How to Begin Your Outdoor Garden
Maintaining a garden can be a great way to incorporate more time outside as a member of the 55+ community, and to keep yourself busy with a fun and rewarding hobby. Watching your plants grow and flourish will give you a sense of pride and accomplishment, while beautifying your home and attracting birds and butterflies.
Get Your Seedlings Started Early in the Season
If you choose to grow your own plants from seed rather than as seedlings in a nursery, you will save a lot of money as well as increase your selection of what you can grow. You can purchase specialty seed incubating kits at most hardware and garden centers, or you may find that all you need is some plastic wrap to trap warmth and moisture. By the time your seedlings put out their first set of true leaves, (which normally show up after a first pair of seedling leaves,) your plants are ready to be moved into their spot in the garden or a container on a patio.
Start by sowing your seedlings indoors in some high-quality peat moss, and keep your seedlings warm and moist to encourage germination.
Prepare Your Soil
As your seedlings grow and the weather starts to warm up, you should prepare the soil for your outdoor garden. A container garden will only require some high-quality potting soil and a pot with drainage holes, while an outdoor garden will require a little more preparation. Mark off the spot in your yard where you’d like your garden to grow, taking care to choose a spot that receives plenty of daytime sun, and is not too soggy or parched. You can till your soil either with a roto-tiller to get the job done quickly, or by hand with a simple hoe and spade. You want the soil to be loose and aerated to give the roots of your young plants a good, healthy start.
Plant Your Garden Rows
Once your seedlings are big enough to be transplanted and have spent a few afternoons acclimating to the full sun of your yard, you’re ready to begin planting. Now is the time to cull any weak, slow-growing or leggy seedlings from your bunch, leaving only the strongest and most vigorous to be planted outside. When you plant your garden rows, be sure to plant with plenty of space in between each seedling. Imagine the size of the full-grown plant when you determine your spacing and leave them with plenty of room to stretch and flourish. Your plants may have different needs for light and water, so take that into consideration when you plant as well.
Now you’re ready to enjoy and care for your garden all season long!
