Growing your own fruits and vegetables is an easy thing to do if you use proper techniques. It shows that you care about taking care of your plants and that you want them to grow up healthy. This is a great thing. As with all skills, you can continuously improve your gardening through experience and further study. The following tips can assist you.
Use biennials and annuals to beautify your flower beds. 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. You can use them between the gaps in shrubs and perennials where there is plenty of sun. Some of these that you might consider are petunias, marigolds and sunflowers. If those are not flowers you like, you can also try cosmos, holyhocks or rudbeckias.
Transfer your favorite plants indoors to rescue them from the winter frosts. You can save the ones you spent the most money on or the ones that are resistant. Carefully dig near the roots and transfer those plants into a flower pot.
Before you begin to plant your garden you will need to check the soil. A soil analysis report can be acquired for a nominal fee. You can then use the results of that report to determine if the soil needs to be modified before you begin planting. Cooperative Extension departments often offer this testing service. It is a worthwhile effort so a garden can be productive on the first year of planting.
If you are going to be doing some horticulture, watch out for stink bugs, especially in the fall! They thrive on fruits, citrus, peppers and various beans. If you do not keep them under control, the damage can be excessive, so keep an eye out for them.
Plan your garden before you plant it. This way, you will remember the places you planted your seeds when they start sprouting. This can also help prevent you from losing smaller plants or smaller groups of plants within a larger garden area.
Pick a plant that will be a focal point. In a well designed garden you should have a focal point so that your eyes will stay there. Many times, it's just a plant that differs from the surrounding plants.
Avoid sun damage by dressing appropriately whenever you will be gardening in the sun. Make sure you wear a wide brimmed hat along with sunglasses and plenty of sunscreen. 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.
It is easy to quickly prepare your perennial garden ground. Turn over the soil in your garden so it will be soft and easy to plant before spreading wood chips around your garden. Wait two weeks, then dig in and plant the new perennials.
In your flower beds and garden, utilize a few inches of organic mulch. Not only will you be adding nutrients, but weeds will be less likely to grow and moisture will be retained more easily. You will also have a gorgeous and finished organic flower bed.
Pine mulch can be highly effective under the right conditions. Some garden plants have a higher acidity, and prefer a more acidic soil. For such plants, pine needles function both as a handy mulch and as a soil amendment to lower the pH. Cover the surface of the ground with a two-inch layer of the pine needles; as the needles break down, they will release acid into the soil and nourish your plants.
Now you have the three items you need to make your organic garden a success-- tools, products and skill. Great! Learning is a never-ending process. The tips you have read above, of course, cover just the basics. Learning something new can always help with any hobby.