Garden Planning, Indoor Gardens, Container Gardens, Everything You Want to Know About Gardening

Hydroponic Gardening – What is it?

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Hydroponic Gardening- It’s easier than you think

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Who doesn’t want to see beautiful plants blooming every now and then in her own backyard? Sure enough, plants have a certain power of uplifting one’s spirit as well as enhancing the aesthetic appeal of the home. Many housewives are truly into this hobby because it is not only engaging but likewise profitable in more ways than one. So, if gardening is your thing, then, you may want to try hydroponic gardening.

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What is hydroponic gardening?

The term hydroponic garden is getting to be a well known term nowdays. What is great about this method of gardening is that one can grow plants even without using any soil. Instead, the plants are grown using gravel, perlite, water, or just plain sand.

You can grow herbs, flowers, fruits, and vegetables. However, you must ensure that they will get enough light, nutrients, and have the right medium for them to grow in. Also you will may need to had pollinate some plants particularly vegetables.

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What is the benefit of hydroponic gardening?

You can now say goodbye to soil as you don’t need to rely on it in growing your healthy, tasty, and strong vegetables. The hydroponic system also does away with weeding and also many of the problem insects. All you have to do is wait for them to grow as you nurture them.

First and foremost, engaging in this type of gardening will save you of all those laborious or intensive tasks. Forget about the labor of trying to prepare your raised beds in the spring.

Traditional gardening often makes use of chemicals that aid in the fast growth of the plants but with this, you don’t need to spend much. One more thing, if you are the kind of person who experiences breathing problems when you catch the smell of certain chemicals, then, this will be a good solution for you.

The hydroponic gardens can also be done indoors which means you don’t actually have to get out of your house to pursue your hobby. What’s more is that you naturally want to tend to them, when you walk by them.

What are the important tips to remember for this garden?

First of all, you have to start with the appropriate balance of nutrients for your plants. This kind of garden allows the plant roots to have all the nutrients directly delivered to them. Thus, you have to get to know your plant well by means of doing careful research. That means finding ways on how your plant will be able to grow well.

Be certain to provide adequate light. It is very important to choose the right kind of light that will be right for the growing plants. You can choose from the fluorescent grow lights, halide bulbs, high intensity discharge lights, and high pressure sodium lights.

Have the best medium for growing the plants. The right medium means that it can store both the water and nutrients for the plant’s benefit.

Overall, hydroponic gardening is not difficult at all. Just follow these tips and you will have an exciting pastime to work with.

Here are some examples of hydroponic garden equipment.

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Apr 12

Using Seaweed Fertilizer in Container Gardening

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Master gardeners and common folk alike who love the thought of growing health thriving plants with the ease and convenience of containers on their porch or patio, must note the special needs of plants that are grown in confined quarters. A good potting soil is essential. Add kelp meal to the mix before you plant to aid the moisture retention of the potting mix while at the same time not allowing the soil to become heavy. Your plants can enjoy the benefits of the mineral content as well as the starches of the seaweed or kelp meal.

Here is where seaweed fertilizers can really shine. The characteristics of seaweed are well suited to container gardening as it contains a nice balance of nutrients that you can add to your potting soil when first planting as well as regular feedings.

Anyone who has done container gardening for long knows that plants planted in such a way have a different need for watering than for plants grown in the ground. Since most plant roots don’t like to be wet or bone dry, the container gardener must take care to add water on a timely basis.

It makes sense to add a fertilizer to the watering liquid from time to time to replace the depleted minerals and enzymes in the potting soil. Liquid forms of seaweed fertilizers are a natural form of plant supplement unlike some name brand fertilizers that offer only chemical koolaid” for plants. Be sure to follow label instructions before applying.

Another way seaweed fertilizer works with potted plants is to use a diluted solution of a special extract, which is then either sprayed on the leaves of the plants or “watered” on the soil on a regular basis. Foliar feeding as it is called is a common trick of Master Gardeners that is just becoming more prevalent as the public learns about the amazing benefits of misting the leaves of their plants, on occasion. ( Misting also washes dust from the leaves and helps your plants to look healthier.) Seaweed fertilizers have an ideal balance of nutrients that are well suited to this type of plant feeding.

You must take care to read labels to get the dilution right because you don’t want to “burn” the plants. But gardeners can notice a huge difference in leaf and flower quality within days by using this special treatment.

For those who love the convenience of container gardening and also desire an all-natural plant food, seaweed fertilizer may be just the thing that’s missing from your home greenhouse arsenal.

Here is a video of a guy who grew potatoes in sea weed.

