Every garden has its share of special needs and challenges to deal with and overcome. Sometimes these issues are known from the beginning and can be dealt with during the planning stage of your garden. Other times, you won't discover the problem until you being planting.

You'll find some great tips in this section that will help you work with some different soil conditions such as clay, sand, and rocks. There is also information on working with shade and growing a garden in dry climates.

Tips, Tricks, and Answers

The following articles are available for the 'Special-Needs Gardening' topic. Click the article''s title (shown in bold) to see the associated article.

   Building a Bottle Garden
If you like the look of a terrarium, but don't like the size you may want to look into building a bottle garden. It's not all that difficult a project as long as you follow these directions. This can even be a great project for you and your children to enjoy together.

   Building a Box Garden
Building a box garden is easy to do, and can provide you with fresh vegetables and flowers year 'round, if grown indoors. All you need are a few simple building materials, plant seedlings, and a little elbow grease to create your own box garden.

   Choosing Plants for Sandy Soil
Sandy soil is a common problem for many gardeners. Instead of beating your head against a wall, and going slightly nuts trying to "repair" the soil for certain plants, why not spend a little time picking plants out that actually like sandy soil?

   Cold Weather Mulching
Mulching is perhaps one of the best possible methods for protecting your landscape and gardens from cold weather. Mulch can not only keep your trees looking great during the cold weather, but also keep the rest of your garden looking great as well. All you really need to do is keep in mind these simple guidelines and you will have the basics of cold weather mulching down.

   Cold-Climate Gardening
Short growing seasons, high winds, heavy snows, and lack of rain are all indicative of cold-climate gardening. While challenging, you can have a beautiful garden if you live in a cold climate by researching patterns of hardiness in your habitat.

   Conserving Water in the Garden
Whether your trying to save money, have a limited supply, or you are just trying to be eco-friendly, conserving water is a great practice to get into. With just a few simple tricks, you can greatly reduce the amount of water used each week in your garden and lawn.

   Creating a Patio Garden
Do you love to garden, but don't have a lot of space to work with? Well then you may want to consider a patio garden. These gardens are perfect whether you have a small balcony, or a large and spacious patio to work with. Here are a few guidelines that you can follow when creating your own.

   Creating Plant Screens
If you are looking to add a bit of privacy to your home, but don't want an old fashioned fence or a hedge, then you may want to look at creating plant screens. It's not all that difficult, and can be a great method for improving your landscaping design. Just keep in mind a few things before you get started.

   Dealing with Clay Soil
While dealing with clay soil can prove challenging when growing a lawn, flowers, or vegetables, you can improve the condition of the soil by amending it with sand and organic matter. Here are some helpful tips for dealing with clay soil.

   Dealing with Rocky Soil
When you have rocky soil, your plants and lawn will not grow optimally, if at all. This article has handy tips and guidelines for dealing with rocky soil, and how to make it possible to grow plants even if you have the hardest bedrock in your yard.

   Drought-Resistant Plants
Plants that require frequent watering not only put a strain on local water resources, they are high maintenance. Choose drought-resistant plants that require very little care and have low-water needs.

   Gardening in Sandy Soil
Although water moves quickly through sandy soil, washing away vital nutrients and creating air pockets at the root system, you can grow flowers and vegetables in sandy soil. The key to doing so is to amend the soil to make it a friendlier environment for your plants. Add organic fertilizer, such as manure and vegetable refuse, to your sandy soil to enrich it with nutrients and make it more binding.

   Gardening on a Slope
One of the most important factors to know when gardening on a slope is that of temperatures. Temperatures can differ greatly within the slope, since warm air rises and cold air sinks, filling depressions in the land. Both warm and cold air movements cause convection and winds. Learn the microclimates of your hillside and plan accordingly when considering the types of plants you want to grow.

   Gardening with Growing Boxes
Growing boxes can be a great tool when you are gardening. Not only do they allow you to do garden in small enclosed areas, they can also help prevent a lot of problems that can be found in traditional gardens. Luckily gardening with growing boxes isn't all that difficult.

