Take A Look At These Great Gardening Tips!

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You may garden alone or with others, but in many ways gardening is a team activity. By gathering the knowledge of several expert growers and putting it here, we have placed some great tips within your reach. Use these tips to create a fantastic garden or share the information with family and friends.

Gardening can be a very rewarding practice. Not only can you improve the look of the outside of your home, but you can be proud of it as well. There are plenty of tools and things to use in gardening and this can be a very rewarding activity. You can improve not only your home but your neighborhood and quite possibly start saving on groceries by growing your own food!

The fall season has arrived and the task of emptying our container gardens is at task. However, instead of storing your clay pots in a garden shed for the winter season, why not replace the summer annuals with edible fall vegetables. Having mums in your favorite clay pot signifies fall, however, consider adding alternative edible plants like leafy lettuces such as arugula, endive, bok choy and radicchio. When it is time for a quick salad, simply snip ...
... a few leaves, and you will instantly have delicious ready to eat salad.

Collecting and preserving autumn leaves is a fun gardening project
, especially for the kids. Generations of kids have used the "wax paper method" to preserve fall leaves at peak color - with a little help from Mom. Just select colorful thin leaves that don't have a high water content and place them between two sheets of wax paper. Place a cloth - like an old tea towel - on top of the waxed paper "sandwich" and have Mom slowly run a hot iron (no steam) across the cloth. Peek underneath to see if the wax paper is melting and bear down hard to get a good seal. The wax paper may seem cloudy while it is warm, but it should dry clear as it cools. Enjoy your pretty display of colorful leaves!

Try growing crops that are easy to store or store themselves. If handled properly and gently, given the right amount of time to cure, garlic, onions, sweet potatoes, squash, dry beans, or shallots will keep for a very long time in a cool, dry place. No canning or freezing required. This will ensure having fresh vegetables from the garden all winter long.

A great way to keep insects and pests at bay in your garden is to spray your plants with a dish soap and water mixture. A mixture of one quart water and one half teaspoon dish detergent will kill off those pesky parasites. Be sure to respray every fourteen days.

Make a profit off of the garden by selling micro crops. There is a huge demand for micro crops from restaurants and organic markets who are willing to pay a premium for these fresh vegetables. Specialty mushrooms, baby corn, rare herbs and other micro crops are in very high demand, and can earn a gardener upwards of fifty dollars a pound or more.

To avoid injuring yourself while gardening, be sure to do some warm-up stretches before starting your project. Most people may not think of gardening as exercise, but injuries like pulled muscles frequently occur in the garden. You should also be sure to move around and not stay in one position for a long period of time.

Make sure your plants are always evenly spaced by turning your rake or shovel handle in to a measuring stick. Simply lay a yardstick next to your shovel and copy the markings to the handle with a permanent marker. The next time you're ready to put in new plants all you'll need is your shovel.

One of the best ways to improve your garden is by mulching. The mulch deters new weeds from poking through and lowers the amount of water that evaporates from the soil.

A little extra effort can go a long way. These tips can improve your garden, dramatically or just make a tiny but important change. By introducing a fresh idea to your methods, gardening can become easier for you, as well as, a more positive experience. Impress your friends and neighbors with a healthy and lush garden.