Gardening Guru

Gardening for Beginners

My grandmother once told me that, as people get older they either turn to God or gardening. But these days gardening is not confined to older retired people, more people than ever before are taking the time to enjoy cultivating their gardens.

Whether you want to have a garden full of beautiful colorful flowers, a manicured lawn with strategically placed shrubs, a country garden filled with wild flowers or just a yard with lots of container grown plants, you will be able to find a  book to tell you how to begin. You can also ask for advice from people that you know who have a love of gardening; most will be only too pleased to help you get started.

For starters you will probably need some basic tools such a spade, a trowel, a rake, a lawnmower if you have a lawn etc. But you don’t really need much to get going, just the aforementioned, mixed with a healthy amount of enthusiasm and vision. If you are planning a garden from scratch, it would help to draw out some kind of plan. You don’t need anything elaborate, just a sketch of where you would like things like flower beds, paths, lawns, trees etc. to go.

Next, you need to decide the type of plants that you want to have, do you want plants that only live for the one season or plants that grow year after year? Perennials (plants that last for more than two growing seasons) are great for the hobby gardener who likes to spend time on other things rather than planting new stuff every year.

If you are a total beginner, ask at your local nursery what type of plants will thrive in your area. Some plants will only thrive in a warm sunny area whilst others prefer the colder or more shaded areas. Checking which plants are right for your climate and area will save you tons of money and disappointment than if you just go ahead and buy tropical plants when you live in Siberia!

 There are a couple of different ways to get plants for your garden, you could buy small, young plants from the local nursery or you could buy packets of seeds from the same place, by mail order or online. The young plants are great if you want an instant display in your new garden. However, if you have the time and patience to wait, it will give you great satisfaction to watch your own plants grow in pots from a tiny seed. Or, another alternative is to buy seeds and simply sprinkle them onto a pre-prepared bed. You will obviously need to follow the manufacturers instructions regarding the time of year to plant seeds and you will need to thin the seedlings out as they begin to grow so they have the room that they will need to flourish, but you are sure to have a great display of color if you choose wisely.

Never be afraid to ask for advice. It could save you lots of time, money and disappointment in the long run.

This article has also been published at Ezine Articles