Gardening Limitations

If there is one thing about gardening that is difficult to learn, is that there are always limits to what we can do. By understanding and learning what our gardening limitations are, we can often figure out ways to better improve our gardens. The reason for this is that if we know what our limitations are, we can easily figure out what is worth our time, and what is not. Here are some of the most basic things that are usually the limitations that a gardener has to work with. While this list is in no way completely comprehensive, it is a good place to start.

• Insects. One of the things that many people forget about in the garden is that there will always be insects in your garden. This is natural, and completely unavoidable. The trick does not lie in learning how to get rid of insects, but learning to identify the insects that can harm your garden. If you try to eliminate all the possible insects that you may have in your garden, not only will you waste time and money, but you can also potentially damage your plants. Remember that insects are a necessity, and to only work on getting rid of the harmful ones.
• Diseases. Every plant in your garden is potentially susceptible to diseases, and there is very little you can do about it. Frankly the best thing that you can do, is learn as much about the plants that you have, what diseases they are prone to, and how to treat them if they show up. Other than that, trying to prevent every disease in the book is impossible.
• Watering. Watering your garden can be a fairly tricky proposition, particularly in this day and age of increasing water restrictions. While there is little that you can do to change what the law may say about your watering habits, there are a few other things that you can do. For example, you can learn about recycling water, drip watering, and other systems that are more efficient, less expensive, and frankly better for your garden.
• Soil type. One of the more difficult gardening limitations that can cause problems is your soil type. While there are steps that you can take to change the drainage quality, composition, and pH levels, there is really only so much that you can do. Worst of all, some of the measures that you take are only going to be temporary in nature. If at all possible, learn what types of plants will grow in the soil that you have, and choose from those.