If you love getting down and dirty during warm months you may want to spice things up from time to time. Like any gardener you have your preferences. The raspberries need to go in the backyard. No shade, pure sunlight, primo spot. You usually plant your tomato garden beside the garage but it just doesn’t feel right this Spring. Is it time for a change? Following a few handy tips can make gardening fun, enjoyable and fulfilling. Isn’t that the end goal?
Scrap It
Keep a scrap book listing where you purchased plants. Label where you planted flowers and vegetables. Feel free to add plant tags and sticks to the book each season for continuity and sentimental purposes. If you’re a creative type design the scrap book to your tastes. Any number of online tools can help you creative an authentic, visually-appealing book.
Keeping a scrapbook also helps you remember where you planted what during the prior season. This comes in handy if you had a particularly lean or lush year with any fruits or vegetables.
Compost It
Stop tossing your egg shells and banana peels in the trash. Compost organic material to create nutritious soil for your fruits and veggies. Composting is an environmentally friendly practice that cuts down on garbage disposal costs. Any fruit, vegetable or animal byproduct is game for composting. Hang a bag under your sink. Or use a compost pale in your kitchen. As for composting tips, toss apple cores, banana peels, peach pits, broccoli stalks or any fruit and veggie remnants in the compost pile during summer and spring months turn the pile over with a pitch fork or shovel to create beautiful, nutrient rich soil. You’ll taste the difference in your fruits and veggies.
Note; don’t be alarmed if you note the pile giving off smoke. Composting creates heat energy. Make sure to build your compost pile in a spot which snags shade for a few hours daily so as not to dry out. Allow the pile to retain moisture, creating the organic mash which makes your fruits and veggies taste wonderful.
Early and Late
Although you may pride yourself on gardening from dusk to dawn you’ll enjoy early morning and late afternoon gardening sessions during hot summer months. Even if you have only Saturday and Sunday to tend to gardening engaging in marathon sessions can lead to dehydration and burnout. Enjoy gardening. Wake up early to hit the flower beds at sunrise. Work through the mid-morning hours. Take a break from late morning until late afternoon. Resume gardening through the early evening to stay cool and to get more stuff done.
If you absolutely must garden with the sun at its peak drink plenty of water and wear gardener-friendly clothing. Don a wide-brimmed hat, cover your skin with light-colored clothing which allows your skin to breathe and take frequent breaks to hydrate. Move into the shade every 30 to 60 minutes. If you feel light-headed stop gardening immediately. Drop your pruning shears and head inside. Turn on the air conditioning. Put your feet up. Take a cooling break until you feel fully recharged.