Instead of making decisions, let's garden better for our minds. Prevent problems before they happen, maximize the effectiveness of our efforts, and use our outdoor facilities for your well-being.
Choose one from each theme to start a more thoughtful gardening experience this year.
resistance
1. Do a soil test every three years. This will help you determine what your floor needs and what it doesn't need. Excess nutrients from fertilizers end up in our water bodies and reduce water quality. It's free at soiltesting.tamu.edu.
2. Grow new herbs, vegetables, citrus or fruit and spend your time maintaining a fresh garden. Pay attention to which strains are right for you, which pests to watch out for, and which growing conditions are needed.
3. Learn to identify beneficial insects. Beneficial insects provide free pest control. If you see them in the garden, let them do their thing.
4. Avoid wastage by picking fruits and vegetables on time. If you don't plan to use the harvest, share it with friends, family, neighbors, or even your local food bank.
5. Take regular measures to prevent or reduce weeds. Monitor and shoot regularly. Catch them before they flower and set seed. Use a rake for deep-rooted weeds. Use mulch.
6. Modify Spurge. Tropical milkweed looks great most months, but harbors a protozoan parasite, Ophryocystis electrosyrrha (OE for short), that kills monarch butterflies. Learn about native milkweed that dies every year. When the leaves die, the insects also die.
7. Start small or reinvent yourself. Gardens and landscapes require time, energy and resources. Undress for a realistic interview.
skills
8. Sowing to grow crops for a long time. Sow seeds or plant seedlings in small batches within 7-21 days to avoid harvesting at the same time. Crops become easier to use, share or store.
9. Improve the soil over time by adding an inch of compost each year or spring/fall. It can be planted in soil or added as a top dressing. Compost helps sandy soils retain moisture and nutrients and helps drain clay soils.
10. Integrate local people into the existing landscape. Native plants support native wildlife. Although they are not low maintenance, many do. The Native Plant Society can help: npsot.org
11. Streamline landscape borders with wide curves to facilitate access for lawn mowers. This design saves time and energy while reducing the need for weed killers.
12. Grow vertically in a small space. It not only saves space, but also adds personality and privacy. Your back also helps when harvesting.
13. Keep equipment in good condition and use the right tool for the right job. Hand loppers cut branches up to 1 inch in diameter, shears 1 to 3 inches in diameter, and pruning saws cut branches up to 10 inches in diameter. Use with caution.
14. A lawn is an effort and a small reward for wildlife. Small steps can be taken to reduce this: widen existing beds, create new beds or consider replacing them with grass alternatives.
15. Use water meter. Submersible, drip and micro-spray irrigation bring water closer to the roots. Rain barrels collect rainwater for later use. Mulch reduces surface evaporation and keeps the soil cool.
Prosperity
16. More people are gardening for their mental health. It's good! Focus on how you feel outside, not at home or at the office. We have a lot to do in this life...let the garden center take care of you for now.
17. Add some playfulness with a special garden. Planning and planting a garden and herbs are fun, but the real beauty comes to life over tea or dinner when we reap the fruits of our labor.
18. Discovery is good; Grow something new. All-American selections are strains that have proven their worth across North America. Texas Superstars are the best of Texas. Or create your own "pick" from the nursery.
19. Attract your favorite wildlife with plants and habitat. To attract butterflies, plant a caterpillar and an adult host plant. To attract birds, plant shrubs and trees for habitat, include a water source and plants they feed on.
20. Take an in-person or online class. There are many options among educational institutions such as Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, local organizations or local community gardens. The best thing about gardeners is that they are usually willing to share their knowledge.
21. Grow a favorite plant of someone you lost. It is a fond memory that revives a part of that person. Moon flower for mother. Pink "Sunset Celebration" for Dad.
22. Gardening is a wonderful experience. We learn more from failure than success, so don't be afraid to do what needs to be done. These usually make lessons for the best stories.
23. Volunteer in the garden. Not only will this bring friendship, but it is also a great resource for learning from others. We all entered.
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