Gardening Tips For Beginners – 21+ Amazing Gardening Tips You Need To Know
Gardening
Gardening is one of the most relaxing frugal hobbies I know. There is something about being outdoors, digging in the dirt, growing food or flowers for your family that is purely balancing. And it is so simple and easy to start. Discover 21+ amazing gardening tips for beginners to help you get started today.
How To Garden
You can garden just about anywhere. You don’t need 40 acres, an acre or a large yard. You can garden on your balcony. On your kitchen window sill or you can turn your yard into an edible landscape. Gardening can be done just about anywhere and to any size.
The Basics Of Gardening
No matter where you garden you require good soil (dirt), water, sunshine, seeds or plants, patience and a love of learning. There is always something new to learn or try when it comes to gardening. For example this year we are still knee deep in snow and I am really crave homegrown greens so we have started lettuce seeds on our window sill and they are sprouting! Proof that you can garden just about anywhere as long as you have good soil, great seeds, water, patience and are willing to try.
How To Start A Garden For Beginners
Beginner gardening is a topic I could sit down and discuss over a lengthy cup of coffee or a long wander through a garden store. (A few of my favorite things.) When we moved to our current home in farm country there was no garden, just a few half dead trees the previous owners tried to grow.
Beginner Gardening
I was bound and determined to create a garden to provide both floral, vegetables and fruits for my family. As a stay at home mom with littles and a very busy family I started small. I learned as much as I possibly could from the local farmers and garden center. Below I am going to share with you as many beginner gardening tips as I can to help you get your garden started.
Now by no means do you need to do any or all of these tips. Find what works best for you, your family and your space.
Gardening Tips
- Start small and grow from there. You can grow a lot in a 10×10 garden year round.
- Plant seeds and plants your family like to eat or floral you enjoy.
- Plant one new vegetable to try.
- Polyculture planting and seasonal planting can and will increase your yield.
- Gardening is not meant to be stressful. It’s meant to be relaxing and rewarding.
- Budget gardening is the way to go. Use the pots you have. Buy only the seeds you need. Simple basic garden tools is the way to go.
- Always plant something you enjoy watching grow. I have three different lilac plants and love them for their floral, their scent and amazing addition to the garden.
Soil Basics
- Soil is the foundation of a great garden.
- Your soil should be a mixture of soil, sand and compost. Most potting soils are a combination of sand and soil.
- Adding compost to your soil is the key to a healthy garden.
- You can create your own compost.
- Remember to water your garden daily, weekly depending on the plant and the temperature outside.
- Remember to add organic (not chemical) fertilizer to your garden.
- Adding mulch (mulch can be grass clippings, composting plants or wood chips) to your garden will decrease weed growth and add to the biology of the soil increasing plant yield.
Planting Tips
- Polyculture planting (planting an assortment of plants together) will increase your vegetable and floral harvest as well as help keep the bugs away.
- Seasonal planting can help you grow vegetables year round. Most beds can have 3 crops per year.
- Plant a few flowers with your vegetable plants to encourage pollinators (bees, butterflies and etc.)
- You can plant vertically for more growth.
- Interplanting smaller plants with larger plants will yield more harvest.
- Companion planting can also increase crop yield.
- Pay attention to the planting dates, spacing and seedling details on your seed packages.
Vegetable Planting Tips For Beginners
- Start by planting seeds you know your family will eat.
- Add one new vegetable seed or plant to try. Variety has it’s benefits
- Polyculture planting or interplanting many different varieties of seeds together will promote vegetable growth.
- Companion planting can increase crop yield.
- Know your first and last frost dates.
- Get your salad, kale and spinach seeds in first. Most greens can stand the cold weather of early spring.
- Row covers or indoor planting (seeding) can be your gardening helping hand.
Flower Planting Tips
- Plant what you love. But make sure it will grow in your area.
- Ask your local garden expert for floral planting advice.
- Try and experience. Learn as you go.
- Tulip bulbs need to be planted by December for spring growth.
- When planting flowers, trees and shrubs assess the area for the size they will be not the size you are planting. Plants need room to grow.
- Don’t just stick to one type or color of flower. Mix and match.
- Do your homework some floral plants are edible and have health benefits like lavender or roses.
Garden Bugs For Beginners
- There are good bugs and bad bugs.
- If you can add a mason bee house to your garden, do.
- Mason bees don’t sting but will pollinate your garden happy.
- Lady bugs are a great addition to a garden because they eat the aphids.
- Earth worms are also a healthy bug to have in the garden.
- Adding mulch to your garden will help deter pests.
- Polyculture planting will “confuse” the bad bugs and save your vegetables.
Gardening To Feed Your Family
Gardening is a great way to save money while feeding your family. You can grow as many or as few vegetables and herbs as you need. Supplementing with produce from your local farmers market or CSA program. As the cost of produce rises planting your own garden just makes sense. Last year our small garden fed our family plus extras for our neighbors and friends.
Beginner Gardening Supplies
Starting A Small Garden
You can start a small beginner garden just about anywhere. You could plant some herbs, tomatoes and greens in a bucket on the patio. Or create a few raised beds in your front or backyard. Or convert a section of your grass into garden beds.
No matter how small your garden is ensure you have good soil mixed with compost because it all starts with good soil. Plant seeds or young plants you or your family will enjoy. And grow your garden step by step.
Farmers Markets
Local farmers markets, farms and individual growers are a great source for gardening knowledge, cheaper produce and spring floral bouquets.
Making Money With Your Home Garden
No matter your experience or the size of your garden you can earn money with what you grow. Whether that be vegetables, fruits, herbs, floral, compost or a combination. In our first full summer of gardening we harvested and dried so much mint for tea that we sold some of it. And we only started with two small plants (mint spreads rapidly). We harvested almost two and a half whole quart jars of dried mint from those small plants. We did the same with our lavender plants. Something so simple to grow and it was super simple to make and sell. There is a market for almost anything homegrown and homemade.
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