EZ Gardening For Beginners

You don’t have to get down and dirty to get that beautiful garden you have always wanted. With raised garden beds, gardening is simpler and more comfortable than it has ever been before. Raised garden beds have a lot of advantages over traditional gardens, and they can be the perfect choice for you if you are looking for unique ideas for your garden design.

What exactly is a raised garden bed? Instead of planting plants directly into the ground, a raised garden bed is an enclosed platform that raises your plants a few inches off of the ground. These raised garden beds are usually enclosed with wood, so you essentially have little mini gardens instead of one larger garden directly in your soil. For this reason, many people turn to raised garden beds for reasons of lawn design. The raised garden beds can be designed in any geometric shape you like, so they can be used to create a pleasing design in your yard.

But there are many other benefits to using raised garden beds. One of the most important benefits is that they help you plants grow better. Every plant needs some air to get to its roots to grow properly. With a traditional garden, even though you make allowances for this fact and try to keep the soil loose enough so that air can flow down the roots, you can’t help but compact the soil in some areas as you move around the garden tending your plants. It is impossible to not compact the soil at all when working in a regular garden, and so your plants will be losing precious oxygen. With a raised garden bed, you don’t have to walk around your garden when you are working on it, so your soil is never overly compressed and your plants can thrive.

Because you don’t have to fret about leaving enough space around your plants to walk around (and you don’t have to worry about the soil becoming compressed), you can plant more plants in a smaller area. This also means you will have less weeding to do, because you can cut down on the area available for weeds to grow.

Raised garden beds can also help the health of your plants through efficient soil drainage. As any gardener knows, having soil that is too wet can be more dangerous to some plants than having soil that is too dry. Drying out the soil is a major concern for gardeners after heavy periods of rain, and in some areas of the Deep South, the soil may too wet all the time to plant certain types of plants. However, with a raised garden bed, moisture drains out quickly, meaning a hard rain is no problem at all. Further, a raised garden bed can make the soil that is too wet to grow anything into soil that has just the right amount of moisture for certain plants.

Another benefit of raised garden beds is that you can change your mixtures of fertilizers and other growing agents from bed to bed. There is no more trying to find the middle of the road combination that will give all of your plants some of what they need. You can group plants into beds with other plants that have similar fertilizer requirements, so that each plant is getting exactly what it needs to thrive. Likewise, you can cut down on the use of pesticides because you only have to apply them to the garden bed, instead of spreading them out over a large area.

All of these benefits of raised garden beds translate into plant growth that is around two times as productive as traditional gardens. If you are serious about your garden, consider raised garden beds.

One of the keys to keeping your garden alive and thriving is to keep the pests out of it. But that task may be easier said than done. There are of course lots of concerns about what kind of pest controlling agents to use in the garden, striking the right balance between effectiveness of the pest controlling method and the safety of the method for the garden and the people and animals around it. Then there is the cost to consider. Pest controlling methods can get to be extremely expensive if you aren’t a careful shopper. The good news, however, is that there are tools you can use to keep your garden pest free in a way that is safe and budget friendly.

Before you choose a pest control method, you should understand the difference between the different options out there. There are many pest control products on the market that do the same thing – say, repel snails – but only some are designed to protect plants. If you want to protect the plants in your garden, you will need to use some version of a pesticide. A pesticide can do things like stop weed growth, repel insects and other animals, and add hormones to your plant roots. The difference between a pesticide that keeps spiders away and another product that keeps spiders away from a house is that the pesticide has been specifically designed to work in a garden with plants – never use a non-pesticide repellent in your garden as it may kill your plants.

The problem many people have with pesticides is that they are made from chemicals. Although you may apply these chemicals strictly to your garden, it is nearly impossible to keep them there. Spray pesticides by nature disperse into the air and are carried away from your garden and after a good rain, the pesticides from your garden will run into your neighbors’ yards, or even potentially into streams and waterways. These is concern over the long term effects of this kind of pesticide run off and there is also concern about the safety of long term exposure to pesticides on humans by eating foods grown in gardens using pesticides.

