Free Gardening Tips

To use organic or inorganic? These days, that is the question that is being posed in gardens across the country. The subject of organic vs. inorganic fertilizers has sparked controversy, with both camps standing firm on their turf. Of course, both organic fertilizers and inorganic fertilizers have advantages and disadvantages of their own.
For the most part, plants will not recognize the difference between nutrients coming from organic sources, and those coming from inorganic fertilizers. Read on to better understand the merits and demerits of both.

Organic Fertilizers

Fertilizers labeled "organic" are derived from materials that are essentially carbon in nature. These materials that constitute organic fertilizers are derived from either animal or plant by-products.

Using organic fertilizers has advantages and downfalls. One distinct benefit of organic fertilizers is that they naturally contain matter that is beneficial to both plants and soil. The natural materials found in organic fertilizers help improve the water-holding capacity of the soil, and augments its structure to increase its nutrient-holding capacity. Additionally, the organic materials encourage microbial activity. This plays a big part in the breakdown of nutrients, which allows the plants to absorb the nutrients.

Organic fertilizers tend to break down and release nutrients more slowly, so that leaching is prevented. By using organic fertilizers, you can rest assured that groundwater will not be contaminated by any harmful substances. Organic fertilizers are generally less expensive than inorganic alternatives, and may be available free of charge if you know how and where to look.

There are disadvantages to using organic fertilizers. These materials may be difficult to apply in comparison to inorganic fertilizers, depending on the source material used. Organic fertilizers tend to have lower nutrient content compared to inorganic fertilizers, so more material has to be applied in order to get the same nutrient amount. In addition, the slow-release properties can actually have a detrimental effect on the plants. If the nutrients from organic fertilizers are not released in time, the plants will not receive them for use in their growth cycle.

Inorganic Fertilizers

Inorganic fertilizers are widely available in today's market. There are so many different varieties; it can be hard to choose the best one. To make a wise, informed choice, you must first understand the components of typical inorganic fertilizers.

Every bag of inorganic fertilizer is generally labeled with a set of three numbers. These numbers represent the ratio of Nitrogen - Phosphorus - Potassium. For example, if you choose an inorganic fertilizer that's labeled "7-3-2", it means that there is seven percent Nitrogen, three percent Phosphorus, and two percent Potassium.

When you add these numbers, the sum is just twelve percent worth of nutrients in the bag. The remaining 88 percent of made up of filler material and may contain additional nutrients. These extra materials are added help the user to apply the fertilizer more evenly.

When it's time to choose a fertilizer for your lawn or garden - organic or inorganic - know what's in the bag, and more importantly, what's best for your property.

If you're a first time gardener, or you've inherited your garden along with your house, then you'll probably not have noticed that your garden has a shaded area. Believe me it will have a shaded space somewhere, even if it is in the very corner of the yard. That's why you'll need to be doing shade gardening this year. Executed properly, your shade garden can take you through for a long time.

If you find the shade in your garden is due to a tree or trees, even if it is your neighbor's tree, you'll find that the soil will be dry and full of roots. Planting may be difficult and you may have to improve the soil slightly before anything will grow. Be careful when doing this as some trees, like Oak, are very particular, and can be extremely sensitive to changes in soil depth. Also, if you have to till the soil around the roots, you'll again need to be very careful as root breakage may occur and the tree might be damaged in the long term. No one ever said shade gardening was going to be easy!

When choosing your plants, you'll have to keep in mind the conditions that are likely to be prevalent within your shaded area. Low, dappled sunlight, to perhaps no sun at all, or perhaps sun at only certain times of the day. Limited water in the soil due to an extensive root system, poor air circulation caused by low lying branches, or intrusive walls. These are only some of the conditions you'll have to deal with when shade gardening.

Having passed through the more serious parts of shade gardening, we can now move on to the more fun parts. Namely designing, and laying out your garden, and buying your plants!

Since plants that thrive in the shade aren't as vivid and bright as plants that grow in full sunlight, it's best if you lean more towards flowers with pastel shades, as darker colors will only tend to blend into the background.

Foxgloves are a favorite, as are Daisy's, and Begonias. Bluebells and Forget-me-nots are also some true blue favorites. If you plan your shade gardening carefully, you can have blooming flowers for almost the whole year.

Other plants to consider are groundcovers. Hostas, are traditionally a good groundcover plant, with its big leaves that tend to hug the ground. English ivy, Wintercreepers, and Ajuga are also very good for groundcover.

