Gardening Tips

At last....Spring has sprung!!! And with it comes the refreshing ardor of gardening.  I have always loved gardening, growing up I was fascinated that such a big plant can sprout from such a little seed, and I was the one who loved planting flowers to put in the window during spring.  Now I am fortunate enough to have a backyard with a garden about 70'x50' I can plant whatever I want in!  I thought I would share some tips that I have discovered throughout the years in order to make your gardening experience more pleasurable:

1. Preen is a miracle weed-killer.  Last year I converted a thick lawn into plantable gardening soil with the sole help of a tiller.  I was not happy to find that just a month or so later, even though I had planted vegetables and fruit, it was basically a lawn again.  Then I thought to use Preen, which kills grass seeds without harming fruit and vegetable seeds, and the weeds have become SO much more manageable.

2.  Start your seeds indoors.  Many people know this, but especially tomatoes, peppers, and onions, its always best to start your seeds indoors about a month and a half before the last expected frost, and transplant them when danger of frost has passed.  As I have learned, this is NOT true for carrots and corn.  BAD idea, unless you want a twisty ball carrot that is uneatable..

3.  You will always have to weed, at least a little.  My elderly neighbor that has been gardening in the same garden for the last 140 years still has to weed some, no matter what weed killer she uses.  The key is to keep it manageable by going out there for a few minutes every other day.  If you neglect to weed for a month or two they will quickly become unmanageable and you (if you're like me) will give up.

4. Water deeply about every 4 days.  Its always better to get a really good soaking every few days rather than a light sprinkling every day.

5.  Fertilize and pesticides.  I know everyone is all about the organic crap, but fact is your plants grow so much better, so much faster, and are so much tastier if you use plant food.  That's just the way it is.

I am planning to plant corn, tomatoes, onions, red and jalapeno peppers, peas, strawberries, watermelon, and cantaloupe this season.  So far I have the strawberries from last year and have just planted peas (which are resistant to frost and best if planted early), and have started onions, the peppers, and tomatoes indoors.  I will let you know how things go!!