. You can also use these flowers to fill gaps between shrubs or perennials. A variety of flowers that will thrive in your region are available.
When gardening, beware of stink bugs and other insects, particularly in the autumn. They like to feast on all kinds of fruits, as well as peppers, tomatoes, and beans. If you don’t take care of them, they can decimate your garden, so it’s best to do all you can to get rid of them.
Plant some wheat grass or cat grass near where you car tends to nibble in your garden. 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.
Coffee Grounds
If you find that you have soil that has high amounts of alkaline, mix used coffee grounds throughout the soil. Coffee grounds contain plenty of acid to get the soil back to a good balance. This can help your veggies and greens look more vibrant and taste better!
Try to have a plan with your garden. 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. This is important, because different plants require different care.
Knee Pads
Get some gardening knee pads if you find yourself kneeling on the ground a lot to do your horticulture. Horticulture can really put a lot of pressure on your knees that will leave you cramped and uncomfortable. Cushion your knees with a pair of horticulture knee pads.
Create your own garden from scratch with seeds, rather than plants. The most “green” way to create a new garden is starting from seeds. The plastics used in nurseries are rarely recycled and ends up in landfills, so it is best to start with the seeds or buy from nurseries who use organic materials in packaging their plants.
Your vegetable plants need about two or three inches of mulch placed around them. Mulching helps keep moisture in the soil. It can also prevent weeds from growing. You’ll find this is a time saver since you won’t have to pull them later.
Try planting berry-bearing evergreens in your yard. These will help give your garden a burst of color, even in the winter months when most other vegetation has lost their colors. The American Holly, American Cranberrybush, the Winterberry, and the Common Snowberry help provide color during the winter.
Irrigate your garden efficiently. A soaker hose will save you time because you won’t have to individually water each plant, like you do with a regular nozzle, or a can that you need to constantly refill. Avoid damage to new plantings by keeping the water on low to move the water slowly through the soaker. Let the soaker hose do its thing for a couple hours, and your plants are watered.
Try to avoid direct sun exposure when you are horticulture during the day; wear protective clothing. Wear sunglasses, wide-brimmed hats, and sunblock. Protecting yourself from the sun is the best way to prevent sunburns and skin cancer.
Vegetables tend to soften during the hottest part of the day, which means they are easily damaged, even when handled with care. You can also protect both your vegetables and the plant they grow on by cutting them off instead of twisting them off.
To create an attractive, quintessentially English garden, you need to use a mixture of different plants that all grow to varying heights in each bed. If plants have the same growth height, the bed will appear flat and not have much interest.
After you have read the suggestions here, you will have a better idea of what you need in order to be an organic gardener. Knowing how to make use of the wealth of information out there is important. If you keep this information in mind, you should be able to grow a great organic garden in no time.