I'm a first-timer. Need basic garden how-to Please!?

Question

Hello and thanks for reading my question,
I have a little gardening area by my front door (only about 4 feet wide and 6 feet long) and it is just being taken over by weeds. I really want to plant some pretty flowers there but I have no idea how to go about fixing up the garden. There is some nasty old mulch and old plastic underneath so I know I would have to replace them, but I am really new at all this and would like to know where I should start. And any other garden/decorating tips for outside would be a huge help! My front/back yard looks awful and needs some love but I'm horrible at thinking of good ideas! I live in base housing so everyones yards are pretty and mines just BLAH!
Any help would be great!
Thank you! =)

Answer 1

Welcome to gardening!

I wouldn't worry about the old mulch if I were you: That will decay into some good dirt. But you will want to get rid of the plastic and weeds.

The easiest way to keep weeds from coming back- and to incidentally keep moles and gophers out of your garden- is to build a raised bed. Start by laying out several layers of newspaper (newsprint only, no gloss). And stake that down with a layer of netting or rat wire. A google search will turn up a lot of instructions for how to build the walls of your raised bed, but make sure whatever you use hasn't been treated with dangerous chemicals.

After that, start filling it with layers of mulch, grass clippings, leaves, straw, and kitchen scraps (but no meat). You may want to add lime and bonemeal too.

The people at your local nursery should be able to advise you on what will grow well in your area.

Have fun!

Answer 2

Take the plastic out and shove the mulch out into a wheelborrow, bag it and dump it. Go to a garden store and buy a "Dutch Hoe" Buy several bags of peat and top soil.

Dig up the garden and turn everything over to kill the weeds, keep digging and turning until all the green is gone. The soil should be very soft and broken up by now from shoveling. Add the peat and\top soil to increase the nutrients in the soil and dig and turn again to mix everything togethor.

If the garden is right next to the wall of your house, build your garden plot on a slope with the high end at the wall and slope it down on a 10-15 degree angle. This will draw water away from your foundation. You'll probably notice several of your neighbors have done their plots agains the house this way.

Plant your plants from the nursery. Using the Dutch Hoe twice a week, Hoe soil and pick up the the weeds out and put them in your compost.

Well worked soil that is almost as soft a feathers and regular hoeing to keep it that way is the best way to take care of weeds.

People use mulch because they think it will keep the weeds down. But there are a million small holes where water, air and a little sun can get through, mulch doesn't work. If they can get through concrete, then mulch is a walk in the park.

Good soil preperation and maintence by constant hoeing is the only thing that works. Good soil maintence through hoeing ensures you can see a weed the moment it pops above the soil. The weeds can then be removed by raking them towards you with the hoe. The Dutch hoe also puts air in your soil where nitrogen fixing bacteria can grow and put nitrogen in your soil directly from the air. Keeping the soil feather light gives you free fertilizer.

For a plot that small it would take about 10 minutes twice a week to keep the weeks out and the soil perfect and weed free.

Answer 3

Welcome to gardening!

Probably the first thing I'd do is to talk with a couple of the folks whose yard looks nice near you and see what they are doing. What they use for plants, what they use for mulch, what they use for fertilizer. Learn from them.

Certain plants do better in some areas of the country than others. Try to identify what those are and begin there.

Try to start with a blank slate in your flower beds.. get rid of all the junk and the weeds.

I usually advocate amending flower beds with commercial potting soil and mixing it into the soil that's there. This re-energizes the soil and makes it easier for you to plant. It also improves the soil for plant growth. Select your plants and put them into your new bed. Sprinkle a spoonful of osmocote fertilizer around each plant (you can buy it at garden centers). Then spread mulch around them, usually about 3" deep. Water all of this in.

You'll probably want to water a couple of times a week unless you get a lot of rain.

Patrol your beds for weeds as often as you can and make sure you pull the whole weed.. roots and all.

Gardening is a learning hobby. the more you do of it, the better and more creative you will get. You'll learn about the plants and how they grow and which ones look good together. Start small and expand your horizons as you learn. It's a wonderful hobby.. enjoy!

Answer 4

Hi...as for the front and back yards, start watering them and they will turn green, it will take a little bit of time. Once it's green, get some weed & feed and feed it. You're right, get rid of the old mulch & plastic...dig up the ground and rake out the weeds. You can add potting soil, compost and fertilizer to amend the soil. When choosing plants, take into consideration whether the garden area is in full sun, part shade, full shade and choose the appropriate plants for that area. Speak with the customer service rep when shopping and they will get you going in the right direction. Happy gardening!

Answer 5

I know exactly what you mean!! I kinda suck at gardening but I love it and am trying to get better! A few things I've learned.....1st...Before planting anything,put down the weed stopper (it comes in a black roll). I made the mistake of planting everything first then putting the mulch down and having to dig it all up and start the whole process again! But it works wonders and has helping my plants grow twice as big from keeping the moisture in the ground. You just have to cut a whole in it wherever you want your plants to go. Then top with mulch or whatever you want. Sorry I couldn't be of much help! But I hope this tip works for ya!

Answer 6

Step one: Yank the weeds, get rid of the nasty mulch, and put a fresh layer of dirt down, mixing it in with the base dirt you already have.

Step two: Find some pretty flowers that you love. Don't look at the names, but let the colors and shapes speak to you. Group them.

Step three: plant it. Best time for planting is in spring or fall.

Step four: Water it when you plant it, then every other day.

Step five: watch it grow, tend to the weeds that pop up, and see what happens.

It's all trial and error. Sometimes I get plants, put it in the ground and say to myself, what was I thinking? Then I donate it to a friend and go back for more. Good luck!

Trilli

Answer 7

Try these 2 websites they should help. Yes, get rid of the old mulch and plastic. It's usually better to start from scratch, then if you are disappointed in the results, you have no one else to blame. It's getting pretty late in the year, but you can still make a lovely garden. Since you're new to this and it's late, start simple. Ask at your local garden center( explain that you're new to gardening) about easy, fast growing flowers for your area. Don't go to Lowes or Home Depot. Go to a regular garden center with experience. They usually are very happy to help new gardeners get started. Email if I can help more.Good luck!

Answer 8

Look at some small-space landscaping sites for great ideas. It all depends on what you want, but you can select perennials and shrubs that will give you something that blooms at one point or another, so you always have flowers at different times of the year.

The mulch is very important. It keeps weeds away. But far more important is the type of soil and how you fertilize what you keep. My best tip is to visit your local nursery where experts will recommend what works best for your area and location. Besides, I promise you it will be an exciting adventure just to walk around their facilities! You'll get soooo many ideas!