Deciding on What to Plant

Written by Lee Wyatt (last updated July 29, 2022)

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Have you ever noticed that deciding on what to plant can be perhaps one of the most difficult choices to make in gardening? It really doesn't matter if you are planting flowers, vegetables, fruits, trees, or something else entirely. Eventually you will need to make your final decision. To make the process as easy as possible, all you really need to do is answer a few simple questions. Write your answers to the following questions on a separate piece of paper, and by the end you will have the guidelines you need to make the decisions on which plants you should be planting.

  • How much time will you spend gardening? Just how much time exactly are you planning on devoting to your new garden? If you don't' plan on spending all day, every day puttering around outside, then you may want to choose plants that are as low maintenance as possible. The more time that you are willing to spend outside, then you can increase the difficulty level of your plants.
  • What is your gardening budget? Not all plants will cost the same to purchase and care for. This means that you will need to decide prior to starting your planting how much you are willing to spend not only on the plants themselves, but the care necessary for each plant. This budget should also include any tools, fertilizers, and pesticides that you will be using.
  • What are the growing conditions in your area? Prior to purchasing any plants be sure that you know what the specific growing conditions in your immediate area are like. Where does the sun travel through your yard? What areas are the shadiest? How will the trees and houses around you affect things like wind and rain? How wet and dry does your yard get?
  • What look do you want? There are several different kinds of gardens that you could end up going for, and each will require different kinds of plants if you want it to be a success. For example, a formal garden will often have different kinds of plants in it than a vegetable garden, or even a country garden.
  • What is the style in your region? You don't want to choose a garden that will look out of place for the region that you live in. In many ways by choosing a garden style that doesn't go well with the area you live in you can dramatically increase your workload. For example, try imagining the work it would take to create a lush English Cottage Garden in the middle of the Arizona deserts? Probably would require a lot of expense and work, don't you think?

Author Bio

Lee Wyatt

Contributor of numerous Tips.Net articles, Lee Wyatt is quickly becoming a regular "Jack of all trades." He is currently an independent contractor specializing in writing and editing. Contact him today for all of your writing and editing needs! Click here to contact. ...

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What is two more than 7?

2012-01-02 17:06:00

Avid Gardener

Organic gardening is truly the way to go. From compost to eggshells, to banana peels and on and on. Once these items are applied to the soil during the fall and winter months, as the winter rains come, they all in unison dissipate and bring about what we call Texas gold. You can't have a more healthier soil full of good bacteria and organisms without organic gardening. Happy New Year and be thankful for another year of getting dirty in the garden.


2012-01-02 13:28:24

KEN

I will be starting soon to plan my garden for this year. First,I know I want to change direction of plant rows.I also want to enlarge space for more plantings. I think by using vegetable scraps, egg shells, coffee grounds mulched leaves over entire garden during winter will help with feeding the soil and not discarding them.I have learned a better way to trellis my beans and tomatoes. Long stakes in a row and wire run horizantal.Trying different methods each year. But first, I am getting my soil tested to find out what its missing.My root crops, let me down, wont produce well. Happy gargening Ken


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