No matter what you decide upon, make sure that you enjoy shade gardening, and all the benefits it can bring to you, like the peace of mind and relaxation that you can get from the natural subdued colors offered by the shaded garden.

If handled incorrectly, water gardening can contain many pitfalls for the unwary gardener. Handled correctly however, water gardening is a worthwhile and rewarding project, and will enable anyone hours of contented relaxation.

Whether you've got a small garden, or a large garden capable of handling an extensive water garden, you'll still have to plan down to every last detail, otherwise you might just be left with something you didn't bargain for.

If you already have a small lake or pond in your garden, or even a little winding stream, your water gardening efforts just became that much easier. Unfortunately, for the vast majority of homeowners, such a bonus is just not on the cards, so you'll have to build your water garden from scratch.

If you've thought about water gardening then you've probably already thought about the how's and where's of how to obtain water for your water garden, and equally, how to dispose of it with ease. This being the case, we can now concentrate on the actual water gardening.

There are plenty of DIY books in the market these days on building your own pond, so I won't go into too extensively. The basics you'll need to know about are simple really. Your pond will need to be designed in a way that will fit within your garden confines, and budget confines. Once that's done, mark out the edges and start digging to the required depth. Line with pond liner when finished, and weight down with stones and plant pots, as required.

If you want your pond to include fish you'll need to decide early on in order to make the pond a livable habitat for the fish. Hardier fish that can survive winter are a must if you want them to live for some time. Koi, and Goldfish are the most popular varieties, but your local aquarium can provide you with more information. Also keep in mind that Koi tend to grow to about 2 feet in length when fully mature, so it's desirable to leave them some swimming room for later on.

Next we can see about populating your pond and its surroundings with the plants that are so essential to water gardening. As an obvious choice, Lotus is very popular and easy to grow. You also get many varieties and shades in the Lotus family to choose from, so it does make your life slightly easier. Be careful not to overpopulate your pond with plants as this will detract from the beauty of your garden, and make it seem cluttered instead.

Place the rest of your chosen plants artistically, in and around your pond area, and you're good to go! Your efforts at water gardening will be much appreciated by all and sundry, and once you've finally gotten over all the hard work this labor of love entailed, you too, will appreciate the pleasures this bountiful water garden has to offer you.

If you're a gardening buff, then you might have heard of the term, 'raised bed gardening'. I have to confess to being quite ignorant on the subject, but upon overhearing, quite by accident I assure you, an argument by a young couple over whether they should go for the more conventional garden, or whether they should try their hand at raised bed gardening, my interest was peaked. After all what on earth was a 'raised bed garden'?

Being the curious minded soul that I am, I was sorely tempted to push my way through a trolley of plants and enquire in all politeness what a raised bed garden really was. Fortunately for all involved, sanity prevailed at the last minute and I found myself reluctant to push my way through.

I did the next best thing and gathering my purchases hot-footed it back home where I could turn to my computer for instant gardening help. Calling upon the services of my favorite search engine, I typed in the words 'raised bed gardening' and stumbled upon a veritable plethora of information. Information which I shall now try my best to impart to you in a manner that is understandable.

So, to begin with, a raised bed garden is exactly what is sounds like. A garden upon a 'raised bed'. Mostly though you're not raising the height of your entire garden so much as you're raising it in little bits and pieces. To do this people tend to utilise things like large containers, or pots. Troughs are also a favorite, as they provide a longer length for the gardener to work with.

There are generally two reasons why you would go in for raised bed gardening, with the first reason being purely to do with aesthetics. Having said that, if you find it difficult to bend down continuously when gardening, then the raised bed gardening is also ideal for you. But the second and main reason you would even consider a raised bed garden has to do with soil and drainage problems that you just can't overcome easily, in your normal, ground level garden.

Raised bed gardens are attractive, and easy to maintain, with the added benefit of being able control exactly what goes into your soil mixture, and how much water you use when watering your plants.

You also have the ability to protect your plants more easily from burrowing rodents, weeds, and unwanted feet trekking through your beds.

A more sensible method of gardening I have yet to hear of, and that wasn't the end to the long list of benefits to be found in raised bed gardening. But the one I liked the most had to do with being able to grub around in my garden in any weather, without the actual 'grubbing' part. No mud, see? Since the plants are in raised containers, you don't actually have to get down on your hands and knees in the mud to do your gardening!

