Nina Greene - Gardening Basics for Beginners

Gardening Basics for Beginners

Gardening Basics for Beginners Series

Nina Greene

Copyright 2014 by Speedy Publishing LLC

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed Attention: Permissions Coordinator, at the address below.

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-- 1st edition

Manufactured in the United States of America

PUBLISHERS NOTES

Disclaimer

This publication is intended to provide helpful and informative material. It is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any health problem or condition, nor is intended to replace the advice of a physician. No action should be taken solely on the contents of this book. Always consult your physician or qualified health-care professional on any matters regarding your health and before adopting any suggestions in this book or drawing inferences from it.

The author and publisher specifically disclaim all responsibility for any liability, loss or risk, personal or otherwise, which is incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, from the use or application of any contents of this book.

Any and all product names referenced within this book are the trademarks of their respective owners. None of these owners have sponsored, authorized, endorsed, or approved this book.

Always read all information provided by the manufacturers product labels before using their products. The author and publisher are not responsible for claims made by manufacturers.

Digital Edition 2014

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN IN THIS BOOK

How This Book Will Help You and Why

Want to start a garden, but don't know how? Tried gardening in the past, but didn't get good results? Gardening Basics for Beginners gives you the information you need to successfully and confidently plant and grow a thriving garden. With this book, you'll receive expert advice on gardening basics, such as:

• choosing your garden's location

• prepping your garden site

• picking the right tools and supplies

• navigating a garden center to make the most of your shopping experience

Of course, you'll want to choose the right kind of plants for your location and climate. But the wealth of information you'll find on various packets, labels, and zone maps can be confusing. In Gardening Basics for Beginners , you'll learn how to read

• seed packets

• plant tags

• hardiness zone maps

• fertilizer labels

No matter your previous gardening experience, Gardening Basics for Beginners arms you with the knowledge to explore a variety of plant types, including:

• annuals

• perennials

• bulbs

• trees

• shrubs

• fruits and vegetables

Starting a home garden can be daunting, but with this beginner's guide you'll have the basic information you need to plan your garden, correctly water your plants, and improve your garden's soil for years to come. Now you can begin to grow as a gardener, get dirty and have some fun!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Nina Greene grew up a country kid in the foothills of Northern California and acquired her love for the outdoors, gardening and landscaping from her father. Forty-plus years later, Nina still resides in Nor Cal and tends to her organic garden that provides fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs for family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and occasional wildlife. Ninas Gardening Basics for Beginners Series is designed to help future garden enthusiasts get their hands dirty without feeling overwhelmed.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DEDICATION

This book is dedicated to my Dad who taught me everything about gardening and growing my own food.

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Gardening is one of the most popular hobbies enjoyed by people around the world. Maintaining a garden, regardless of its size, is a relaxing and rewarding hobby. Gardening has been found effective in relieving stress and contributing to maintaining physical, mental and emotional health. Gardening is a productive way to spend some time outdoors and can also produce crops that provide healthy food and nourishment for you and your family.

The best advice for beginning gardeners is to start small. This will give you an opportunity to try out your green thumb. If you determine you enjoy gardening you can always expand the size of your garden. Just remember that as your garden grows so does the amount of time and work it will require.

Every single garden topic and tip would be impossible to put into one book. The goal of this book, Gardening Basics for Beginners, is to give new gardeners a very basic and general overview on how to successfully and confidently plant and grow a thriving garden.

CHAPTER 2: CHOOSING YOUR GARDENS LOCATION

Location, location, location! Many things in life are all about location and gardens are no exception to this rule. If your options are limited, you will have to make do and work with what you have.

The placement of a garden should be conveniently located in your yard. Gardens are more likely to be enjoyed and tended to if they are in the immediate vicinity of your house, patio, setting area, etc., and are easily accessible yet not interfering with foot traffic.

If possible, stay away from large trees that will drop leaves and may alter your soil and deplete the water and nutrients from your plants. If you are not interested in growing plants that thrive in the shade or grow vertically, such as ivy or certain vegetables, then stay at least three feet from fences or buildings. Avoid areas that have rocky soil, steep slopes, or standing water. A garden site with good drainage will reduce disease and keep your soil from becoming waterlogged which will result in your plants struggling to survive. A garden location with good soil is a plus but not crucial as soil can always be improved as we will explore in Chapter 11.

If your circumstances allow it, let the sun determine your gardens location. Your goal is to get the most sunlight distributed as evenly as possible for as long as possible throughout the day. Poorly distributed light may result in lopsided growth of your gardens plants.

A lot of plants, fruits and vegetables need at least six hours of sunlight. The ideal garden location will have southern exposure with your rows of vegetables, plants and flowers running north to south. This will give your garden the suns warmth all morning on the eastern side and rays all afternoon on the western side.