Michelle’s uncle can grow eggplants the size of her arms. Her mother harvests a ton of tomatoes from her garden. Even her husband can manage to grow dill, parsley, rosemary, and thyme from their little garden. Michelle thought it’s that easy to garden. If her husband can do it, she can, too. Boy, was she ever wrong? Michelle had to watch her plants die even after she watered them regularly. She just pulled out four dead plants in a week. Still, she doesn’t want to give up. She’s adamant that she will learn this thing.
How can that be that others are better gardeners than you are? While there is no scientific explanation for this, some people have a flair for gardening, and some don’t. It’s kind of like being good with painting while your siblings are not. Somehow, these plants know your inadequacies with gardening. They also know if you’re not doing your research.
If there’s one thing you need to learn—and Michelle’s uncle, mother, and husband told her this, too—it is to give gardening the respect it deserves. It is hard and requires research. You cannot throw seeds in your garden and hope that those seeds will grow. You need to learn how to take care of them.
Ask a Lot of Questions
There is no such thing as a stupid question. In the classroom or at work, you need to raise questions instead of assuming the wrong things. When it comes to gardening, ask an expert or research on the internet about what type of soil and fertilizer you need for the seeds you want to grow. Does it need to be watered every day or like succulents, do you have to wait for the plants to dry fully before watering again?
People who successfully grew a garden know how hard it is. There’s a lot of mowing the grass with the ride-on lawnmower you got from NC Equipment, as well as amending the soil when it is too sandy or too clay-like. Don’t worry as gardeners are usually willing to share their knowledge with newbie gardeners.
Copy Other Gardens
Why will you force something to grow in your garden when none of your neighbors’ gardens ever grew the same plant or flower? Copy what works in other gardens. If your mother grows tomatoes in her garden, and she lives near you, why not ask her for the same species that grow on hers? It might just be that particular variant that grows in the climate and environment that you have in your area. It’s okay to copy the plants and flowers that bloom in your neighbors’ gardens. They will not mind it as anyone who truly likes to garden will want to see other beautiful gardens, too.
Find What Works for You
If you cannot commit to watering the plants every day, then don’t get plants that require watering every day. What works for you? If you’re busy with work and only have the weekends to take care of your garden, succulent plants might be the better choice as these only need watering once a week or even less. At the same time, don’t grow something you cannot figure out. Gardening is supposed to be therapeutic. If it’s not putting you in the right frame of mind, then what’s the point of it?
Experiment
The more you read about gardening, the more you will notice that it comes in many forms. You can be an expensive gardener where you will buy fertilizer and organic amendments for your soil. At the same time, you can also make your own compost, saving time and money. Compost is made up of twigs, eggshells, leaves, non-animal food scraps, dry dog and cat food, and many others.
Many of these gardening hacks you will discover on your own. Though some gardeners will share their discoveries with you, many are also figuring things out for themselves. The good thing is that even if you’re still a newbie, you can feel part of the group because gardening is a life-long process. You will discover new things about gardening even if you have been doing it for the last decade.
During the coronavirus outbreak, people turned to gardening as some sort of solace and comfort from the war going on in hospital wards and emergency rooms. They exchanged seedlings and propagated plants. Even those who are not great gardeners managed to improve their skills. It was a nice activity and one that people should continue even after this pandemic is all over.
