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Top 10 Lawn And Garden Care Tips
By Bridget Mwape, Fri Dec 9th
The following and garden care tips will help you get themost from your garden. 1. Different soil types have different watering needs. Loosenthe soil around plants so it can quickly absorb water andnutrients. Early morning or night is the best time for wateringto reduce evaporation. Lengthening the time between watering combined with deep, heavywatering encourages root growth while reducing top growth inlawns. This increases the root-to-shoot ratio and helps produceplants that are more resistant to wilting when exposed toinfrequent watering.
2. When choosing plants for your garden, remember crops that aresuited to your soil and climate will be more resistant toproblems. If you experiment with exotics, be prepared to givethem more care. Also, when placing plants around the home,remember as a general rule, plants with thick leaves can takelower light levels than those with thin leaves. 3. Fertilizers provide nutrients necessary for plant health andgrowth, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Test yoursoil to find out what nutrients are needed. Choose a fertilizerthat has at least one-fourth of the nitrogen in a slow-releaseform, such as sulphur-coated urea. 4. Mow frequently to chop up leaves and recycle them intothe lawn. If the leaves are too thick or matted then rake themup. 5. Keep garden beds covered with shredded leaves to minimize
therisk of soil erosion and nutrient run-off. 6. Leave the grass clippings to decompose on the lawn. This willprovide nutrients equivalent to one or two fertilizerapplications. Set mower at 2 inches to reduce water use duringhot weather. 7. Consider using natural alternatives for chemical pesticidessuch as non-detergent insecticidal soaps, garlic, hot peppersprays, used dishwater, or forceful stream of water to dislodgeinsects. Also consider using plants that naturally repel insects. 8. Organic Gardening - Since organic fertilizer and soilconditioning materials are slow working in general, they shouldbe mixed into the soil at least three weeks ahead of plantingand the soil thoroughly prepared for the seed or transplants. 9. Where animal manures are available, they are probably thebest source of fertilizer and organic matter for the organicgardener. Use manure which has been aged for at least 30 days,or composted. 10. Weeds are easy to control when they are small. Shallowcultivation and hoeing are advised in order to reduce damage tothe root system. About the author:Bridget Mwape writes for the Garden Center web site at http://www.garden-center.org.uk/ and also contributes articles to the PlumbingSupplies web site at: http://www.plumbing-supplies-uk.co.uk/
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