Considering a new habit that gets you out into fresh air and green spaces a little bit more? The answer may be quite literally on your doorstep. Recent statistics show that 87% of UK households have a garden, though not everyone is making the most of that space.
With a little bit of basic knowledge, you could be cultivating some vibrant, mood-boosting flowers in your garden in no time. Love to cook but hate the current supermarket prices? Learn how to grow vegetables and you could join the 28% of Brits who already have a vegetable patch.
It’s time to get your gardening gloves on.
Plan your garden
Starting from scratch? Then start with a plan. The direction that your garden faces will affect the plants that grow there to some degree, so establish whether it looks north, south, west or east.
Find out if your soil is more acidic or alkaline so that you can use this as a premise for plant purchase decisions. If there’s a hydrangea already growing, are its flowers either pink or blue? This is a very clear test of your soil quality.
Otherwise, getting a soil pH test is inexpensive and may be worthwhile.
Gather your tools
The first time you start gardening, you will probably just want to get into your flow and minimise disruptions.
To do this, ensure you have all the tools you need from the get-go. The basics you will need are:
- Gardening gloves
- Hand trowel
- Hand fork
- Secateurs
- Watering can or hose
- Rake
- Spade
Along the way, there may be other tools you want to buy but for now, these are the absolute must-haves.
Start with easy-to-grow plants
Start with plants that are easy to grow and then work your way up as desired. Geraniums, morning glory, sweet peas, dahlias, pansies, sunflowers and daffodils are all beginner-friendly options. They’ll bring a fabulous pop of colour to your garden, too!
Once you feel like your gardening skills are coming along nicely, you can progress to other things. In time, you may even find yourself taking on additional garden projects, such as buying some vegetable seeds and starting your very own vegetable patch. You may even want to build a rockery or plant some climbing ivy.
Regularly feed and water
Once you get into it, gardening will become an enriching part of your lifestyle. To keep the garden in bloom, it’s essential that you establish a clear feeding and watering routine.
For best results, ensure you aim the water for the roots. Pick either early morning or dusk to do this. Otherwise, the water could evaporate in the higher temperatures of the afternoon before your plants feel the benefit.
Don’t forget to stock up on plant feed and distribute it among your plants every fortnight in spring and summer. As long as the soil itself is healthy, plant feed can go a long way to boost yields and flowering rates.
To start focussing on your garden, you don’t have to know everything at once. Don’t worry! The process of learning as you go along is part of the fun.
