Many people get into organic gardening since they fear the toxic effects of commercial pesticides and fertilizers, both on the environment and their health. Also, many organic horticulture techniques are quite inexpensive. In the following paragraphs, you’ll find some suggestions that will help you make the most of your garden.
Use annuals and biennials to enliven your flower beds. These flowers grow quickly and can be planted at any time during the year. If you want to maintain a flower garden all year or you want to add new flowers to reflect the changing seasons, annuals and biennials are for you. They can be used to fill in gaps in your garden between the perennials or shrubs so your garden looks fuller. Some of these that you might consider are petunias, marigolds and sunflowers. If those are not flowers you like, you can also try cosmos, holyhocks or rudbeckias.
When dealing with any type of seeds in horticulture, it’s important that you soak them overnight in a cool, dark location. Place a small amount of seeds in a little container, while filling it to the brim with water. This hydrates your seeds and jump-starts their growth. The young plants will survive better, and get a boost toward maturity.
It is best to aerate and dry your plants daily. If your plants are moist, this can attract disease and parasites. Fungi are a very common and irritating pest in the world of horticulture. It is possible to get rid of fungi after it appears with anti-fungal sprays, but it’s better to spray at-risk areas before fungi appear.
The best gardens start with seeds, as opposed to plants. When opening a garden, the most green method of beginning is from seed. Most nurseries use plastic containers to grow seedling. This plastic is seldom recycled, so most is dumped in landfills. Be kind to the environment and start your garden with seeds or purchase young plants from nurseries that use organic packaging materials.
You can use natural materials or other plants in your garden to keep away pests. Slugs stay away from marigolds and onions when they are planted in a garden. Keep insects away from shrub and tree seedlings with mulch containing wood ash. These methods remove the need for harsh chemical pesticides.
It is important to follow the instructions on your chemicals and tools closely, especially if you are new to gardening. Failure to follow instructions can be dangerous or painful. For example, some chemicals will irritate your skin if you don’t follow safety rules. Protect your plants and yourself by knowing how to correctly use all of your horticulture implements.
Don’t use broad-spectrum pesticidal products anywhere in your horticulture area. While broad-spectrum pesticides will kill most pests, they will also kill helpful insects. Beneficial insects are more susceptible to toxic pesticides than their annoying counterparts, so a broad-spectrum pesticide could kill all of the good bugs first, allowing the population of bad pests to multiply. When this happens, you will spray another round of pesticides to get rid of the pests, thus creating a never-ending cycle for yourself.
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By taking advantage of the advice you’ve read in this article, you’ll be able to have a garden free of pesticides and full of healthy produce. When your garden is working with nature, you can also expect to see an increase in the amount of wildlife that inhabits your garden.