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Apr 12

Gardening Tips For Beginners

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Gardening Tips For Beginners

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If you are a beginner at gardening, welcome to the exciting and rewarding world that’s ahead of you. Start by deciding if your garden will be a vegetable or flower garden. Next decide where you want to locate your garden. If you want a vegetable garden, you will need a sunny location for best results.

If you have a neighbor that gardens, ask their advice or a relative or friend. There is always an avenue of knowledge, informational books and magazines to read, and the internet to browse more information.

People of all ages, children, young adults, adults, and old folks alike see gardening as a refreshing and rewarding hobby. Why not with all the benefits that you get like fresh air, exercise, and the fruits of your labor.

Would you like to have a bed of beautiful and colorful flowers, or a country garden full of wild flowers and shrubs, a manicured lawn strategically placed with shrubs and little trees, or just a simple backyard with lots of pots and containers planted with grown plants?

For a starter, you will need these basic tools: trowel, spade, lawnmower, rake, and plants of your choice to grow. It would help a lot if you have some sort of garden plan.Based on the space that is available, layouts for things like flower beds, lawns, paths, and your garden bed. Your space should be planned out .

The kinds of plants that you will grow will depend on what you want, the availability, and the climate that your location has. There are plants that grow only for the season called annuals, and there are others that grow year after year called perennials.

If you don’t know what plants to start growing, you can always ask assistance from the local nursery available in your location. The experts from there should know what types would thrive specifically considering the climate in your area. And speaking of the local nursery, it is one avenue to buy plants you want for your garden. They usually carry packets of seeds or small young plants for the beginners to grow. You can obtain them whether via online or mail order.

The small young plants are a great choice if you want to have an immediate decorative display in your garden. Otherwise, choosing seeds to grow and watching them grow will provide great satisfaction from the accomplishment of caring and cultivating them. You can have the seeds planted in pots or containers, or you can plant them onto a pre-designed bed of soil. Gardening should be fun and exciting, and of course, rewarding, even if you are a beginner.

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Apr 11

Seaweed Fertilizer and Liquid Fish Extract

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Seaweed Fertilizer with a Liquid Fish Extract

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Adding fertilizer to soil has long been practiced by gardeners. From our history lessons, we may remember that the American Indian taught the new settlers to add fish to the holes where they were adding corn seeds. Since then, we’ve found ways that are much more convenient to use this beneficial fertilizer.

Only now we can find fish combined with seaweed! Why use a fish emulsion? Adding fish by-products to your garden brings a quick burst of nitrogen as a foliar feed.

It also brings a fair amount of P and K, too. The fish bones supply calcium, which contributes to strong cell structure and helps balance pH in the soil. When you use the combined qualities of fish emulsion and seaweed’s vast array of trace elements and plant hormones, you’re bound to see some positive benefits. Professional gardeners say a seaweed/fish fertilizer combo is to a plant is like pizza is to humans!

It’s most common to find the components – fish emulsion and seaweed meal or extracts – separately. They come in both dried and liquid forms. But there are some brands that come with both together so look for seaweed/fish emulsions wherever you find specialty fertilizers. Nursery outlets would likely have more options. It’s also available through retailers online.

For the do-it-yourselfer, try mixing up a batch at home. Start with a large bucket that’s filled halfway with sawdust and seaweed meal. Add canned or fresh fish parts then cover in a solution of water and a healthy dose of molasses and a tablespoon of Epsom salts. You’ll want to cover this as it gets ripe. Stir every few days for 1 or 2 weeks. After the brewing time, add water to dilute, then use the liquid to water your plants or to foliar feed (1:1 on the roots and 1:5 on the leaves). Then don’t waste the dregs (sediment). Apply them on your garden or add to your compost pile.

It may seem odd to those who are unfamiliar to gardening, but to those who know how soils and plants work, using a seaweed and fish mixture just makes good sense. The all-natural source of trace elements and starches in seaweed plus the high nitrogen and calcium of fish emulsion will have your plants healthy and happy.

The Best Organic Garden Fertilizer

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Organic garden fertilizer is the choice for anybody interested in organic gardening. Even if you are gardening in a natural way, that does not mean that your garden will not need fertilizer. Plants deplete the soil of its minerals and vitamins, especially if similar crops are grown repeatedly in the same place.

Getting the biggest and best fruits, vegetables and flowers from your garden you will need some type of organic garden fertilizer. If you have it, you can use compost produced in your own garden. If not, you have several other choices.

