For years I was turned off by the concept of gardening. I pictured grandmas with time on their hands who filled their days by planting excessive amounts of huge and bright flowers in their yards. A close friend of mine began gardening a few years ago and I have recently gotten hooked on it as well. Lately my wife or kids have to drag me in the house as the sun sets each night. There is something about the simplicity and purity of gardening that I just love.

Ever since I can remember I have always been concerned with making the environment around me beautiful. I cannot stand going to work in offices that are filled with florescent lights and I cannot live in homes that do not have color or character. My addiction to gardening began when I realized how much it added to the beauty and feeling of my yard. Gardening made my yard and home seem inviting and cared for. Many friends and family have visited and commented on what a difference our gardens make to the look and feel of our property.

Gardening plants and vegetables has become one of the most relaxing and peaceful things I do. At the end of a stressful work week there is nothing I’d rather do than spend a Saturday in my garden. Lately I’ve been busy researching new ideas on the internet and at the library. I’m looking for better ways to grow certain flowers and I’m looking for the perfect timing to plant my vegetables. I began gardening with the intention of only planting bushes and flowers, but after a short time I dived into the realm of trying to raise our own vegetables. It has become a family affair to wander through the vegetable garden and pick the perfect pieces to accompany each meal.

If you think you might be interested in gardening, talk to a friend who loves to garden or get yourself to a library or book store and learn all you can about gardening. There is so much to be learned and it is relatively easy to pick up if you have some extra time and money to devote. Begin with a small garden and then expand as you go. One of the worst things you can do when you first begin gardening is to overwhelm yourself with a huge garden that you cannot take care of.

Think seriously about making gardening a part of your home and hobbies. It brings beauty, peace and food all at the same time.

How do you begin to create a garden space that is unique to you? Here are ten simple steps that will help you move effortlessly through the process.

1. Identify WHY you want a garden.
How will you use it? Who else will enjoy the garden? Remember that you may not be the sole inhabitant, so get input from all family members on how your outdoor space will be used.

2. Do a little dreaming.
Now that you know why you want a garden and how you intend to use it, let your imagination play with all the possible features in your special space. A little dreaming will uncover those attributes that will put your personal imprint on the garden.

Also decide whether you want a formal or an informal garden. Formal gardens are highly structured, divided by a strong central axis and cross axes. Informal gardens have a more natural look with strong, flowing curves.

3. Make a list of “must haves”.
What items are essential? Listing your needs up front ensures that your final plan won’t be missing anything important. Do you need a retaining wall? A privacy fence? A path to the garage? More parking space? Do children need a place to play? What about pets?

Walk around your property and make note of everything that is essential. Your final design should balance dream features and “must haves” to create a satisfying and functional space.

4. Evaluate what you already have.
To get where you are going, it helps to know your starting point. Is your space large or small? Is the site flat or sloping? What is the climate? What type of soil do you have? How much water is available and from what sources? What are the predominate views?

5. Ballpark your budget.
Once you know what you want and what you need, it’s time to consider what you are willing to spend. This dollar figure will influence what features you include in the final garden plan — trees, plants, hardscape materials and architectural elements such as arbors, fountains, ponds and benches.

Remember that your “budget” comprises two elements: money and TIME. In terms of time, does the garden need to be finished by a certain date or can you create it over time? (Speed costs!) Also, how much time are you willing to budget to maintain your dream garden? Can you spare several hours a week or are you lucky enough to afford a caretaker?

As you develop and refine your plan, you may need to balance time and cash costs. Be flexible. You may need to spend more time if you can’t spend more money and vice versa.

6. Identify your garden’s focal points.
Every garden needs an eye-catching spot that causes you to pause a moment. When you choose a focal point, you are choosing the direction you want visitors to look when they enter your garden. Did your list of “wants” include a waterfall or fountain? An arbor retreat? A blossoming apple tree? If so, you are well on your way to identifying a focal point — or points — for your garden.

7. Create a rough design.
Take all the information that you’ve gathered and incorporate it into a workable design that balances the “wants” with the “must haves”. Your goal is to create a space that is both satisfying and functional.

Buy a pad of graph paper that contains 8 or 10 squares per inch and let each square equal one foot. (In other words, every inch on the paper will equate to 8 or 10 feet on your property.) Create a basic map with your property lines and house drawn to scale.

You will also need tracing paper, markers, a tape measure, a ruler, a pencil and a good eraser. Lay the tracing paper over your basic scaled map. Then refer back to your list of “must haves” and “wants” as you sketch the various areas of your garden. Show the approximate position of focal points, activity areas (“rooms”) and pathways. Use as many sheets of tracing paper as necessary until you find a layout that pleases you and meets the goal that you identified in Step 1.

