Ready, Set, Grow!
The benefits of the home garden are many. As well as the near infinite number of plants you can grow, gardening mixes relaxation with exercise. The home garden adds beauty to your landscape, value to your property, and increases your quality of life. Flowers offer aesthetic value and fruit and/or vegetable gardens provide the additional benefit of adding money to your pocket by cutting your food costs. The final benefit of a successful garden is the satisfaction of true accomplishment. Even if you're a beginner, you can experience the satisfaction of a successful gardening if you start with a good garden plan and the right gardening tools.
- The first thing in growing plants is deciding where to put them. Choose from a variety of pots in different types and sizes, window boxes, greenhouses, beds, borders, and of course the garden plot.
Choose your location
- Plants get the nutrients they need mainly from their growing medium. Today's gardeners can opt for many different mediums and methods of growing plants.
Nutrition
- Growing plants at the right temperatures is essential for successful gardening. Winter hardy plants that do well in temperate areas frequently won't tolerate warm climates.Conversely, tropical plants typically won't withstand frost and need to live indoors during cold northern winters. Houseplants, as well, also have maximum and minimum temperature requirements.
Keep it cool...or warm
- ight is the most important factor in plant growth. During photosynthesis, plants use light to collect carbon dioxide molecules and convert them into sugar, an energy-producing nutrient for plants.
Let there be light
- Of course, you'll need to water your plants. However, when and how much vary from variety to variety of plant. Some plants require constantly moist soil, while others like a good drink, but won't tolerate wet feet and some plants, like cacti, need very little water at all!
Water please!
- Plants breathe just like people do and like people, need fresh clean air. However, in addition to the air above ground, many plants "breath" through the soil as well.