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| Pot Gardening |
You don’t have to have a giant backyard to enjoy some of the calm and
relaxing moments that gardening can offer you. If you live in an apartment
building or have a small yard, pot gardening can be the answer to your
troubles. This form of gardening offers the versatility of moving your plants
around and still getting the chance to harvest vegetables. This article will
focus on some basic tips to help you get started with container gardening.
The plants that you choose should fit your lifestyle and wallet too.
Container gardening isn’t very expensive, but in due time if you aren’t
careful, it can definitely get to be. There is no assurance that container
gardening is foolproof or the plants that you choose will survive your
lifestyle and environment. For example, if you don’t have the time or energy to
water your plants often, choose plants that don’t require much water. If you
are low on cash, check out some second hand stores to provide some affordable
containers for your plants.
Your plants need to be put into a container that has enough drainage holes.
Drainage holes are there for a reason and it can be a simple matter of life or
death for your plants. These holes allow excess water to drain through the
holes, preventing the roots of your plants from rotting. Too much water can
cause your soil to become soggy and wet, eventually resulting in rotting plant
roots. If you have ever thought that adding rocks or gravel to the bottom of a
pot decreases drainage problems, you’re quite wrong. None of these things can
prevent your plant’s roots from rotting.
If you aren’t a seasoned gardener, definitely invest in some good quality
potting soil. Meanwhile some gardeners will tell you that it is perfectly okay
to fill up your potted soil with junk; this also causes your plant’s soil to
dry out much faster. Unless you are a perfect gardener and have a very low
track record for error, avoid filling your pot with gunk and just buy some good
potting soil instead.
Make sure that you take the time to acclimate your plants. Even a seasoned
gardener can attest to the fact that sometimes plants just swoon and die, while
others can take a heavy beating. If you take the time to acclimate them to
small changes in light exposure, temperature and water, you will find that your
plants have a better survival and success rate. This is especially important if
your plants are young and were just recently purchased from the pampered
environment of a greenhouse.
Container gardening is one of those things where you just need to know when
to stop. Even the most seasoned gardener will kill plants and the more plants
you plant in a given container, the higher your plant death rate is. It is just
a simple fact of life and not something to discourage anyone from gardening. If
you see one of your plants in your container that’s dying, there are several
things you can do. Take the time and cut back the plant dramatically.
In most cases this is a simple fix and you will see drastic changes in the
plant within weeks. If the dying/dead plant is just becoming an eyesore and
really beyond hope, take it out of the container and replace it with a new and
healthy plant. Last, but not least, if your plant is clearly suffering from a
disease, either quarantine it immediately away from other plants or just throw
it to ensure the survival of your container.
If you are planning on planting several plants together in one container,
make sure that they work well together. This means, ensure that all of the
plants have similar requirements for light as well as moisture. If you choose
to plant plants that don’t make good neighbors, you can end up with a container
full of dying and wilting plants.