   Greenhouse Gardening
Greenhouse gardening can be a great method for producing plants and flowers year round. However, what do you need to consider for having a successful greenhouse garden? You might be surprised at what it actually takes to make greenhouse gardening a success.

   Growing Cacti in a Cool Climate
There is a vast difference between cold-climate cactus and growing cactus in a cool climate. Knowing the difference between the two principles will help you understand how to make your cactus thrive, in any growing environment.

   Harvesting Herbs
Part of the fun that comes from planting and growing herbs is eventually harvesting them. But how do you go about harvesting herbs without damaging them? It is surprisingly easy to do, as long as you follow these guidelines.

   Harvesting Seeds
Part of the fun of having a garden is harvesting and using your own seeds. Unfortunately if you have never done it before, harvesting seeds can seem a little daunting. Nothing could be further from the truth though. If you are willing to put forth a little effort, all you need to do is follow these simple steps.

   Home Hydroponic Gardening
If you are interested in doing some home gardening, but really don't have a whole lot of space you may want to consider home hydroponic gardening. This type of gardening is perfect for a home that doesn't have a whole lot of soil. Here are a few guidelines that you can use to ensure that you get off to a good start.

   Hydroponic Gardening
An alternate method to soil gardening, and used by ancient peoples, hydroponic gardening is sometimes preferred over conventional soil gardening. Because plants spend their energy growing instead of searching for nutrients to grow, hydroponic gardening yields greater produce in a shorter amount of time.

   Improving Your Garden Soil
Knowing how to improve your garden soil can go a long way in helping you to have a successful garden. There are a few methods that you can use to make your task of improving your garden soil an easy and successful one. Here are a few guidelines that you can use to ensure that you are improving your garden soil properly.

   Organic Garden
It seems like you can't turn around anymore without hearing about the impact that we have on our environment. Everyone wants to be just a little more "green" in their daily lives, and what better way to do that than in the garden? One of the best ways is through an organic garden.

   Planting Herbs and Spices in a Shaded Area
Growing herbs and spices can be a great way to get started on gardening in general, and kitchen gardening in particular. But what do you do if you only have shaded areas to work with? Planting herbs and spices in a shaded area is entirely possible, if you know which ones to plant.

   Prepping for Winter Weather
Whether you have a garden or simply a yard, there is one thing that you will need to deal with and that is winter weather. If you don't take the proper precautions you can easily find your landscaping efforts a waste come next spring. Protect your investment by prepping for winter weather while you have the time.

   Providing Proper Support for Wall Plants
If you are thinking of planting some wall plants, then you need to make sure that the plants receive the proper amount of support. Luckily, providing proper support for wall plants isn't all that difficult. Just use some (or all) of these methods to get the job done.

   Seed Garden
There is more to a seed garden than simply going out and picking up a few packets of seeds and planting them. If you are really interested in learning what makes a seed garden unique, then read on. For the truly enthusiastic gardener, this information will help you save time and money when planting season comes around.

   Understanding the Basic Soil Types
One of the keys to getting really good at gardening or landscaping is that you need to know what type of soil you are working with. The way that you do that is by understanding the basic soil types that you can find yourself working with. Once you begin understanding the basic soil types, you will find your gardening chores a whole lot easier.

   What is Bedding?
For the experienced gardener or the beginner, garden bedding can take the hassle out of horticulture. Raised garden bedding is especially useful and provides many advantages when trying to raise flowers or grow vegetables.

   Which Soil is Best for Plant Growth?
When you test your soil for pH, the kit's package instructions will recommend either adding lime to raise the alkalinity, or sulfur to lower the pH. The next step is to add nutrients by adding organic matter, such as decaying vegetation and manure, or fertilizer. Finally, periodically retest your soil and continue to amend it so that your plants will grow as best they can year after year.

   Working with Shade
Shade, while a wonderful and relaxing thing for many home, can quickly lead to the death of a garden or lawn. If you are interested in working with shade, then you need to learn how to do it properly. Otherwise, well...let's just say that you may need to do more work than you want over the year.