8. Choose your plants and hardscape.
The colors and materials that you choose will create the character of your garden, adding interest, movement and visual appeal. Do you want harmonious colors or strong contrast? Warm hues or cool tones? Bold colors or soft hues? Mixing different colors and materials and textures will give your garden a strong sense of space.

Plants comprise a significant part of your garden. In addition to plants, hardscape materials contribute variety and texture — wood arbors, brick borders, gravel paths, bronze statuary, and wrought-iron benches.

As you review your preliminary layout, consider the best material for each of the hardscape elements. Keep in mind that each element needs to fit with and compliment the whole. For example, a terrace constructed of the same material as the house unifies while railroad ties around a formal garden create discord.

9. Make a scale drawing.
Thus far, you have created a basic map of property lines and your house as well as an overlay sheet that shows focal points, “rooms” and pathways. You also have a list of the trees, shrubs and plants for each area of your garden. Now you need to create a scale drawing that shows EXACTLY where each feature will go. You will use this blueprint to lay the walkways, set the arbors and trellises, and plant the trees, shrubs and flowers.

It is important that you have enough information to help you create in reality the garden that you just designed on paper. As long as your scale drawing or blueprint is in sufficient scale to accomplish that purpose, you will be successful.

10. Execute your plan.
Before you begin actual construction of the garden, check all local building codes and regulations to make sure that you will be in compliance. Structures such as decks, patios and retaining walls may require a permit from the local city government. Once all permits are in place, you can start to lay out the garden.

With your scale drawing as a blueprint, use a tape measure to position all structures, walkways and plants. Be sure to measure accurately so each element in your design fits its assigned space.

If designing a garden space sounds a bit intimidating, don’t panic. Just follow these steps one by one and let a space unfold that feels right to you. You CAN do it. After all, a successful garden is just another room of your house, which you’ve already successfully decorated!

1. The best time to mow a lawn is when it is cool and dry. Wait for the morning dew to dry off, and before the afternoon heat takes hold. Alternatively, late afternoon or early evening following a watering in the morning is also a good time.

2. A hedge is a much better boundary divider than a fence. It will provide better privacy and keep pets and children in – or out. It will attract birds to its shelter, and provide a great backdrop for plants and flowers.

3. Bring the beauty of your garden to you; plant hyacinths near walkways and doors. Their magnificent perfume will swamp the spring air and make your garden really come alive.

4. Add your garden to non-garden items, such a lampposts and mail boxes. Surround these items with flowers planted to take advantage of the earliest to the latest flowerings. You could have white snowdrops, purple and gold crocus, blue hyacinths, and various colored tulips. You could also surround the posts with rocks to provide added interest.

5. Simple, but effective weed control can be achieved on your lawn by mowing often during spring. This will prevent dandelions spreading by eliminating the yellow blossoms and preventing seed formation. Mow high during late spring and early summer. This will allow grass blades to shade the ground, and will help prevent crabgrass from sprouting.

Your lawn and garden should be a source of pride and beauty. You don’t need to spend lots of money on expensive fertilizers and herbicides, or fancy lawn furniture and ornaments. A little commonsense and thought can go a long way to making your lawn and garden a much better place.

Most vegetables need between 6 and 8 hours of sunlight,quick growers like lettuce and radish can be grown between the rows of plants that take longer to mature, like beet or corn, thus making full use of the area available.

Throughout dry periods, vegetable gardens need extra watering. Most vegetables benefit from an inch or more of water each week, especially when they are fruiting.

During the growing season watch for insects that will eat up your crops and kill plants. If you discover a bug problem early it will be a lot easier to get rid of them, but be careful not to use pesticides once the vegetable are close to being picked unless it becomes absolutely necessary. Organic gardening is one healthy and environment-friendly option. Once you have reaped your crop, put the vegetable waste into your compost pile so that it can be recycled for next spring.
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It is important to protect your vegetable garden from wild animals looking for a tasty treat. Make sure your garden is surrounded by a fence that will keep out dogs, rabbits, and other animals. The harm done by wandering animals during one season can equal the cost of a fence. A fence also can serve as a frame for peas, beans, tomatoes, and other crops that need support.

All of this work will be payed back 10 fold with a season full of delicious and healthy veggies and fruits!

Maintaining a flower garden is even easier than planting one. Although they might make it on their own, a bag of fertilizer applied in the early spring is a good idea. Pinch back any blooms after they start to fade and keep them good and watered. To save yourself work during the next season of flower gardening, rid your garden of all debris and spread out organic nutrients like peat moss or compost. Don’t forget to turn over the soil to properly mix in the fertilizer and rake smooth when finished. If you have perennials planted be careful not to disturb their roots in this process.

