Tips for gardening
Do you need to fine-tune your green thumb? We are taking you back to the essentials to ensure gardening success.
PLANTING
Choosing what to plant can determine success. Be sure to choose plants that adapt well to your regional conditions, and will thrive depending on whether they are planted in full sun, part sun/shade or full shade. Trial and error or consulting with a garden professional can help avoid future mistakes when choosing annuals. Decide upon plants that flourish spring, summer and fall in your region. It is important to note that some plants are not season-long performers.
WATERING
Watering frequency should increase as the weather gets warm and dry during spring's transition into summer. Over-watering plants will harm them just as much as not watering them enough. Baskets and containers usually require more water, depending upon size of planter and container, versus flowers planted in the beds of your landscape. The smaller a basket or container, the more you should water that plant.
An easy tip for beginners is when the top layer of soil is dry to the touch it is time to water your plant.
FEEDING
Fertilizer complements watering frequency as long as it is given to the plant in the proper dosage. The best fertilizer for baskets and containers is water-soluble 20-10-20 fertilizer, and is widely available in garden centers, home improvement stores, and seasonally in grocery stores and drug stores. This product can be mixed in a watering container and poured over the baskets or containers. This should be done once every 3–4 weeks.
The best fertilizer for flowers planted in landscape beds is a granular slow release 20-10-20 which can be found in garden centers, home improvement stores and mass merchants. This product should be sprinkled over the beds containing the plants every 4–6 weeks.
