Digging in hard clay soil is made even more difficult because it sticks to the shovel. Coat the shovel with floor or car wax, and buff it with a clean rag to make the job a lot easier. This causes the clay to slide rather than stick, and prevents rust as a side effect.
All it takes to grow an organic garden is a few natural growing methods. Once you learn about them, they are surprisingly easy to put into place.
Brighten your garden with biennials and annuals. Annuals and biennials that grow quickly can really wake up your flower beds, and they allow you to have a new garden look every season or every year, if you choose to. Use these beautiful flowers to line your driveway, surround trees and shrubs, and for decorative hanging baskets. The most popular varieties to use include petunia, zinnia, cosmos, snapdragon, marigold, hollyhock, and sunflower.
To prevent shocking your plants, you must gradually introduce new temperatures and other conditions to them. The first day you transfer your plants, you should only allow them to sit in direct sunlight for a few hours. Over one week, gradually build up the amount of hours you leave the plants outside. If you do this correctly, the plants should be able to make their final move at the end of a week’s time.
As fall arrives, it is the time to prepare for planting fall edibles. Try using a pumpkin as a natural plant pot. You can plant fall vegetables such as lettuce in an empty pumpkin shell. Slice a hole around the stem, and pull the pumpkin top out. Then remove the guts and use Wilt-Pruf to cover the insides and prevent rot. When you finish this, you can plant!
Starting seedlings in pots before planting in your garden is a smart idea. This will help the plants make it to full growth. It also allows you to tighten up the time periods between plantings. The seedlings are ready to go, once you remove the mature plants.
Whether you have been gardening for a few days or a few decades, you must never deviate from the instructions on the labeling of all implements and chemicals. Failing to heed this simple advice can mean skin irritation that you are going to remember, and not pleasantly at that. Keep yourself safe by carefully following all instructions.
If you have a wall or fence that you do not like, plant climbers to mask its appearance. Many climbers are so robust that they can cover an unattractive wall or fence in a single growing season. You may also be interested in training them over an arbor or trellis. You can also grow them among existing landscape trees and plants. A number of climbers need to be attached to a support, but others just take care of their own attachments via tendrils and stems that twine. Excellent varieties include honeysuckle, wisteria, jasmine, climbing roses and clematis.
Always dress appropriately when gardening in order to protect yourself from the harmful effects of the sun. Wear sunscreen, wide-brimmed hats and sunglasses. When you keep your eyes and skin properly protected, you are less likely to get a sunburn. You also lower your risk in developing cancer of the skin.
In the cold winter months, you can salvage certain plants by bringing them into the house. Try to save plants that are expensive or that are resistant enough to handle the transition. Dig carefully around the roots, then transfer the plant into a pot.
Spend your time working efficiently in your organic garden. Do not spend half an hour looking everywhere for a tool. You can prepare what you need beforehand, keep it all handy in a toolbox or a shed, and you will be ready to work in your garden at a moment’s notice. Get yourself a tool belt, or wear pants with many pockets.
If you want flowers in spring and summer, plant bulbs in the garden. Bulbs are generally very simple to grow and hearty, as well; they will continue to grow for years. Bulbs bloom during different seasons, if you pick them carefully you will have flowers almost all year.
Is there a natural way to kill weeds? Use a lot of layers of newspaper in order to achieve weed control. Weeds require sunlight for growing. When you put newspaper over them, they suffocate from lack of sunlight. The paper will break down quickly and cleanly, adding to your compost. It can look more attractive by adding a mulch layer.
If your garden includes vegetables, make sure you plant them in a location whether they are exposed to sunlight for a minimum of six hours each day. Many veggies require this amount to properly grow at a faster pace. This is also true for some flowers.
Once a year, you must rotate your garden. When you continuously plant some plants from the same family in the same area every year, disease and fungus is encouraged in these areas. These diseases can build up in the soil, reinfecting your plants the next year. By changing up varieties and locations, you are reducing the chances of damaging your plants.
Draw up a garden plan before you plant the first seed. Doing so means you can remember where each particular plant is when you start seeing sprouts arise from the earth. This can also help prevent you from losing smaller plants or smaller groups of plants within a larger garden area.
When choosing plants, dig a little deeper. For example, tomato seedlings can develop bad root systems that will result in failed plants. These green starts will prohibit the plants from growing. These kind of starts stay on these seedlings for weeks at a time; this doesn’t allow the seedling to grow unless the starts are gone.
Try pouring water leftover from steamed vegetables onto your potted plants. It contains rich nutrients that come from the vegetables. You may fertilize the soil with tea or coffee for plants that favor acidic environments, like rhododendrons and gardenias. If fungus is an issue, Chamomile tea sprinkled on the plant may be effective.
Weeds are the bane of any garden’s existence. This method is much safer for your other plants.
Beneficial Bugs
It is wise to build a fence around your garden prior to starting in planting your garden. This will keep animals and people out. Your plants will have a safe space to grow in and reach maturity.
Use only pesticides designed to kill the specific type of pest in your garden, and avoid the broad-spectrum kind. These kinds of pesticides kill the helpful insects that destroy the pests. Beneficial bugs usually have more sensitivity towards pesticides than bad ones. Therefore, if the number of beneficial bugs drops, the problem with pests can get bigger. When this happens, you will spray another round of pesticides to get rid of the pests, thus creating a never-ending cycle for yourself.
Some bees, like bumble bees, pollinate your plants and are beneficial to your garden. There are certain bees, like carpenter bees, that can be harmful because they eat wood and create their nests inside them. That said, the majority of bees are crucial to your garden. Learn how to recognize the good from the bad so that you can let the good do its job.
Try to avoid direct sun exposure when you are horticulture during the day; wear protective clothing. Try wearing a large sunhat and sunglasses to protect your face and eyes, and use sunscreen on any exposed skin. Protecting yourself from the sun is the best way to prevent sunburns and skin cancer.
Use a mixture of six parts water with one part of milk regularly as a plant spray. This will help restrict powdery mildew, which could end up ruining your plants. This mixture can easily be kept in the fridge for around three weeks. You can use this every day until there is no mildew.
Avoid getting an infection by not allowing dirt and other chemicals to get into open wounds. A cut may become badly infected if it’s exposed to a lot of dirt or grime when you garden. You can completely seal the area using some of the great bandages that are now available.
Gardening is within everybody’s reach, but you will only make the most of your gardening experience with knowledge. Use the tips provided here for organic horticulture.