People have different reasons for wanting to start gardening. Whatever the reason though, all of these people have a few things in common.
They all like spending time outdoors in nature. They like being around and working with nature and wildlife. They like creating beautiful things. They get a kick out of growing their own fruit and vegetables. They get an even bigger kick out of nurturing a living thing. They get an even bigger kick than that out of all the endorphins they produce while gardening and the positive effect this has on their mental wellbeing.
However, many people who want to start gardening don’t actually know WHERE to start or feel to daunted to even give it a go. Fear not. Gardening doesn’t have to be daunting, just enjoyable. You don’t have to get everything right first time. Nobody does that, not even experienced gardeners! Just give it a go, learn from mistakes and keep trying. The joy you will feel when you do get it right will do wonders for your confidence and mental wellbeing.
With that said, here are a few tips on how you can get started as a beginner gardener:
- Start small. Don’t overwhelm yourself and try to do too much all at once. Start with sowing a few seeds or planting up a container or taking a few cuttings. Once you get your confidence then you can try a few more things.
- Buy a few tools. I’d say start with a few essentials. A hand fork, trowel, secateurs, gardening gloves, watering can and a trug. If you’re wanting to do bigger jobs then you may need a border fork, spade, rake and loppers.
- Check what type of soil you have. You can tell quite easily if you have clay or sandy soil by feeling it in your hand. if it feels slimy then it will be clay and a gritty feeling soil will be sand. You also need to check the Ph which can be done with a shop bought test. Once you know what soil you have, then you can start choosing plants. That’s the fun bit!
- Check which direction you garden faces and make a note of where sun and shade is throughout the day. This will help you to choose the right plants for different parts of your garden.
- Go to your local garden centre or nursery and have a look at the plants. This is a good way of seeing what sort of plants you like the look of and what colors you are drawn to. Its also a good way of experimenting with plant combinations to see what you like and what looks good together.
- Have a think about what it is you want from your garden. Do you want lots of flowers? What colours do you want? Do you want to grow veg? How do you want your garden to make you feel? What purpose do you want the garden to serve? Try to determine these things before you start buying plants so that you don’t waste money on things you don’t really want.
- Have a think about how much time you have to spend in the garden and what you’d like to do.
All that remains then is to give something a go and have fun!
If i can do it as a complete beginner, then so can you.
The possibilities are endless.