Top 5 Strategies for Gardening Success
Gardening can be such a rewarding experience, particularly when you end up with lovely flowers or delicious and healthful vegetables as a result of your efforts. Yet for beginners, gardening can quickly become frustrating, especially when your garden becomes overrun with insects, disease, and failing plants. However, no matter your past gardening experience, with a little planning and foresight you can really increase your chances for a thriving garden. Here are the top 5 strategies you can use to ensure your gardening success.
- Choose plants suitable to your region: The best way to determine this is to inquire at your local nursery or do your research online. Plants that are native to your region or grow easily there will be significantly easier to care for than those that aren’t. Growing conditions to consider when choosing plants should include: average daytime and nighttime temperature, wind patterns, rain and moisture patterns, last frost date, common pests, and soil type. Also keep in mind that within your regional options there will be some plants that are easier to grow than others, so choose wisely to maximize your chances for success.
- Water correctly: Particularly with young plants (whether grown from seed or recently transplanted), a properly calibrated watering schedule is going to be one of your most important keys to success. While plenty of water is always critical, it’s important not to overwater, as that can lead to a host of problems including disease (yellow leaves are usually an indication that you are watering too much). How you water is also important. Water should be applied at the root of plants rather that over the top so that the leaves don’t become wet. Wet leaves can easily lead to mold, rot, and/or disease. The general rule of thumb is to give plants an inch of water per week, but this will vary depending on the type of plant, whether it’s established or not, and current weather conditions.
- Mulch, mulch, mulch: You can really protect your garden plants from failure with regular applications of mulch. Mulch provides a protective barrier to the soil that moderates temperature, conserves water, and keeps soil borne disease at bay. For the best results, go with an organic mulch that will rot down into the soil rather than landscape fabric or other specialized man-made mulches.
- Feed the soil rather than your plants: The bottom line is that plant health depends on healthy roots, which in turn depend on healthy soil for air, water, and nutrients. Thus, it’s important to make sure that your soil is rich in organic matter such as compost before you even start planting. Then test your soil periodically throughout the season and provide fertilizers and amendments that make up for missing nutrients and make the soil healthier overall.
- Take an honest look at your schedule: Before you plant anything, it’s important to look closely at your schedule and determine how much time you really have to dedicate to your garden. This will determine how much you should actually plant. When you plant more than you are able to take care of, this can quickly translate to a failed effort. If your time is limited, also take a good look at what you are planting and avoid time-consuming and needy plant varieties.
Following these simple strategies will make your entire gardening venture so much more enjoyable. Always keep in mind that an important aspect of gardening involves a certain degree of trial and error, so don’t be afraid to try different things to achieve the gardening success you are striving for.