Tips And Ideas For Any Type Of Gardener
You know the health benefits of growing your own organic garden, that is why you put the time and effort into it. Use the great information provided in this article to build upon your own current knowledge and hopefully, learn something new to maximize the benefits both for you and everyone you know.
When uprooting a perennial plant, you should start digging at its drip line. Dig a trench around the plant, and cut any roots that extend beyond that trench. You can tie stems together to avoid damaging the plant during the process. Once all the roots are severed lift the plant carefully by its main stem.
To grow an incredible crop of tomatoes, make sure your planting area gets plenty of light and has lots of room around each tomato plant. Tomato plants are sun hungry! They really want at least ten hours of sun each and every day and the additional space between plants helps maximize each tomato’s succulence.
Brighten up your winter garden with trees that have interesting bark. A winter garden can tend to look bare and drab, especially if you live in a very cold climate. Three good choices are a paperbark maple, silver birch or scarlet willow. This will make a quite noticeable difference to the look of your garden.
There are natural steps you can take to keep garden pests at bay. Slugs can be kept at bay with a patch of marigolds or pungent vegetables. Wood ash, when used like mulch, can keep away pests after it is spread around a tree base and shrub seedlings. Using methods like these eliminates the need for chemical pesticides, which can be harsh or even harmful.
Use your used pantyhose in two beneficial ways for gardening. Wrapping and knotting up old soap slivers in pantyhose allows you to scrub stubborn ground in dirt off your hands, without needing expensive garden soaps. You can also use pantyhose to bag up your squashes and melons as they grow to give them more support on the vine, and the sun can still get through hosiery.
Bulbs produce beautiful flowers in your garden year after year. To achieve the most blooms, plant your bulbs as soon as temperatures in your area begin to cool in the fall. This is usually August in zones 1 to 4 and September in zones 4 to 7. Those in southern climates will have to chill their bulbs before planting.
If you have clay soil, the most important thing to do is work it over and amend it with some type of compost. Plants tend to do well this type of soil once they are established, as they can sink their roots deep enough into an area that never dries out. Conversely, plants in lighter soil need watering constantly. Remember to place an organic mulch on the surface, which will stop the surface from baking in the summer.
Treat your flowering bulbs correctly after they finish blooming and they will return again next year. Allow the foliage to remain for at least eight weeks after flowering to ensure that your bulbs are able to photosynthesize enough food for the following season. Removing the leaves earlier could result in weak flowers or no flowers at all the next year.
If you live in the city, you can still reap the benefits of organic gardening through container gardening. Herbs especially will thrive in indoor pots, as long as they are large enough. Container gardening can be easier than outdoor gardening when going organic, as there is less risk of exposure to insect pests or weeds.
When you buy seeds for your garden, be sure to purchase seeds that are labeled “certified organic.” This ensures that your plants will be organic throughout their lifespan and that the seeds you are buying aren’t contaminated with chemical fertilizers or pesticides. Watch out for labels, such as “genetically engineered” or any mention of “natural” that does not include the phrase “certified organic.”
To summarize, you already know why it is great to have an organic garden, now it is time to further your expertise in the field. Ideally, you learned something new in this area and will be able to grow a much better garden. There is nothing better than being able to enjoy produce that you grew yourself.
