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&What am I doing? Seeds, cuttings, fertilizer, good soil, dirt....?,& you may be thinking this if you don't know much about gardening. It is important you know how to garden before trying to tackle your own gardening project. This article will provide you with the information you need, if you want to have the garden of your dreams!



Don't underestimate perennials in making your gardening life easier. Perennials will continue to come back every year and will only require minimal maintenance such as weeding and fertilizing. You'll save time by not having to plant and care for seedlings or starts. Different perennials will perform better in different climates, but sorrel greens and horseradish should work almost anywhere.



If your flowers leaves are curling, this probably means they are not getting enough nutrients. The soil might not be rich enough, or some insects might be stealing the nutrients from your flowers. Look for eggs or bugs around the roots of your plants. Buy insecticide or additional nutrients for your plants.



If you are getting very small fruit or flower yields, make sure to check the pH level of the soil. If the pH level is to high or too low, it can affect the amount of nutrients that your plants can absorb. Plants need different nutrients at different stages of their lives to be healthy, successful and to bear fruit.



Always make sure to mow your lawn to the appropriate length, always making sure that the cut is not too close. If you leave your grass kind of high, your roots will be deeper and your lawn will be stronger and not dry out. If you have short grass, you will have short roots and you will dry out your grass.



Consider using organic fertilizers in your garden. These are safer than chemical fertilizers, which can build up salts in the ground over time. The salts restrict the ability of the plants to get water and nutrients from the soil. They can also kill helpful earthworms and microorganisms which eat thatch.



As you plan your garden this year, change the layout so that it's different from where the various plants were located last year. For example, place your tomatoes in the part of the garden where the corn grew last season. This rotation of crops will help keep your soil from becoming depleted of the nutrients needed by each type of vegetable.



Do you want fresh mint leaves without having to worry about them growing too quickly? Stunt their growth a little by planting your mint into a garden container or large pot instead. This container can be placed in the soil if you prefer the look of mint in your garden, and it will continue to contain the roots of your mint and prevent it from taking over.



It is important to remember to apply sunscreen to the back of your neck as well as your ears when you are gardening. Many people focus on their face, hands and arms when they are applying sun block before going outside to do their gardening. Your ears and the back of your neck will get a lot of sun exposure, so it is important to protect them too.



Grow sweet basil easily. Basil is an annual herb, and very sensitive to cold, so try growing it in a pot in a sunny kitchen window. Continuous harvesting of the plant encourages growth so be sure to pick the top leaves constantly. It can be grown in the garden, but beware of lower night-time temperatures as this will cause the entire plant to wilt or even die.



Plastic garden labels can be used over and over again, by following this easy way to remove names written with permanent marker. Just dampen a small piece of cloth with rubbing http://pubs.ext.vt.edu/430/430-457/430-457.html and wipe firmly over the name to remove it. This way you won't have to buy a brand new bag of garden labels when you only need one or two.



Keep an eye on your lilies. Unfortunately, lilies are prone to virus disease, such as tree limb removal . If you can, purchase bulbs that are guaranteed 'virus-free'. During the growing season, keep a sharp look out for any aphids, as they spread the disease. Make sure to spray with insecticidals soap at the very first sign of them.



One way to improve the output of your organic garden is to prune the non-fruiting branches of your plants. Once the growing season is well underway and you can see where your fruits and vegetables are growing, eliminate stems and branches that are not carrying any fruit. This helps your plants focus their efforts on the fruit-bearing branches.






<img src="http://blog.tcgardens.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/grape-pruning-diagram.jpg" />

Attract positive bugs to your garden. Bugs like lady-bugs actually hunt natural predators to your plants; aphids and caterpillars are just some of the nasty critters that can go through a garden and eat the leaves of the plants. Lady bugs are the natural predators to such pests and help the growth of a good healthy garden by consuming pests.



When planting your tomatoes in your organic garden, you should always make sure that you stake the tomato plants as high as you possibly can when you are transplanting them. The reason is because doing this will eliminate the roots of the plants from being damaged during the transplanting process.



The tips provided in this article can make your gardening experience a far more enjoyable and less stressful one. The positive aspects of gardening are many and maintaining a garden can be far simpler than one might think. Should you encounter issues during your gardening, give a look at the advice from this article and try some out.