There is something about warm weather
that makes many of us long to dig our hands into the soil and grow
things. We rush out, cash in hand, high on visions of gorgeous gardens full
of color and bursting with life.
Never mind that we can't keep a
houseplant alive, or if the only thing we've successfully grown is
mold in the refrigerator.
I tell you folks, as they used to say
in the Army, “Hope is not a method”. A little knowledge can go a
long way to ensuring your money isn't wasted and that you wind up
with something other than withered twigs for your trouble.
A little research is needed to ensure
that you give your lovely little six packs of plants have a fair shake at life.
The first thing you need to know is what your USDA Hardiness Zone is.
Your zone tells you what the lowest average temperature your area
experiences is. This in turn helps you choose plants that can
survive in your area. Think about it for a minute-while it's pretty obvious that an orange tree isn't going to
survive the zone 5 winter of New York, it may be less obvious that Rosemary won't survive the winter anywhere north of South Carolina (zone 8). And don't trust that just
because your local big box store is selling a plant that it will
thrive in your zone (trust me, I've seen Rosemary for sale as a perennial here in NY).
When a gorgeous plant has caught your eye, take a minute to think if you've ever seen a
plant like it in anyone's garden
locally. If you haven't, you probably want to look into it's zone
requirements. A well labeled plant will have the zone information on
the tag. If it isn't labeled (or has an unhelpful label) then you can research online-or even
call your local professional (not big box store) nursery. Another great resource is your local Cooperative Extension Office-these are run out of your state university system. They usually have great state specific websites and helpful subject matter experts that can answer questions specific to your region.
Now that you've determined that a plant
can survive in your area you have to figure out it's light requirements, which will dictate where on your property you can plant it.
Some plants need full bright sun to thrive, others have to be planted
in the shade, and some can handle a little of both. Don't try to fight nature-if you backyard is heavily shaded, then look for plants that do well in those conditions (Coleus anyone?) rather than trying to fight mother nature.
Another
consideration is the height of the plant when fully grown. You don't
want to accidentally plant something that will tower 3 feet tall in the front of
your flower bed totally obscuring the 100 dollars worth of plants that you placed behind it.
When planting vegetables the other key
piece of information you need is the “time to maturity” (usually
found on seed packets). In laymans terms that is how long it takes
from seed to having edible fruit. Here in Upstate NY we only have
about 144 days of the growing season-if mother nature is smiling at us! So if a
watermelon takes 160 days to mature, it's really a gamble. And that loofa plant that takes 190 days-well, it's just a pipe dream. (Yes, Loofahs are actually from a plant).
To figure out the length of your
growing season you need to know the average last frost date in the
spring and then the average first frost in the fall. Do some math
and you've got your season length. Victory Seed Company has some
pretty nice charts on major metro areas in all states-if you can't
find it though try calling your state university Cooperative
Extension Service-those folks can tell you what you need to know!
So there it is, the basics of what you
need to know to make sure that what you plant has a fair shot at living a full and happy life. Happy Gardening!
Jenn is the new Blissfully Domestic Gardening Diva. A full time mom & wife, fulltime frugalite and aspiring gardener. You can see Jenn wearing her other hat and blogging about living a good life on a budget at Frugal Upstate.
Loading ...
The title of this post made me ROAR.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! These gardening basics are so helpful! I think a lot of my gardening issues has stemmed from not knowing the basic gardening rules.
Darla-glad to brighten your day!
Amy-I'm so glad you found the info helpful I hope that you have great success in your future gardening.