Organic gardening is a rewarding hobby that anyone can enjoy, as long as they know what they’re doing. If you lack experience as a gardener, it is perfectly natural to be somewhat intimidated by the thought of all that work. How should a novice learn how to properly garden? They should read this article, obviously!

Use the handles of your tools as a handy ruler when doing your outdoor chores. Tools with long handles, such as rakes, hoes, and shovels can be converted into handy measuring sticks. Put the handles down and measure them with a measuring tape. Next, use a Sharpie to accurately label the distance between each one. When you decide to work in the garden again, you will now have a ruler at your disposal.

TIP! Shoveling clay soil is tiresome since clay is hard, and it can also stick to your shovel for twice the difficulty. Rub a thin layer of floor or car wax over the surface of the shovel, and then buff the surface using a clean cloth.

Your soil needs to be of good quality before you start a garden. Soil analysis costs a little money, but the report can inform you how to enrich your soil and open the door to a lush garden. There are numerous places to find this service, such as your local Cooperative Extension office. The cost is well worth it to avoid a potentially ruined crop.

Prepare your seeds by soaking them in a dark environment. Put a few seeds in a small container and fill it near to the top with water. This will keep seeds hydrated and help them to grow faster. The seeds will have a better chance of surviving and maturing.

When you mow your lawn, do not mow it close to the ground. If your grass has more height, roots be able to grow more deeply in the soil, which will make for a stronger lawn and will have a higher resistance to drying out. The shorter the grass, the shallower the roots, which makes the lawn more likely to develop brown patches.

TIP! If you see mildew that is powdery, stay away from expensive chemicals to treat it. Mix a solution of baking soda, water, and a tiny bit of dishwashing liquid.

Use natural pest control when possible. A good way to keep slugs away is to create a border with onions around a garden with vegetables. Marigolds would do this trick as well. Mulch around the bottom of trees and shrub seedlings with wood ash to reduce unwanted infestation of pests. Doing these things can ensure that you do not need potentially harmful chemicals.

Having a good wheelbarrow and a kneeling stool makes garden chores a lot easier. Spending time on the ground is rough on the knees, a portable and light stool can help make gardening easier. You often need to move large objects from place to place, so it’s a good idea to have a sturdy, well-balanced wheelbarrow.

Pest Control

TIP! Before you even place the first plant in your garden, you need to check the composition of your soil. You can get a soil analysis, and if you find your soil needs a supplement, do it! A Cooperative Extension office can provide you with this service, saving you learning on your own by trial and error.

Pest control is one of the hardest things about growing a vegetable garden. Since you are growing the vegetables for your own consumption, you want to stay away from pesticides. Instead of resorting to these harmful chemicals, you can keep garden pests at bay simply by paying close attention. Natural pest control depends on the type of soil in your garden and the variety of plants growing there.

Aid them by dumping any leftover water from steaming vegetables over them. You can also acidify soil for rhododendrons, gardenias and more by using coffee or tea grounds. If you find that you have a fungus problem, try sprinkling some chamomile tea on your plants.

Beneficial Bugs

TIP! Protect your deciduous shrubs which are tender. If you have some tender shrubs that are in planters, you need to protect them from cold weather.

Don’t use broad-spectrum pesticides for your garden. These pesticides will kill every type of pest in your garden, including beneficial bugs that eat garden pests. Beneficial bugs usually have more sensitivity towards pesticides than bad ones. Therefore, if the number of beneficial bugs drops, the problem with pests can get bigger. This might result in you having to use even more pesticides to get rid of the pests.

Add some heather plants to your garden, to attract good insects. Heather will attract bees early in the spring as well as other beneficial insects. Spiders, ground beetles and other insects helpful to your garden tend to live in a heather bed, because heather beds are generally undisturbed. Keep this in mind and remember to always wear appropriate gardening gloves.

This article should give you a good idea why organic gardening is a great activity. Horticulture can be an immensely rewarding hobby. By applying the advice and insights of this article, you can garden as good as the professionals.

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