subject: Gardening Calendar [print this page] Gardening Calendar Gardening Calendar
When taking care of a variety of plants in a seedbed around your home, it is often helpful to keep a feeding and watering schedule for your garden, what is also called a gardening calendar. Whether it's petunias or other kinds of flowers, and various fruits and vegetables, you should keep an outlook for how often each plant needs to be fed with the appropriate fertilizer and plant food, as well as when to water them according to their individual needs. Nature takes care of some of this. A good majority of the water and moisture your plants need will come from regular downpours of rain, but extra water should be applied as needed, particularly during dry seasons. When you buy fertilizer and plant food at the store, the packaging will usually tell you what kinds of plants it will help to nourish, and many brands have schedules on the packaging as well for an added convenience. Even so, it is often beneficial to create your own schedule, especially if you live in a particularly warm or cold climate, or you are growing a huge variety of different plants. For example, most fruits and vegetables, such as tomatoes, carrots, and peas, take approximately fifty days or more to develop the edible portions of the plant, but this can vary. Creating a chart with each variety of plant and the different feeding and watering times, and a checklist to help you verify when you've completed your tasks, will help you keep things organized. Some tasks need only be done on a monthly basis.
A good gardening calendar will have you doing different things for your garden during different months. In July, for instance, this is a huge growing season for your garden, so the main thing to keep watch for during this month is making sure your plants have enough water so they won't wilt, wither or die. If you have any container plants, or potted plants, this is especially so. In the earlier months, you may want to pinch back any plants that are growing too big too rapidly, such as certain orchids and flower bushes. This means gently cutting outgrowths from the stems that are getting too big for the plant. Doing this will make the plant more conducive to continued growth. If you have any other plants to add to your garden, June is a good month to do so. This would include any young potted plants that you have been nurturing as they grow. Now is a good time to transplant them. Having a schedule such as this will help ensure the success of your garden throughout the growing season. Certainly, if you own a farmer's market or depend on your crops for your livelihood, keeping a regular feeding and watering schedule will be a necessity. Whether for commercial purposes or for your own enjoyment, however, your garden will fare better if you are able to maintain consistency in both the frequency and the amount of feeding and watering that all the plants in your garden receive.
