Anybody here like to garden?
If you do, even if you do it a little bit; you probably know more than me.
Lately I have been really into gardening. I created a flower bed and have slowly been adding plants.
The trouble is, when you go to the nursery and read the little tag attached to the plant in the store...you still have no idea if this plant will work in your flower bed! You don't get an idea how tall it grows, if it gets bushy, if the leaves fall off in the winter (I hate it when the plants look dead all winter).
So I am starting to experiment. I am very nervous. I don't know about my soil yet. I don't know how acidic it is. Nor do I care to figure it out at this point. From what I read that is pretty important though.
Anyways, I just bought two gardenia bushes but they are very little! I'm impatient!
And so I wonder...is the garden I plant "now" (this season) going to be the garden I like for a few years...or will it grow in looking awful? Do beginner gardeners generally "get it right" on their first try? Are there any ways to mess up a garden? What mistakes should I avoid?
This is frustrating because all the plants are tiny and so I don't know how it will look in a year or two. I don't know how it will pull together.
I am trying to only plant periannuals so that there is not a lot of ripping out and redoing...but its tough trying to find plants just based on that little tiny tag. It seems if left to grow, that all bushes eventually get too big, all garden edgers get out of control, and all ground cover eventually takes over everything. Ugh.
Anyways, here is what I am trying to achieve:
you see, that "wild, kind of not really organized, extra full" type of look.
And this is what I have (don't laugh!):
It's super organized looking! I am afraid to plant wildly and impulsively! I am afraid I will screw this up!
But this is what I started with:
So yeah- gardening is on my mind.
Gardening
March 18th, 2009 at 01:07 am
March 18th, 2009 at 01:23 am 1237339384
March 18th, 2009 at 01:26 am 1237339603
March 18th, 2009 at 01:33 am 1237339984
DF is a little obsessed with plants. He has a million different types of succulents (like jade and the like), which are actually very pretty and have hardly any maintenance. they grow from a single leaf as well, which means you can just get cuttings from other people's gardens or friends and just throw them in the garden whereever you like.
DF's plan is to have a cactus/succulent garden. I only see a point in gardening if you get something out of it, so my main priority at the moment is a compost bin and a vegie patch area that will be ready to go in a few months. lol.
March 18th, 2009 at 01:51 am 1237341070
You should get them to do a soil test which will tell you whether your soil needs lime (if it is too acid, which is usually the case in the South), how much fertilizer to add and what kind. Cost is about $10. They can also guide you toward organic information if you want that. They have a ton of information for free.
Also, the tags on the plants that you buy should have their spacing and sizes listed. You might want to check the internet for "Dave's Garden" a popular gardening site as well.
Frugal Texan's idea about the library is a good one, too. I would recommend starting with the county agent, though. Would be listed under your County in the phone book.
March 18th, 2009 at 02:11 am 1237342284
Don't worry... I think the joy of gardening is the making-it-up-as-you-go-along aspect... it's not like being at work - no one will give out to you over your garden.
You can't really screw up... yes some plants will die, some will take off like nobodys business, you won't be happy with everything you plant, you'll be thrilled with some things..
There really is no alternative to learning-by-doing.... get tangled up and tango on !!
Realistically your garden will probably be a Work in Progress for 3-5 years....
Enjoy !!
March 18th, 2009 at 05:56 am 1237355771
March 18th, 2009 at 12:29 pm 1237379397
March 18th, 2009 at 04:01 pm 1237392079
March 18th, 2009 at 05:00 pm 1237395646
March 20th, 2009 at 02:52 am 1237517533
One of the things the top garden has is different heights, different colors and it helps to move your eye through the garden from one bright spot to the other. Lots of different shades of green and then spots of gigantic color. The red background in your garden will help, so now add some big splashes (either with bunches of individual plants or one plant that gets large) of yellow and purple and orange and put more greenery around them.
April 12th, 2009 at 07:14 pm 1239563696