Healthy Living: Tips For Growing An Organic Garden Of Your Own

~ craigb

TIP! Starting a garden with the best soil is a great defense mechanism against pests. Healthier plants are greater in strength and resistance to illness and insects.

There are a great deal of benefits to horticulture, and it’s a very enjoyable hobby. Whether you grow vegetables or flowers, growing and caring for plants is very soothing and rewarding. This guide can give you insight and pointers that you will need for gardening.

Choose higher yield plant varieties. Frequently, a hybrid that is able to deal with extreme temperatures will bring higher yields than the more traditional variety of a plant.

TIP! To help young plants, try pouring boiling water on top of nearby weeds. Boiling water is a safe herbicide which won’t damage your garden or your body.

Plant bulbs if you want spring and summer flowers. Bulbs will grow every year and are easier to take care of than seeds. Choose from the variety of bulbs that bloom at various times of the growing season for a garden of color all spring and summer long.

TIP! If you would love to have access to fresh and healthy mint leaves from your own back yard, but dread the way the plant spreads so quickly, worry not. That’s why it’s better to place mint in containers rather than letting it have free rein in your garden.

When mowing your lawn do not cut it as short as possible. If you leave your grass kind of high, your roots will be deeper and your lawn will be stronger and not dry out. If you have short grass, you will have short roots and you will dry out your grass.

TIP! In order to rid your garden of pests, take advantage of plant materials and other organic matter. Slugs can be kept at bay with a patch of marigolds or pungent vegetables.

Make a plan for your garden. It will be a while before things start to sprout and visually remind you of what was planted where, so a written record can be helpful. This is important, because different plants require different care.

TIP! Think about putting some berry-producing evergreens into your landscape. This will keep your garden colorful, even during those months when other plants are not growing.

You could try to boil weeds if you are trying to remain organic. Boiling water is a very safe alternative to other potent herbicides. Just pour boiling water directly on top of the weeds cautiously to avoid damaging your plants. Boiling water kills weeds by destroying their roots. Weeds won’t be able to survive, never mind grow, with damaged weeds.

TIP! Put money into a quality wheelbarrow and kneeling stool if you plan to do garden work often. Get a portable stool if you want to garden comfortably without damaging your knees.

A good fertilizer is important to add nutrients to your soil. Manure is an excellent fertilizer, but it needs to be combined with a synthetic compost to stop diseases from infecting your plants. It is important that you use some sort of fertilizer, although it doesn’t really matter which variety you choose.

TIP! Pest control is one of the hardest things about growing a vegetable garden. You can’t use chemicals as they’re the last thing you want to be eating when you enjoy the fruits of your labor.

An easy, inexpensive way to give them nutrients is to pour the leftover water from your steamed vegetables into the soil. 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. Chamomile tea is a natural way to rid your plants of a persistent fungus.

Beneficial Bugs

TIP! You never want to do any gardening with open wounds, so make sure everything is completely healed up before you begin; otherwise, you run the risk of your cut being exposed to dangerous chemicals and dirt. A cut may become badly infected if it’s exposed to a lot of dirt or grime when you garden.

When gardening, avoid the use of strong broad-spectrum pesticides. If your pesticide has too wide a range of targets, it can kill off useful insects that fight off other 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. If you respond to the growing pest problem with more broad-spectrum pesticide, you only continue the harmful cycle.

TIP! You should use wood that is untreated, brick or stone when building the raised bed. If you choose to use wood, make sure it is naturally rot resistant and untreated.

Irrigate your garden efficiently. Use a hose with a soaker attachment to save you time, so the garden can get watered while you are doing other tasks. Use a low water pressure to avoid damaging tender plants. Let the soaker hose do its thing for a couple hours, and your plants are watered.

TIP! Use a soaker hose to water your garden. These hoses let water out slowly at a regular rate.

The flesh of vegetables gets soft in the heat of the day, making them especially vulnerable to inadvertent damage with even the gentlest picking. See to it that you cut their connection to the vine as opposed to twisting them, because twisting could hurt the plant.

TIP! If you are wanting to start your own organic garden, it is crucial that you know how to properly make beds. One way to achieve this is to use a garden tool to carve out a small slice of earth.

Strawberries are a great plant to grow in any organic garden, especially if you happen to have kids or any strawberry lover in your home. Kids really enjoy plucking snacks directly from the ground, and may have greater enthusiasm for the work if they see the results of their labor right away.

TIP! Open your mind to the diverse environments that can be created in your garden space. You will notice more wildlife if you have diverse plants.

Add aspirin to your plants to help them fight sickness. Dissolve one and one-half aspirins into two gallons of cold water, and use it to fortify your plants. The solution can then be used to spray the entire plant, and will offer protection naturally. Apply at three week intervals.

TIP! Organic gardening is simple and effective! One of the best techniques is to plant native flowers, grasses and bushes to your landscape. Plants that are already pre-programmed to exist peacefully with one another in similar climates and conditions, will prevent the need for a lot of “special measures” that eat up time and money.

If you cut your hand, you can use a glove to protect it from germs and chemicals until it heals. A cut will likely become infected if it is exposed to dirt when horticulture. You can get bandages that can completely seal your cut.

TIP! Make a shade garden out of your organic garden. These gardens are low maintenance, which is very appealing to people.

Learn to work efficiently. Don’t waste time searching for lost tools. Have all of tools you will need for the day before you head out your garden. When you are finished, put them away neatly for the next time. You can use a tool belt for this purpose, or choose pants that contain several large pockets.

Pine Needles

TIP! When making your own compost, a very cost-effective technique is to utilize fruit peelings and other leftover pieces of fruit. These food products contribute to a terrific natural compost for your garden, helping your plants grow beautifully and healthfully at nearly no extra cost to you.

For some plants, pine needles makes an ideal mulch. There are many types of plants with a high acidity, which means they thrive in acidic soil. If you are growing these types of plants, simply gather up fallen pine needles for use in your garden. Spread the needles over the beds in a layer that is approximately 2-inches deep. Over time, the needles will begin to decay, supplying the soil with acid as they do.

TIP! You should think about digging small trenches between rows of plants if you are planting an organic garden. This works to help water flow to the plants themselves, and it reduces the frequency with which you will need to water them yourself.

As has been noted above, there are many rewards inherent in gardening. The benefits of gardening can be seen in every flower or vegetable that grows. You can advance your horticulture skills greatly by just using the advice in this article.