Advice for new gardeners.

[olly-buckle]

I notice new gardeners often ask for advice when they join a forum, and I thought if there was a thread we could all contribute to we could refer people to it rather than typing it all out again. More information for them, less work for us.

I'll start :-
Don't try to save every plant and nurse the sickly ones to health, it's a sure way to lots of work and no success, keep the best and compost the rest.

If you are growing veg. think about what you already eat first. Even potatoes tastes better when grown in the garden, and exotic and unusual veg are likely to be harder to grow.

A compost heap is a really good idea, but put it out of the way. Anything within eight feet of a compost heap is likely to get 'slugged'.

Look for cheap seeds, expensive does not mean better, it means they are harder to grow, not what you want when you are starting.

 

[Tetters]

Now that is what I call a good bunch of advice. I am so often at a loss what to say when someone comes to a forum with a photo of a very dead plant, probably killed by sheer neglect, and says ''how can I make it better?''
Actually, reading the advice over again, I think there are a couple of points there that even experienced gardeners could take note of..... I just looked in the mirror

 

[Mr_Yan]

I'm game:

1) Don't go big in the first year or two. It is very easy to overwhelm yourself and burn out. Start small and grow over years.

2) Veg gardens often have "volunteer" plants which self seed from something missed in last year's clean up. You'll want to keep these "gifts" but don't worry about culling these. They're often not where you want them and ruin the plan for the rest of the garden costing you more than they benefit.

 

[Tetters]

When feeling overwhelmed by a huge garden job, concentrate on one small area at a time. Ignore the rest.
When starting on the next selected area, you have the first one to encourage you to do a bit more. Gradually all the small areas merge into a lovely garden. At the moment I have to tell myself this every day.

 

[olly-buckle]

When feeling overwhelmed by a huge garden job, concentrate on one small area at a time. Ignore the rest.
When starting on the next selected area, you have the first one to encourage you to do a bit more. Gradually all the small areas merge into a lovely garden. At the moment I have to tell myself this every day.

I reckon that is good advice for almost any big job anywhere, Tetters.

Be careful reading seed catalogues, they are designed to sell you more seeds than you were looking for, and some are very optimistic. It is easy to get carried away and end up with more seed than you have room to plant.

People pay attention to plants, but the thing most affecting plant growth is the state of the ground, the more you can improve it the better. Manure and compost obviously help, but also consider green manure, stuff you grow to plough back into the ground. When you remove plants instead of pulling them up roots and all it can pay to cut them at ground level and leave the roots to rot in situ.

A hoe is a great tool, you can knock over baby weeds in a large area very quickly. It can seem satisfying weeding out a large bucketful of weeds, but it is much better if they never make it to that size, two leaves die easily and do not compete with the plants or make flowers and seed. Any new piece of ground is likely to have a lot of weed seeds in it, but if you hoe it weekly for a while after clearing it you get them as they germinate, it can even be worth watering to get them to germinate sooner.

 

[MamaHawk]

Don't go big in the first year or two

*Whistles innocently and hides three sandwich bags of seeds*

I would also say, as a beginner to other beginners, don't give up. There are always good people out there who will give advice and support right as you want to give in

 

[Tetters]

*Whistles innocently and hides three sandwich bags of seeds*

I would also say, as a beginner to other beginners, don't give up. There are always good people out there who will give advice and support right as you want to give in

You have certainly got that right. All gardeners have learned best by their mistakes I believe, and not only that we will never stop learning - that's just one reason we have the best job in the world, whether it is work or hobby. Gardening in all shapes and forms is good for the soul, mind and body.

 

[DrCase]

Add a little something each year, It will grow into a garden .

 

[Mr_Yan]

There are always good people out there who will give advice and support right as you want to give in

There's also always the guy saying 'get out the lawn mower and level it, that's a lost cause'...

 

[olly-buckle]

There are always good people out there who will give advice and support

Advice and support are okay, but how about a bit of weeding and digging?

 

[Mike]

Advice and support are okay, but how about a bit of weeding and digging?

If you find someone who is willing, go ahead and put me on the waiting list to take advantage of some of the weeding and digging too.

 

[olly-buckle]

Back to the advice,
Germination rates vary, always plant more than you need BUT if they all come up only keep the very best ones and only as many as you actually need for your own purpose. Passing them on makes you popular, and if you are lucky you may get something you really want in return.

 

[Tetters]

Back to the advice,
Germination rates vary, always plant more than you need BUT if they all come up only keep the very best ones and only as many as you actually need for your own purpose. Passing them on makes you popular, and if you are lucky you may get something you really want in return.

And that, Olly is one tip I have never seemed to learn - even now with the runner beans being eaten by slugs - and the more I grow, the more the ruddy slugs and snails turn up for their party.

 

[olly-buckle]

And that, Olly is one tip I have never seemed to learn - even now with the runner beans being eaten by slugs - and the more I grow, the more the ruddy slugs and snails turn up for their party.

