Don’t Let a Relaxing Habit Become a Painful Nuisance

Speak to anyone who does a lot of gardening and they will all tell you the same thing – they took it up for relaxation and they now are completely hooked on getting things to grow bigger, brighter, tastier and better overall. It is utterly undeniable that people enjoy the serenity of a little light gardening – indeed it is with good reason that some organisations refer to an employee who is seeing out the remainder of their contract at home as being on “gardening leave”. Having the time and the inclination to do some gardening will allow you to put things in place that will look great and do you good for years to come. But it can come at a price.

Whenever you are in the garden it is important to make sure that you are not putting an excess of strain on the body parts that are most used in gardening. While the process inevitably involves a lot of crouching and bending, it is utterly essential that you follow the old maxim “bend with the knees and not with the back”. It would be bitterly ironic if you took up gardening to have a little bit of rest and relaxation, only to throw out your back early on. Yet this is something that happens to a lot of us, because an inexperienced gardener will not be as aware of the pitfalls as a green-fingered old hand.

Your garden is for relaxing in, more than anything else. So when you are out doing a bit of work, make sure that you do not forget to take a rest every once in a while. Putting strain on your back or your knees for a prolonged period will not strengthen them – it could lead to quite a nasty injury if you are not careful. Having a cold drink every so often will refresh you and give you the energy to take on the longer jobs – and will take the strain of the parts that need resting. After all, you don’t want someone to ask how you got your injury and you have to tell them “gardening injury”.

Don’t Have a Garden? You Can Still Garden.

Anyone can garden. That may sound like a crazy thing to say when so many of us live in accommodation that doesn’t even have access to a garden, but there are still options available to anyone who wishes to plant a few things, watch them grow and harvest them when the need arises. It does not depend on having a patch of land attached to your home, no matter what the size of accommodation you live in. You can still garden as long as you have the meteorological conditions in which to do it. And for most of us, if not all, that is the case – even if we live in a third floor apartment.

Have you got a window? Yes? There you go, that is all you need in order to start. You will need to add a window box, but they are far from expensive and you can even make one yourself with some wood, some soil and a few rudimentary tools. Then you just need some seeds or seedlings, and you’re away. Natural light is not a problem, so all you need to do is water your plants regularly and make sure the soil has all the nutrients it needs. If that is not naturally the case – and good soil is usually available cheaply from any good garden centre – then you can buy plant food to give it that extra boost. No problem.

If you want to take things further, there are many areas of land given over to allotments. An allotment is a small spot of land that can be used to cultivate plants. As long as you are not using them for the growing of anything illegal, you are generally free to use them for any purpose that you see fit. They are generally quite affordable, and they allow more freedom and space than a window box or something similar. They allow you to learn the principles of gardening without having to move heaven and earth, and they are also a relaxing haven away from the cut and thrust of everyday life. See? Anyone can garden.

The Greenhouse Effect – No, Not That One

Part of the problem with gardening in the western world is that our climate is often very changeable and it can be hard to second guess the conditions from week to week. Think of the hardy crops that are often destroyed by inclement weather or a lack of rain in any given year. Then think of how much less “hardy” a garden variety plant will be. It is not difficult to see why you will face problems if the weather for the months when your preferred plants should be growing turns out not to be what you were expecting. It’s disappointing when it happens, but there is no doubting that it does happen.

One solution that is certain to work is a greenhouse. OK, greenhouses are not cheap. So they are pretty much out of the question if you do not feel that you have the money to spend on getting perfect conditions for your gardening. But they are also not hideously expensive, particularly as there are so many different sizes of greenhouse. Are you a gardening fanatic with money to spend? Go for a big greenhouse and fill it with all sorts of different things? Do you specialise in a few things which are dependent on the correct elements? A smaller greenhouse will suffice perfectly. It won’t cost the earth, and it makes gardening a heck of a lot less hassle.

The advantage that a greenhouse has is that inside one, you control the elements. If you need it to be a certain temperature, then you set it to that temperature. If you need a certain amount of light, you can hook up artificial lights. Although they may not be the perfect substitute for direct sunlight, they are a whole lot better than no light at all. If you have a variety of plants which all need different levels of light and heat, then you can partition areas off for each separate section of your gardening repertoire. The great thing about having a greenhouse is that they give you an element of control that you cannot have over the outdoor climate, unless you are Mother Nature. And if you are, you don’t need this advice anyway.

If You Feed It, It Will Grow

Only the most naïve of gardeners will plant something in their yard and then leave it imagining that their work is done. It is important to keep an eye on things, because without the best conditions in which to grow, your plants will never turn out how you hoped they would. All that you need to grow most plants is freely available. Water, soil and sunlight. In the main, we all have these ingredients to use free of charge. But to grow well they are going to need a little bit more than that. Some forethought in where to position them so that they get enough direct sunlight is essential – and, once again, free of charge. But there are some items that you will need to purchase.

Decent gardening equipment is very affordable these days and, if taken care of, is also very durable. As long as it is fit for purpose – and a quick trawl of the Internet will give you some idea of which brand names to look out for – then you have that covered as well. Then it becomes a matter of how you can control conditions. Now, you cannot control the weather and you cannot move your garden around to catch the light. But what you certainly can do is see to it that your plants have the best soil in which to thrive. What you will need in order to bring this about is good fertilizer. This can be bought, or it can be made. As different plants need nutrients in different amounts, you will be well served by researching fertilizers.

Lots of things that you will generaly just throw away without giving a second thought work very well in order to fertilize your plants. Depending on what you are growing, you may find that something you have been disposing of in your weekly garbage collection would actually work as well as – or better than – expensively purchased fertiliser. If you have a spare garbage can or similar, it may even be worth making your own compost. Just make sure that it is covered when not in use, because compost does have a tendency to smell a little bit ripe. Whatever you are growing, though, compost may just be the very thing you need to make it grow bigger, better and stronger.

What is In This Season?

If you have spent time really reading the menu when you go to a restaurant, then you will be familiar with the words “Seasonal Vegetables”. It is a phrase that is often used, and for many people, more than anything it conjures up images of whatever veg they have on the plate with their Christmas roast. It’s strange but true – people do not stop and think about meanings like you might think they do. Of course seasonal vegetables are actually whatever happens to be thriving in the gardens and allotments at the time. Depending on what time of the year it is, this can vary quite a bit. Some vegetables, like cauliflower and broccoli, thrive all year round, although they are particularly good in more temperate climates.

Brussel Sprouts do particularly well in the first three months of the year, for example. Although unpopular with almost every child in the world, they are an excellent source of vitamins and minerals. And in some countries they are part of the traditional Christmas dinner. This is more the case in colder climates, when temperatures get lower earlier. Some veg, however, thrives a lot better in the summer months. If you want to grow peppers, the best time is from July onwards. They will still grow as late as December, but they will get the start they need if planted in summer. For green peppers, start in July, and for chili peppers it is fine to start a month later.

With the correct information to hand – and it is easy to find it on the Internet – you will find that along with the all-year-round standby veg you can grow, there are seasonable vegetables that reach their peak time in each season – meaning that you can have an excellent variety of fruit and veg all the year around, eating it when it is at its finest and getting a balanced, varied diet packed with the nutrients you need for energy, vitality and happiness. It really is worth the effort, and you will get a real sense of achievement from dishing up – and eating – a meal that you have grown and cooked yourself.

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