4 Most Common Mistakes in Gardening
When it comes to gardening, it’s only normal to make mistakes, but some blunders can be disastrous for your garden. These errors may appear insignificant at first, but if you’re not vigilant, they can be costly.
Mistake #1: Over watering
Over watering is an error that I see all the time. I also make the same mistake, but I don’t see them for as long. We say water when the soil is dry, and if the soil is still moist, you might be over watering.
Mistake #2: Under watering
Under watering is when you only fill half of the hole, or the entire container may be under watered. This mistake might not appear to be a mistake, until it’s too late.
Mistake #3: Under fertilizing
Under fertilizing refers to giving more fertilizer to your plants than they need. The plant needs the nutrients to grow, but you don’t. This is a mistake that can easily cost you a lot of time and money.
Mistake #4: Planting too early
Planting too early is when you put in plants before they are ready to grow, or the plants just came out of their winter dormancy. They need time to get stronger, and healthier. We say plant when they are ready to grow, and if they have been over watered or under fertilized, you will have to plant when they are ready.
Over watering happens when you water a plant when it is not yet ripe, or a plant that has been fertilized is not ready to grow. Under watering happens when you don’t water enough when the soil is dry, or when you fertilize them when they are not ready to grow. Under fertilizing happens when you fertilize them too early, and they don’t grow. They are both mistakes that are easy to make, and costly to correct.
What happens when you do these mistakes? Over watering kills plants. Over fertilizing gives you plants that don’t grow, or give you plants that die. Under fertilizing allows the plants to grow, but they are weak and die. Neither of these mistakes is fun, so it’s best to avoid them at all costs.
Over watering happens when you put too much water in the hole, and the plant doesn’t drown, and in doing so, it damages the plants roots. When plants are submerged in water, the soil underneath the root ball of the plant is also lost, so it has to relearn how to take up water from the ground. If you fertilize the plant, it will grow, but at the expense of leaving it unable to draw nutrients from the soil. If you fertilize the plant too early, and it doesn’t grow, then you have created a weak plant.
As you don’t realize it, you’ve been overwatering, and when the earth dries up, the water drains away, leaving the plant stranded. Because the plant believes the earth is dry and the fertilizer is still in the leaves, over fertilization occurs when fertilizer runs off the leaves and into the soil. When you fertilize a plant too often, it doesn’t grow, and you overwater it. The soil then becomes starved for nutrients, and the plant can’t draw nutrients from the soil.
When a plant or tree is in danger of being over watered, you may notice the top of the plant begins to discolor, and become bloated, or you may notice the leaves droop, and start to wilt. It may also be prone to a fungal disease called Lasagna blight.
If you notice a thin layer of water on the leaves, then you need to water the plant more frequently. This happens when the plant is over watered, and the soil has become too dry for the plant to draw water from.
Also if you fertilize the plant too early, it will have to relearn how to draw up nutrients from the soil. If you fertilize the plant too late, it will not be able to draw up nutrients from the soil, because it’s dried out, so it cannot grow.
Over fertilizing also means the plant will not be able to draw up nutrients from the soil, and will not be able to draw up nutrients for the plant to use. You need to feed the plant, but not too much. Once the plant has been fertilized, only add nutrients at a slow rate until the plant is able to draw up nutrients easily. It will be able to draw up nutrients easily, and the plant will be able to fight fungus, and other diseases better.
If you notice the plant becoming stunted, and you can see the soil starting to crumble under the weight of the plant, then it needs to be watered more often. The soil is becoming too compacted for the plant to draw nutrients from, and the plant is succumbing to rot. The plant becomes vulnerable to diseases, and fungus, and the foliage and roots begin to fall off the plant. It may even turn colors. If the plant is also succumbing to root rot, you will notice that the plant is beginning to fall apart, the roots are falling out, and the plant is not able to draw nutrients from the soil. The plant becomes too big for the space that the root system has become established in, and the plant cannot draw up nutrients from the soil.
If you notice the leaves are turning yellow, and just sitting there, without any ability to break up the debris, or even to let any air into the soil, then you will need to prune the plant back. Pruning encourages the plant to draw up nutrients and to grow. Also, pruning promotes flowering. Pruning is necessary for any plant that is producing flowers. Even if you don’t prune, your plants can still do well without fertilizing too often, and you should use a fertilizer sparingly, and as needed, to keep your plant producing more flowers.
Planting the seeds is one way to make your garden grow. You can also use the seeds that you purchase from your nursery. The seeds are the easiest, and most reliable way to get a healthy garden. The most common way to grow your plants is by division. But remember, seeds that have been purchased from a nursery are usually from a seed pod that is still developing, therefore, the resulting plants will be weaker and may not do as well as plants that have been started from plants already well-established.