Too much raw compost under them? Anything within eight feet of a compost heap gets slugged, so I guess it could be the same if you bury it.
Someone I came across the other day was suggesting planting alliums around the edge of beds as slugs hate them, didn't strike me as something that would be super effective, but anything that helps. I am going to put my leeks that want planting out around the edge in holes rather than a trench, see what it does. I use slug pellets now they are ferric phosphate (I think), that doesn't strike me as too bad, the old ones were metaldehyde, and that is horrible stuff, causes brain damage, excess iron does their liver, but won't hurt much else. The thing people forget is that they attract slugs (Beer traps too) so if you use them it needs to be near what you are wanting to protect, but not too near. If possible between the plants and where they come from, like lawns and compost heaps. Giving the beans a really good head start in large pots might help as well.

 

[Tetters]

There is no compost heap anywhere near my stumps that used to be beans, and, as it happens, Zigs has taken over with some doing quite well in pots where he can keep an eye on them - which is great, because I can get back to the stuff I really enjoy doing - the bit we can't actually eat.

 

[olly-buckle]

There is no compost heap anywhere near my stumps that used to be beans,

Sorry, I would expect you to know about the eight foot radius, though I will bury almost anything under runners. I got a bit expansive as the thread is advice for new gardeners and I have found it a common mistake people make in small gardens.

 

[Tetters]

Sorry, I would expect you to know about the eight foot radius, though I will bury almost anything under runners. I got a bit expansive as the thread is advice for new gardeners and I have found it a common mistake people make in small gardens.

There's no need to be sorry. I think we're all learning all the time, I find new things to learn in the garden all the time, and will never know it all. Your point was completely valid and useful. Even stuff I should know is very easy to forget these days.

 

[Anniekay]

I have a couple pieces of advice for new gardeners living in a hot climate growing veg:
1) " If the packet says they grow in full sun, ...No, they don't. "
They will get sun scorched, wilt, wither and require twice the water as the same plants planted in a cooler climate zone.

Full sun for zone 8b+ means: Morning sun (6-7 hours) and afternoon shade. There are a few exceptions, one is melons, they need the heat and loads of water anyway.

2) I recently had a woman stop to talk to me about my garden. She said all her veg was doing badly, wilting, leaves yellowed and brown. She couldn't understand it " She waters them a little every day and they're all planted in full sun. "

Don't water everyday. Water deeply once a week, twice a week if it's scorching hot or you have metal raised beds. Watering a little every day just wets the soil surface, the roots will then stay up at the surface to get the water and never get their roots down deep enough, (where water and nutrition will be if you water deeply) and the plant will not thrive because they haven't developed a healthy root system.

3) Look up your climate zone and adjust your planting dates to what's recommended for your area, along with your sun exposure. Don't just do what the packet suggests. Sometimes the packet is right, sometimes it's not.

4) Map your yards sun pattern. You might know you have full sun in summer in a certain area but you may have full shade there in fall/winter due to the sun travelling southward from summer solstice onward.
Draw a map at different times of year of where you have shade and for how long ( kick back with a beverage and just observe). This will save you from " wrong plant in wrong place. "

 

[MamaHawk]

I have a couple pieces of advice for new gardeners living in a hot climate growing veg:
1) " If the packet says they grow in full sun, ...No, they don't. "
They will get sun scorched, wilt, wither and require twice the water as the same plants planted in a cooler climate zone.

Full sun for zone 8b+ means: Morning sun (6-7 hours) and afternoon shade. There are a few exceptions, one is melons, they need the heat and loads of water anyway.

2) I recently had a woman stop to talk to me about my garden. She said all her veg was doing badly, wilting, leaves yellowed and brown. She couldn't understand it " She waters them a little every day and they're all planted in full sun. "

Don't water everyday. Water deeply once a week, twice a week if it's scorching hot or you have metal raised beds. Watering a little every day just wets the soil surface, the roots will then stay up at the surface to get the water and never get their roots down deep enough, (where water and nutrition will be if you water deeply) and the plant will not thrive because they haven't developed a healthy root system.

3) Look up your climate zone and adjust your planting dates to what's recommended for your area, along with your sun exposure. Don't just do what the packet suggests. Sometimes the packet is right, sometimes it's not.

4) Map your yards sun pattern. You might know you have full sun in summer in a certain area but you may have full shade there in fall/winter due to the sun travelling southward from summer solstice onward.
Draw a map at different times of year of where you have shade and for how long ( kick back with a beverage and just observe). This will save you from " wrong plant in wrong place. "

These are FANTASTIC points!!! The "Full sun" bit makes me feel better about where I put some of my plants, and the watering makes me feel better too. Thank you!

 

[olly-buckle]

And that, Olly is one tip I have never seemed to learn - even now with the runner beans being eaten by slugs - and the more I grow, the more the ruddy slugs and snails turn up for their party.

Have you tried going out at night with a torch and a container of boiled water? Even when the water has cooled a bit it still does for them, I think it is because all the air is expelled from it. A plastic glove for the slime is good too.