1. Manure and guano

One of the oldest forms of fertilizer used in both farming and gardening is manure or guano. If you have access to horses or other large animals you may be able to use their manure on your garden. However, it has the disadvantage of being rather odorous. If not aged properly, there can be viable weed seeds that may sprout.

You will also want to think about whether the animals have been raised and fed organically. If not, their manure could contain chemicals and hormones that you may not want in your organic garden.

An alternative natural organic garden fertilizer is bat guano. This is one of the richest and most concentrated fertilizers for the soil that you will find. Containing high quantities of nitrogen and phosphorous, it is particularly good for flowering plants.

Bat guano is also reported to be effective in neutralizing or removing certain toxins from the soil. This makes it an ideal choice if you are converting a garden that has not been managed in an organic way in the past.

2. Seaweed

Seaweed extract is often used to produce organic fertilizer for gardens. The extract can be mixed with water or other products to increase its mineral profile.

Seaweed or kelp is a vegetable-based source of fertilizer for gardens. It is particularly rich in iodine, potassium and other minerals. If used in its pure form, it contains no animal products and may therefore be more suitable for vegans and strict vegetarians than many other products..

Seaweed based organic garden fertilizer can help to promote disease resistance and healthy root and seed growth in your plants. It is especially good for leafy plants like tomatoes, bell peppers and corn. It’s nutrients are delivered in a form that is very easily absorbed by plants.

3. Worm castings

They make good fertilizer and are particularly beneficial for the roots of plants including root vegetables and grass lawns

Worm castings will be formed naturally by the worms in your garden if you have plenty. You can see them left as thin spirals of fine soil on the surface of the ground. If your garden is newly established or you want to increase the variety of worm castings, you can buy either the castings or live worms from garden supply stores.

4. Bone meal

Many regular fertilizers contain bone meal, but you can also find organic garden fertilizer that is based on by products of animal farming including bone and blood meal. You can choose 100% organic fertilizer if you want to be all organic, or one that is all natural.

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Mar 26

How To Grow Organic Fruit

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How To Grow Organic Fruit

Grow your own organic fruit. It’s fun and one of the most rewarding aspects of gardening. It means that you and your family can have fruit that is delicious, healthy and picked at the absolute peak of ripeness.

Fruit Trees

Choose organic trees and plants that will grow in your soil conditions and climate. It’s less work and you’re not fighting against Mother Nature, giving you optimal results. Check with your the supplier to be sure the fruit tree has not been treated with chemicals in it’s early stages.

Fruit trees make a beautiful addition to any garden. If space is limited, consider dwarf or semi dwarf varieties. These smaller fruit trees also have the advantage that you may not need to climb to pick the ripe organic fruit.

Grow Organic Berries

Strawberries are always a favorite, and will grow in most climates. Protect them from pests, birds, and dampness from the ground. Straw is typically used under and around the plants. Raised beds are good if your soil is not well drained.

Blueberries are one of the most popular choices for organic fruit in the garden. There are many varieties, most being classed as either Highbush or Rabbiteye. Highbush types grow taller and can handle cooler climates. Rabbiteye varieties are more suited to hot, dry summers and less acid soil.

Raspberries grow upward on canes, which means that you can get a lot of organic fruit from a small bed of soil. You will need to check on them regularly as they are growing, to tie back branches and make sure the air can circulate. Raspberries react badly to plants of the nightshade family (potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant and peppers) so do not try to grow them nearby or in soil that was previously used for these plants.

Try traditional varieties when it comes to selecting your plants. This may mean smaller fruit but they will usually have more flavor. Commercial growers usually want to maximize the size of fruit and do not care if the extra size is just water, because fruit is sold by weight. In your organic fruit garden you can ignore commercial considerations and go for flavor every time.

Harvesting Organic Fruit

You can also plant different varieties of a particular fruit. For example, some varieties of blueberry will produce ripe fruit earlier in the season than others. Or you can spread the plants over different parts of the garden. A blueberry bush that is in full sun will usually produce fruit earlier than one that is in a shadier spot.

If you still have a lot more organic fruit than you need, you can give some away and either freeze, bottle or preserve the rest. Homemade jelly makes a wonderful gift at Christmas or other times when there is not so much fresh organic fruit in the garden.

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Mar 26

Organic Herb Gardening

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Organic herb gardening is a simple and satisfying way to get the most from a small area of garden or yard. You also have the satisfaction of knowing that the herbs you grow and eat are the healthiest that they could be, as well as the freshest.

Most herbs are easy to grow. They mostly like sunlight so you will want to position them in a sunny part of the garden.

