Organic horticulture is something you may want to do but never go through with. The thought of starting a garden can be intimidating for many people, due to the fact that it is not something a lot of people are familiar with, and it does seem complicated. However, if you keep reading, you'll find suggestions that can help simplify organic horticulture and even make it fun.
Starting seedlings in pots before planting in your garden is a smart idea. This insures that the plants will grow and thrive into adulthood. It also allows you to tighten up the time periods between plantings. When you take out the prior set of adult plants, your seedlings will then be prepared to go in.
If your plants have a powdery mildew, don't use expensive chemicals on them. Put a little baking soda and some dish soap in water. Once a week, spray this on plants to eliminate the mildew. Do not worry about your plants; the baking soda cannot harm them.
You can use the wooden handles of your tools as measurement sticks. Tools with long handles, such as a shovel or rake, are absolutely perfect for this job, and make your workload a little bit smaller. Place the handles on the ground and measure them. Label the distances with a permanent marker. Now, every time you work in your garden, you are going to have a powerful ruler at the touch of your fingertips.
If you are going to be doing some horticulture, watch out for stink bugs, especially in the fall! They like to feast on all kinds of fruits, as well as peppers, tomatoes, and beans. If left unattended, your garden could be ravaged by these bugs, so you need to proactively keep their population under control.
It is very important to keep the weeds from taking over in your garden. If you have weeds in your garden, it will not be as nice as it could be. White vinegar is a pesticide-free way to battle weeds. White vinegar can kill weeds! If you don't want to take the time to remove the weeds by hand, simply spray them with a white vinegar solution.
Aerate and dry your plants each day. Damp leaves can lead to plant disease and parasites. A fungus is one of the most important and debilitating parasites for plants. Proactively treat fungi through the use of fungicidal sprays and treatments.
Protect your tender deciduous shrubs. If you have a few potted shrubs, they should be shielded from the wintry weather. Tie together the tops. Once the canes are snugly together, put a sheet over the wigwam. When you do this you allow air to flow and circulate which can actually prevent rotting, this method is great and better than just wrapping your plant in some plastic.
Make sure that you divide your irises! To increase the number that you have, you need to take all your overgrown clumps and split them up. Uproot bulbous irises if the flowers have wilted. The bulbs will automatically split in you hand, and will likely flower the year after being replanted. For plants with rhizomes, use a knife to divide them. Discard the center and cut pieces from the exterior. Be sure to retain a sturdy offshoot on every piece that you intend to plant. Replant your new rhizome pieces as soon as you have finished the cuttings.
To keep pests away, you can use plants in the garden or other natural materials. Planting marigolds or onions around the border of your vegetable garden will help repel slugs. Another way to get rid of pests is to spread wood ash at ground level around shrubs and tree plantings. With these natural methods, there is no need to purchase expensive, harsh pesticides.
Organic Horticulture
Are fresh mint leaves something you love but cannot stand how quickly they grow all over your garden? Keep the growth under control by growing them in a large gardening pot instead. You can then plant the container down in the ground if you like, but the walls of the container will hold the roots captive, and keep the plant from taking over your garden!
Reading these tips probably cleared up some of the questions you had about organic horticulture. Hopefully, it made organic horticulture seem less intimidating. Apply the wisdom you have learned here to your home and yard, and you can enjoy pure wholesome foods in your kitchen in not time at all.