Great gardening tips
Spring is finally here! It's time to ditch your winter boots for Wellies, swap your parka for your poncho and, best of all, start planning and preparing your garden for summer.
Great gardening tips: be prepared
Before you get started on your garden design or with planting, make sure you have all the proper tools and your yard and soil are ready for plants. Get your garden ready for spring by following our simple checklist of must-dos.
It's also important -- particularly if you're starting a garden at a new home or digging out some land that hasn't been used for gardening before -- to be aware of poisonous plants. If you can't recognize some common stingers, you could be in trouble!
Even if you don't encounter any unfriendly plants, your body can still pay a price for a full day down on your hands and knees. Do some great gardening stretches to keep your body from tensing up after a great day of gardening.
Great gardening tips: vegetable gardens
You can't eat much more locally than from your own backyard! If you don't have space for a small plot of land for a garden, you can still grow a cornucopia of delicious foods. Try growing these top 10 home-grown edibles in the ground or in containers.Successful container crops can sometimes be challenging because pots might not retain water as well as a full-fledged garden does. Homemakers.com offers 7 tips for great container planting to get your garden growing!
Great gardening tips: flower gardens
Forgot to plant bulbs last year? Not to worry! You can still grow an instant spring garden and prepare for next year at the same time.
You'll want to consider what you want to plant in the fall, since planting spring-blooming bulbs occurs at the end of the growing season. This summer, scope out your favourite spring flowers from bulbs and get ready to plant them in autumn.
How much do you know about flowers, anyway? Do you know the different symbolism attached to yellow and red roses? Read up on 20 flower meanings and myths and you'll have trivia to wow your friends at garden parties all summer long. You might also learn a thing or two from our fun floral facts quiz!
Great gardening tips: herb gardens
Many herbs start to lose flavour once they have gone to seed, so it's important to keep on top of them all season long, regularly clipping and using them. If you have more herbs than you know what to do with, you can preserve your herbs for use later, or for lovely homemade gifts.
Great gardening tips: beautiful yard
Adding garden furniture to your yard makes it more livable and comfortable. For a tranquil atmosphere, you might consider adding a water feature to your garden -- anything from a small fountain to a full-out pond with fish.
Bring birds and butterflies to your garden, too, with the right plants and places for them to hide. If you'd like more permanent residents, build a birdhouse suited to your favourite feathered friends.
Love a beautiful yard but hate the effort it takes to get one? Learn how to grow a gorgeous work-free garden and spend more time enjoying your yard than tending it.
Most importantly, we are able to enjoy our yards and a variety of plant life because of Mother Nature -- so help keep her happy by practising 5 earth-friendly gardening habits. You can be kind to the earth by making your own compost, too.
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