What better time than now? You most likely have a head full of questions and concerns regarding how you should begin, and then what to do once you actually have. Luckily, you'll be able to find some answers to those concerns in the paragraphs below. Below you'll find some handy tips to jumpstart your horticulture aspirations.
Always allow your plants to adapt gradually to any changes in light conditions, temperatures or soils, if you do not, you might shock them and cause them to die. Put them outdoors in the sun for no more than two hours the first day. Throughout the week, you should increase a little at a time how long you have them outside. When the week is done, your plants will be ready for the big move without any problems.
Using a shovel in clay soil is a lot of work, not only is the clay hard, but it will stick to the shovel and make it twice as hard to handle. Take the hard work out of using a shovel in clay soil by rubbing a light coat of car or floor wax over the surface with a clean cloth and buff the surface. This will make your task easier because the clay won't stick to the shovel. It will also keep your garden tool from rusting.
Plant seeds in pots that have a rich soil to give them a strong start. This boosts the chance that the plants can survive to adulthood. You will then be able to lessen the time between planting your seeds. Using this method, you can remove the mature plants, then put the seedlings in their places.
Make garden tools do double duty as handy makeshift rulers. You can use larger tools, like rakes, as measuring sticks. Lay your handles on the floor, and put measuring tape right next to them. Paying close attention to the measurements, use a black marker to establish each interval along the handle's side in a clearly visible manner. Next time you are working in the garden, you will have a large ruler at your fingertips!
Healthy Soil
A garden with a foundation of healthy soil is the best defense against pests. Healthy soil encourages vigorous plant growth and makes your garden more resistant to common diseases and insects. Start your garden off with a high-quality soil that you can enrich over time.
Plant perennials that are slug-proof. Creatures like snails or slugs can destroy a plant in a single night. Snails and slugs have a good time destroying perennials that are young and have tender and smooth thin leaves. Some perennials, however, leave a bad taste in slugs' mouths or are difficult to chew through because their leaves aren't tender. Several good choices include heuchera, campanula, achillea, and euphorbia.
You do not need store-bought chemical treatments for plant mildew. Try mixing a little liquid soap with some baking soda in water. Spray this solution on plants once weekly until the mildew is gone. Do not worry about your plants; the baking soda cannot harm them.
You are now one step closer to fulfilling that ambition and beginning your garden. You thought that you were ready before, well look at you now! Hopefully the tips laid out here gave you pointers to improve your horticulture so you can start gardening with two green thumbs.