When you see a well tended garden, you feel refreshed and at peace. The reason for this contented feeling is the green grass and bright colored flowers. However to achieve that green garden look, some work is required. One of the best ways to help your garden to look healthy and green is giving it a good mulching compound.

Mulches are a layer of protective material that is placed around your plants and shrubs. They can be organic mulches or inorganic mulches. As the gardener you must choose which type of mulching will suit your garden.

Organic mulches are very similar in effect to pine needles and leaves that fall to the ground in forests. As organic mulches are of plant matter, they decompose over a period of time. This decomposed mulch helps to keep the soil moist and the plant roots cool, while keeping nutrients locked in.

There are different types of organic mulching that you can use. Bark, Wood Chips, Sawdust, Straw, Pine Straw, Shredded Leaves and Newspaper are some of the material that is used for mulching. As each of these mulches has different characteristics you should take care where you will lay them in the garden.

Bark, Wood Chips, Sawdust, Straw and Shredded Leaves can cause problems in the garden. These organic mulches can be washed away in the rain, rob the soil of nitrogen and let weeds grow in between their organic matter. However Bark and Wood Chips can give an attractive look to the garden.

Pine Straw and Newspaper mulching are best organic types to put in the garden. Newspaper mulching works best for your vegetable garden as they tend to suppress weeds. Pine Straw mulching works like the natural fallen pine needles. They decompose slowly, resist being washed away, and keep the nutrients in the soil.

Inorganic mulches like crushed stone, gravel and volcanic rock have a tendency to work their way into the soil. When this happens, you will have a bit of trouble getting them out when you need to do some digging. This type of mulching is somewhat permanent.

Plastic mulches should mainly be used for vegetable plots. Irrigation paths can be laid out on the ground beneath the plastic mulching. This will keep the soil moist and the plants well watered. You can also cut holes in the plastic mulching where you want water to go into your vegetable plot.

The other type of inorganic mulch is that of geotextiles. This is fabric mulch made out of polypropylene or polyester. While a closely woven geotextile mulching allows water and fertilizer to enter the soil, it inhibits the growth of weeds. This is probably the best type of inorganic mulching that you can put in your garden.

For a healthy garden then, you should place some mulching compound amongst your plants. You will still need to keep an eye on those pesky weeds though and pull them out, but in the long run, this too should be easier for you.

What do the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Floating Gardens of China, and a popular science fiction television program have in common? Hydroponics gardening!

You may have heard of a hydroponics gardening system before this, in which case you'll understand what I'm talking about. If you haven't heard about hydroponics gardening, don't worry. Hopefully by the time we reach the end of this article, you will have a clear idea of what a hydroponics garden is, and if someone asks you whether you think a drip system, or an ebb and flow system is better, then you won't have to squint at them and say 'eh?' in that confused way.

Before we get on to the subject of drip, and ebb and flow systems, let's take a crash course in hydroponics gardening.

Coming from the Greek words 'hydro' for water, and 'ponics' for labor, the word hydroponics in gardening terms is used to specify a type of gardening that doesn't have its roots in soil, if you will forgive the pun. This soil-free type of gardening depends entirely on a water based system that is enriched with nutrients.

These nutrients can either be in the form of specially formulated chemicals for hydroponics gardening, or they can come as a variety of natural nutritional ingredients found in nature itself. The use of either nutrient form is solely dependent upon the gardener.

Since hydroponics gardening is a soil free system, containers are the best methods for growing, and a number of different varieties of containers, and pots are available to buy.

As a growing medium for the plant, something for it to get its roots into, different gardeners will have different likes and dislikes. Shale is a simple and easy solution, especially for the first time gardener. With a little bit of research however, you can easily find out if Hydroton or Rockwool is a better growing medium for you than shale would be. (Hydroton and shale can be used in an ebb and flow system, whilst horticultural Rockwool can be used with just about any system).

"Any system' referring to methods used to pass along the nutrient enriched water to the plants. Again there are many options for the hydroponics gardener to choose from, but I will explain here only the two systems that I mentioned earlier.

Simply put, the ebb and flow system uses a pump to respectively flood and then drain your containers at regular intervals. The drip system uses a continuous drip that supplies a steady ration of water solution that's right for each plant.

Also it should be noted that hydroponics gardens have a higher growth rate, and many gardeners take advantage of this to create high yield vegetable and fruit gardens.

Now that you now what hydroponics gardening entails to a large extent, with a little more research you should be able to set up your own hydroponics system, and keep yourself year round in fresh fruits and vegetables!