While the jury is still out on whether pesticides are good or bad (most evidence points to the fact that some are safe and necessary while some are harmful and unnecessary), there are some other methods you can use for pest control if you want to play it completely safe. These methods are called organic pest control methods. These organic methods can be as simple as removing the pests yourself. Weed your garden regularly instead of treating your entire garden when one wild flower grows. Instead of laying poison to kill slugs, snails and other creepy crawlies, wait for them to come out and take them out of your garden by hand. You can also build a barrier around your garden, use raised garden beds, or use salt to kill them. Some plants naturally repel pests that eat other plants, so add some of these to your garden (your local gardening center will help you choose the best ones for your needs). You can also use topsoil and fertilizer that attracts insects that kill other insects that eat plants – let nature do the job for you and get rid of the pests that plague your plants.

If saving money is on your mind, these natural methods of pest control for your plants can be just the ticket. They cost next to nothing, and some of them are free. For your pocketbook, and for the earth, protecting your garden using organic methods can be your best bet.

Do you suffer from boring, dull surroundings? Do you wish you had a colorful, unique garden to call your own? You don’t need a lot of money or time to transform your garden from ho-hum to incredible. Here are a few tips for adding decorative elements that will punch up your garden in a fast and easy way.

A Colorful Container Garden Can Transform Your Surroundings

If you are looking for a fast and easy way to add color and interest to your garden, a colorful container garden is an easy way to punch up your surroundings. Purchase container or pots in variety of sizes. You can purchase coordinating pots, or you can decorate and paint your pots on your own. Choose a spot in your garden that looks drab and could stand from a facelift, and arrange your colorful containers in this area. Arrange the composition of your colorful container garden in way that is eye pleasing and easy to maintain.

Look Up! It’s a Hanging Container Garden

Hanging container plants add charm and interest to your garden. This is a great solution if you don’t have a lot of room for placing planters, pots or containers. Find a space where the hanging container will receive plenty of sun and where it will be easy to water. There are many colorful plants that do well in hanging containers. Accentuate your hanging plant with wind chimes and other decorative elements, such as bird feeders and houses. These add charm to even the smallest gardens.

Add a Lawn Sculpture to Act as a Focal Point in Your Garden

If your lawn is more blah than wow, perhaps what you really need is a focal point. Choose a space in your garden or lawn that you think could stand from more attention. Perhaps there is an elevated spot garden or lawn that appears empty or like it is missing something. This is an ideal spot to draw attention. A garden sculpture is a great way to liven up a spot that could otherwise use some attention. You can build a cement or stone foundation, purchase a pedestal and have a sculpture installed. Once you have chosen the right sculpture, you will find that this is a great spot to plant flowers. Simply creating a place for a focal point will give you greater possibilities when it comes to planting. You can accentuate the area with flower that complements your fountain.

Create Your Own Garden Water Music

Many gardeners avow that a garden is simply not complete without the sound of nature, or more specifically, the sound of water. Water provides a soothing and pleasing ambience to any garden. It is a fun and easy way to liven up any garden. There are many sources for pleasing garden water music. You can have a pond installed, or install one yourself. You can also purchase a working fountain, or create your own fountain using decorative pots, or adding a water pump to a decorative barrel. Make sure that your water fountain is re-circulating water properly in order to avoid stagnant water and insect populations. Place a garden bench by your fountain, and enjoy the sound of nature.

A Garden Arbor Adds a Romantic Touch to Any Garden

A garden arbor is a great way to add a bit of nostalgia and romance to any garden environment. This is a fast and economical way to add ambience and create a starting point for exploring your garden. You can choose to make your own garden arbor, or you can purchase a pre-made arbor. There are several materials to choose from, including wood, metal and plastic.