Flowers are a great way to spruce up a plain area around your house, give you wonderful and relaxing hobby, and even allow you to have fresh flowers in your home each week! With a little work and planning, you can have a gorgeous yard that most would be envious of!

Typically, when people start planting their garden, they start with flowers. In addition, most people will pursue planting roses. The novice garden does not realize that roses usually take the most time and effort as compared to other flowers. With such an enormous array of flowers to choose from, it is best for the novice to start of with easy care plants and flowers.

Vegetable gardens have become quite popular too. A vegetable garden can bring a sense of pride and accomplishment when you place those fresh vegetables on your dinner table. The list of vegetable plants is endless, therefore when planning your vegetable garden choose the right vegetable for your growing climate. For instance, cool weather crops would be green beans, zucchini, and cucumbers.

Many gardeners will consider planting fruits as well. In a warm climate, you could plant watermelons, and trees such as apricots and peaches. A berry garden is also fun, planting strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. These types of berry gardens are easy to care for and take less space than a traditional vegetable garden.

Herbs are another favorite for the home garden. If you have limited space, you can grow your herbs indoors in a sunny window. The most often used herbs for cooking are basil, thyme, oregano, parsley, and cilantro. These herbs are easy to grow too.

Landscaping your yard is another form of gardening. There are different types of grasses and shrubbery to decorate your yard. Decorative rocks, ponds, and statues are also included as a form of landscape gardening. Landscaping your yard is not limited to plant life. As with a garden, your lawn and shrubbery need upkeep.

As mentioned earlier, gardening can be fun and educational for the whole family. In addition, what a delight to see the flowers bloom and harvest the vegetables. However, as with anything else, to be a successful home gardener takes work. Plants need to be weeded and watered. Do not get discouraged if the flowers are not as brilliant as expected or the beans did not do so well. Research the plant in question and then try again next planting season, eventually you will have a wonderful garden.

• Rust resistant powder coated paint weeder
• Durable heat treated heads
• Metal ring for convenient hanging storage
• Strong, lightweight steel handles adjust from 25-inches to 37-inches in length for extra reach and leverage
• Comfortable soft non-slip grip

BOND TELESCOPING WEEDER.
Strong, lightweight steel handles adjust from 25″ to 37″ for extra reach and leverage. Comfortable soft non-slip grip. Durable heat-treated heads. Rust resistant powder coated paint. Metal ring for convenient hanging storage.

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• Strong weather resistant coated steel construction
• Can be pushed directly into the ground
• Insert into a planter or use as a stand alone trellis
• Supports large vines, climbing plants and flowers
• Use two or more together to form a screen

Gardman usa r560 48-inch by 16-inch metal finial trellis

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• The perfect cart for home, nursery and farm use.
• Strong welded steel mesh deck.
• Has hand handle to pull and hitch to use with a lawn tractor.
• Holds up 600-pounds.
• Pneumatic Wheels

Black Powder Coated Steel Handle, Welded Steel Mesh Deck, Holds Up T0 600 Lbs. Perfect For Home, Nurseries And Farms. Also Includes Trailer Hitch!

• No electricity needed just the sun
• 1W solar panel
• Water lift height: 18 inches
• Water flow capacity: 210 L / h
• Cable length: 10 feet

Solar Fountain Pump

Let the sun power your garden or pond fountain…no need for extension cords!

If you want to add a fountain to your bird bath or pond, or switch from your existing electric pump, don’t call an electrician. These powerful, compact, solar-powered pumps are easy to set up yourself. Both feature a separate solar panel that you stake into the ground where sunlight is most accessible; angle can be adjusted for optimum exposure. 10 feet long cord and three spray nozzles included.

Manufactured by Instapark.

Sunterra 300309 Submersible Light Kit for Water Gardens, Three Lights with Transformer, Black

• Low Voltage Lights are fully Submersible in Water to add effects to a Pond or Water Garden
• Includes 3 Lights and 12 Colored Lenses as Options to Color the Lights in the Pond
• Includes a Transformer
• One Year Limited Warranty
• Adapter is UL Listed

People are now choosing to use light and different effects as a form of expression and decoration in their water gardens or ponds. With decorative accessories you can further personalize and enjoy you water garden. The Sunterra Submersible Light Kit allows you to illuminate and accentuate your pond at night. This light kit includes there submersible low voltage lights, a transformer and 12 color lenses. Three lights allow you to place accents in several places in the water garden. Twelve color lenses allows you to change the color and have several colors highlighted in your pond at any given time. The adaptor is UL listed and the lights have a one year warranty.

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