It is also a good idea if you can see them from the kitchen window. That will remind you that they are there are prompt you to use them and keep them well watered in hot weather.

Some herbs are perennials, meaning that the plants will remain from year to year. Perennial herbs include rosemary, sage, thyme and lavender. These are usually best planted outdoors in your herb gardening beds. An exception is spearmint, which can take over the whole garden if not contained. We recommend growing spearmint in an outdoor container.

Other herbs are annuals that will need to be raised from seed each year. This includes parsley, dill and basil. You may prefer to grow these in pots or containers.

If you are doing your herb gardening the organic way, you will not use chemical pesticides or fertilizers. For most herbs, this is not a problem. They are generally hardy plants that are resistant to pests.

When it comes to fertilizer, you will need to use something to add nutrients to the soil but there are plenty of organic choices. Natural compost from your own garden is one. Other options include bone meal and seaweed extract. You can buy these from garden supply stores. Just check that your choice is organic in order to maintain standards in your herb garden.

Some herbs like rosemary can be used straight from the garden all year round. Others will have a particular harvest time when you will want to pick, dry and store them. In most cases, they are best harvested a day or two before the flowers would bloom. This ensures that you get the maximum amount of the plant’s essential oil.

It is best to harvest most herbs around the middle of the morning, when the dew has dried but the sun is not yet shining at full strength. The growing tips and young leaves are best.

Most people doing organic herb gardening do not wash their herbs before drying them. If you do, they will need to be dried quickly, perhaps in the oven, to avoid fungal growth.

Herbs that have not been washed can be dried on wire netting, covered with paper or a light cloth. Remove stems and try to keep only a single layer of leaves on the wire. Place these racks in a well ventilated area in the shade.

Herbs are dry enough to store when they are crisp, so that they break and crumble easily. Many people prefer to crush them so that they take up less storage space; others like to keep larger pieces, especially if they are to be used for teas. If they are truly dry you will not be likely to keep whole leaves. These final products of your herb gardening can then be stored in airtight bottles or jars.

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Mar 26

Growing Organic Vegetables In Containers Outside

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Growing organic vegetables is so rewarding that it is always worth doing even if you only have a small space for containers outside. You may have a roof garden or a small patch of concrete to call your own. That is fine. You do not need a big garden with beds to benefit from the pleasure of being able to cook, serve and eat your own delicious home grown organic vegetables.

The good news is that almost any type of vegetable can be grown in containers. Especially now that so many varieties come in dwarf types. Of course, what you plan to grow needs to be adapted to how many containers you have and how big they are.

If you want to be sure of growing organic vegetables, of course you need to check that your chosen varieties are available as organic seeds. Plants can also be readily purchased if your local nursery is going organic. Then set up your containers with organic compost.

In most cases you will start by planting in seed boxes indoors. Then when seedlings have formed, choose the strongest and healthiest to plant out in your containers.

Your plants will need to be well nourished. For some plants, like tomatoes, you can buy organic fertilizer or food that you can add to the soil in the containers from time to time. For others, it is enough to add more compost at the end of the season.

Even if you want to keep growing the same plants over and over, it is best to rotate them around your different containers each year. That way, you will benefit from improved soil fertility without having to change the compost every time. You can also rotate plants by growing one crop in for half the year and a different crop for the other half year. You can grow more than one type of plant per container. You can also gain space by mixing herbs or other small plants around your larger vegetables. Just be sure that they will not be shaded when the larger plants grow.

Upward growing plants like tomatoes or green beans are ideal for this purpose. For example, you can grow tomatoes at the back of a container and have cucumber, radishes or even small lettuces at the front for a self-contained salad garden.

The plants that grow well in containers include eggplant (aubergine), especially small varieties like Bambino or Slim Jim; bell peppers, small squashes and green onions (spring onions).

Many types of containers can be used for growing organic vegetables. You do not have to go buy expensive pots. You probably want to avoid plastic containers if you are growing organic vegetables, to avoid chemicals leaking into the soil, but there are many other options. Wooden containers are perfect and give a great organic look to your garden space. Wire tubs or baskets have the advantage of allowing drainage without you having to drill holes.

Dark colors absorb heat, so if you live in a hot, sunny climate you might want to paint the outside of your containers white. Plants expect to grow in a situation where the roots below ground are cooler than the stalks and leaves, and they may simply die if the soil in your containers becomes too hot.

Plants in containers need more frequent watering than plants growing in the ground. In summer, you may need to arrange for somebody to come water your plants any time you are away, even if it is only for a few days.

