Gardening For All Seasons

Thursday, September 13, 2012

For some, gardening is just a hobby to pass the spare time on their hands and yet to others, spending time in the garden is the ideal way to creatively use the space in and around their homes to achieve good decor, while at the same time achieving other benefits.

These can take various forms, with some people opting to use their garden to just grow flowers and shrubs or using rockery plants. Others use their garden space as a source for organic foods by planting vegetables, fruit bushes or trees.

Planning your planting and which plants to use can extend your growing season and ensure that you can have vegetables and some fruits to enjoy even outside the normal cropping season. This is where a good greenhouse or a polly-tunnel can be of great benefit.

A home garden gives you the opportunity to experiment, and in the process reap (if you pardon the pun) a host of benefits. Imagine the nice scent of roses wafting into the house with the breeze; imagine the melodious chirp of little songbirds or the sight of bees pollinating your flowers. Better yet, imagine the convenience and cost saving of picking your very own fresh fruit and vegetables for your meals!

There is no denying the joy gardening can bring to you and your guests alike. Take joy and pride as you share and tell your friends what you have just grown.

However, there are challenges like the changing of seasons and countless pests or diseases that can interfere with your garden from time to time. A common mistake among gardeners is choosing the wrong types of plants to ensure your garden flourishes all year long!

Plant choice-
This is a decision, that if you get it wrong, it can make or break your garden. Are the plants you are aiming for suited to the soil type in your garden? Are they adaptable to the weather around your house? Choose a range of plants that flower early, mid and late season, and the same with vegetables. Some vegetables benefit from a good frost, like brussel sprouts for example.

Garden type-
If you opt for a big or long garden design, you should be sure you have ample gardening time and skills to manage it otherwise it could have a negative effect when some parts of your garden don't get enough attention. This is why a bit of planning will help to spread you workload out over the year, having an even call on your time and energy levels! Make use of cold frames or greenhouses to work when the weather is against you. You can prepare so much in advance.

Space available-
Some plants and flowers will need proper spacing for them to thrive and grow to desired height. Others will thrive best if mixed with other plant species in the same garden.

Protection-
Gardens are susceptible to attacks by birds, rabbits, rodents and many other pests, all of which can irreparably damage your garden. Traps and pesticides come in handy when dealing with these intruders. Like any living organism, the plants that make up your garden are susceptible to diseases which you can prevent with the right products. Be sure you know the ones that are safe for your garden in particular.

These are just some of the considerations that you need to make to ensure the hard work you put into your garden does no go to waste. However even the most experienced gardener is at the risk of making costly errors in the course of their garden care activities.

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