One great way to improve your diet and give yourself a fun an interesting hobby is to plant an organic garden. However, you should be aware that organic gardening is hard work. You probably have many questions about how to accomplish your gardening goals.
Plant slug-proof perennials. Your plants can be destroyed by slugs and snails overnight. These pests are particularly fond of young perennials and those varieties with leaves that are tender, smooth, and thin. Some varieties of perennials are not preferred by snails and slugs, particularly perennials that have hairy, tough leaves or a taste that isn’t appetizing. Some of these plants include achillea, campanula, euphorbia, hellaborus, and heuchera.
Baking Soda
You don’t need a costly chemical solution to deal with powdery mildew in your garden. All it takes is a liquid soap, water, and baking soda mixture. Spray this on your plants once a week until the mildew disappears. The baking soda is harmless to your plants and a very effective remedy.
Cover fences and walls with climbing plants. These versatile plants can grow over fences to enhance the fence’s appearance. Often, climbers grow quickly, so you’ll get the effect you want by the time the season changes. They can be trained to grow over an arbor, or through trees and shrubs that are already in the garden. Some varieties will climb and attach using their tendrils or branches, but some will need to be trained or supported with ties. Honeysuckle and jasmine are very beautiful varieties of such climbers.
Make sure your soil is healthy enough before you start planting anything. An inexpensive soil report can be used to adjust soil nutrients to optimum levels, which will ensure your garden thrives. Cooperative Extension departments often offer this testing service. It is a worthwhile effort so a garden can be productive on the first year of planting.
When horticulture, be watchful of stink bugs, particularly in the fall. They like fruits, as well as peppers, beans and tomatoes. If they are left in the garden, they can do great damage to your plants, so you should do whatever you can to eliminate them.
If you want your garden to sport flowers in the spring as well as summer, plant bulbs. A hardy perennial addition to your garden, bulbs will continue to delight every year. Include a variety of plantings to get a full season of flowers, from early bloomers to late-season varieties.
Do not mow your lawn close to the bottom. If your grass has more height, roots be able to grow more deeply in the soil, which will make for a stronger lawn and will have a higher resistance to drying out. Short grass leads to more shallow roots and will result in more brown, dried-out patches.
Coffee Grounds
Coffee grounds can be used to amend soils that are high in alkaline. Coffee grounds are an affordable means of adding acid to the soil so that it is pH-balanced. With it, you will find that your greens and vegetables will be more vibrant and tasty!
The best gardens will evolve from original seeds rather than transplanted items. As a green-friendly gardener, you always want to use seeds to start your new plot. The planters used to hold nursery plants are generally not made from eco-friendly materials, and thus get thrown into landfills. Starting from seeds, or buying from one of the few nurseries that use biodegradable planters, prevents this.
Give them a nutritious drink by using the water that you boiled your veggies in. For gardenias and rhododendrons, try putting your used coffee grounds or tea bags in the soil so they may acquire the acid they need for proper growth. If fungus is ravaging your potted plants, sprinkle a bit of Chamomile tea on them, and see if it helps.
Heather is a magnet for friendly insects. Bees love heather, and when the heather blooms in early spring, it provides a good nectar source for them. Because heather beds require very little maintenance, they often become the home of spiders, ground beetles, and other insects that can benefit your garden. With this in mind make sure you wear some gloves when you are working with the heather.
Try mixing various plants that have different heights to create an interesting garden setup. Using plants of all the same kind or size, can result in a boring, and unoriginal garden.
Get your kids to help you grow your organic garden. Helping a garden grow is an excellent learning experience for kids, and it allows your family to spend time together while creating healthy, nutritious foods.
A mixture of aspirin and water can help your ailing plants. Dissolve aspirin (1.5 pills per 2 gallons of water) in a bucket and administer to your plants. Then spray your plants with this mixture to stave off diseases. Use this method every three weeks.
If you’re thinking about growing your own organic garden, then you might want to consider keeping a bit of your property undeveloped; this way wildlife can flourish. Certain wildlife can be good for an organic garden; birds and insects can help your plants reproduce and be as healthy as they can be!
Spend your time working efficiently in your organic garden. Do not waste your time looking for tools. Prepare all of your tools prior to working in the garden, and then put them away neatly when finished. You can keep your garden tools in a tool belt, or in your pockets. Another good idea is to keep them all in a bucket that you carry around with you.
As this article has shown, to be successful at organic gardening you must do your homework and put forth a bit of effort. After you have begun to grow the garden, it is true that you need to maintain it to get the best possible results. If you apply the tips you have just read, you should be able to grow healthy plants.