With these tips in mind, you can enjoy delicious and healthy food from your container garden by growing organic vegetables successfully.

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Mar 14

Growing An Indoor Vegetable Garden

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Growing An Indoor Vegetable Garden

An indoor vegetable garden just might be the perfect answer for anybody who wants to grow their own organic vegetables without having any outdoor space. Many vegetables can be grown in containers indoors. If you only have a very small space, there will be limits to your indoor vegetable garden.

There are even some advantages to having an indoor vegetable garden. The main advantage of having an indoor vegetable garden is that your plants are less likely to suffer from disease and pest damage, if you are careful not to introduce pests into your home, most of them will probably stay outside.

Taking a little time to plan your indoor vegetable garden before you start will pay off. If you make a list of planting and harvesting dates for a lot of different vegetables, you will see that you may be able to have two plants growing in a pot in the same year, by planning for a second vegetable crop that you can plant after harvesting the first. This is a great way to make the most of limited space.

Another option is to have hanging pots, either outside on walls or inside, near the window. The indoor option may block light. If you choose to have hanging pots outside, it will need to be in a place that you can easily reach. This could be from a window if you live in an apartment. Remember hanging pots will dry out faster and therefore will require more watering and more fertilizer.

You will need to use organic soil, compost and fertilizer if you want to grow organic vegetables. It is not so easy to produce your own compost if you do not have a garden, but you may have a friendly neighbor who would share.

If you are just starting out with indoor garden or if you have never grown vegetables before, it is probably better to start with those that are easy to grow. Radishes and carrots do not require much care and can be delicious. Lettuce grows quickly and you probably do not need more than one plant ready at a time, so you can make the most of a container and have them growing one after another.

Sunlight is needed for most plants, so some research and planning is needed before you start out. Fruit needs sun, and many plants that people think of as vegetables are actually fruit in botanical terms.

Tomatoes, for example, grow well in pots with a trellis, but they will ripen best in sun. So you may need to think about which plants are placed near windows. If you have roof lights or even a conservatory that will allow a lot of sunlight in, that is the ideal situation for an indoor vegetable garden, but not everybody is that lucky.

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Mar 04

Using Organic Insecticide In Your Garden

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Using Organic Insecticide In Your Garden

Using organic insecticide is an option if you have a problem with pests in your garden. You can purchase organic insecticide from many garden supply stores these days. However, it is important to buy the right product to control the pests that you have.

Organic gardening means not killing off more insects than you need to. You would not want to buy the type of commercial chemical insecticides that kill virtually every six legged creature in the garden. Some of them are useful, such as ladybugs which will feed on your aphid pests. They can be beautiful too. Remember, butterflies are insects.

However, if you are considering organic insecticide then it is probably too late for prevention. You will need to look for other methods of controlling pests. The best ones are those that target the specific pest that you are having trouble with. That way you won’t kill off beneficial and friendly insects in the garden.

For this reason, many gardeners prefer to avoid organic insecticides and use other methods for controlling pests in the garden.

For soil-based pests, the best method of control is to rotate your plants so that the plant they feed on is not in the same place year after year. Insects are easily confused, especially those that live in the soil. This is often enough to prevent them from becoming established .

Many pests are repelled by garlic. For this reason, gardeners often plant garlic around their other crops. It is especially effective this way against red spider mite and the borer beetles that attack fruit trees.

You can also use garlic in sprays. Simply crush garlic cloves into water and spray the mixture directly onto your plants. This will keep off many of the pests that like to eat vegetables and flowers.

Soap solutions are well known to be effective against aphids and other small flies that attack roses and similar flowering plants. A soap solution spray can also prevent slugs from eating your flowers.

Against slugs and snails, you can either use salt or beer. Salt solution sprayed onto plants will often keep off these pests in the same way that garlic repels other pests. You can also make traps containing beer. Place a flat container of beer into the ground so that the rim is at ground level and the slugs can easily access the beer and fall in. As far as we know, they will die happy.

Boric acid is a common household product that can be used against many garden pests. It is also known as boracic acid, borates or borax. It is effective enough that it is used in many commercial pesticides, but it is a naturally occurring mineral a little like salt.

Boric acid can be used as a powder against ants and similar crawling insects including roaches, ticks and fleas, beetles, earwigs and crickets. It also has anti fungal properties so it can be used against fungal diseases on plants, molds and mildew. Like salt, it can kill slugs and snails.

Boric acid can be toxic in high quantities. For safety, it is better not to use this organic insecticide on ripe fruit or on plants that children or pets will eat or lick. Always wash fruits and vegetables before eating them.

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