Many people think of gardening as a hobby that is soothing and therapeutic. Gardeners usually seek answers to questions involving topics such as soil types, necessary equipment, and different growing seasons. Continue reading for some expert gardening advice.

When boiling or steaming vegetables, keep the water that the vegetables were cooked in and let it cool. Use the water to water the garden with. It is packed with all the vitamins and minerals that were in the vegetables when they were cooked and will help the plants grow as a natural plant food.

Use seedlings to run relay planting. Using seedlings can allow you to get a jump start on the growing season and improve yields to the harvest by extending time. If growing lettuce and a squash harvest is needed for summer, then after the lettuce has been harvested you can plant seedlings to get a jump start on another crop and a higher yield for the garden.

Plant seedlings on cloudy days. The cloud cover will help protect your new seedlings from the heat and radiation of the sun. This extra protection gives them a better shot of survival than if they were planted on a hot, sunny day. If your seedlings were being grown out of direct sunlight when you purchased them, be especially careful about exposing them to direct light.

New gardeners should keep things simple. The tendency of new gardeners is to plant a garden that is just way too big and end up with a giant mess in the backyard. Keep it simple and small to start, and work up from there. A small garden will lead to a more positive experience and is less work for a new gardener.

If your home just has a small patio, you can still have a garden by growing plants in containers. Container gardening can give you the option to grow all kinds of flowers, plants, and even vegetables. You can also bypass the problem of frost by taking your containers inside during frosty weather.

Try to fill your garden with a variety of plants instead of just a few types. A garden with a wide variety is more resistant to garden pests. It attracts more beneficial insects that eat the bad bugs. This will cut down on the need for pesticides. A garden with just a few types of plants will sustain more damage from pest invasions.

Did you know that cute lady bugs are beneficial to plants because they kill harmful aphids? Lady beetles, also known as ladybugs, eat large numbers of aphids throughout its life. One beetle can eat 5,000 aphids! You can purchase ladybugs at a garden center, or through online resources, if you don’t have any in your garden. Plants love ladybugs!

As was discussed in the article, gardening can be quite a rewarding activity, but significant knowledge is required to tend to your garden properly. When you implement good advice and carefully plan your garden, you’ll reap many rewards. By taking the tips given and preparing what you need in advance, you will find yourself with a beautiful garden in no time.…