A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Home Gardening

Written by Chip Glennon for GLENNON REAL ESTATE EXPERTS

A simple garden with hand tools

Gardening is a terrific hobby on so many levels. It provides physical activity for those of any age, and a wonderful learning experience for younger growers. Gardeners stay better connected to nature and enjoy fresh air more often. The key to true enjoyment of a garden is deciding on your goal and reasons for wanting one. Is it to have a sense of accomplishment or have fresh flowers? Is it to grow your own fruits or vegetables? Perhaps it’s to have a hobby you can share with other family members or friends.

Most limit their thinking to either flower or vegetable gardens when in fact, there are so many more types of gardens to consider. In this Complete Beginner’s Guide to Home Gardening, we’ll explore your options in planning a garden and address the various factors that should be considered before making a choice and diving in. We’ll discuss the various elements that can affect a garden as well as the must-have and nice-to-have gardening tools for beginners. Our guide will explain the critical role of good soil and the role it plays in properly caring for a home garden and how to maintain it. Finally, this guide will take you through the harvesting and transplanting processes and how to best prepare your garden for the next growing season.

Green thumbs are not given, they are earned. If you are ready to start a garden for your home, this guide will help you approach it with the greatest opportunity for success.

No matter your age or experience, gardening is a hobby that will pay dividends for as long as you care to enjoy it. Get all of your questions answered in this Complete Beginner’s Guide to Home Gardening.

Common Types of Gardens

Most view planting a home garden as either a clear choice between vegetable or flower gardens. This is understandable. Most gardens are either planted to make a home look better with colorful flowers and native plants, or to produce fruits or vegetables for personal consumption. We will certainly explore these two garden choices in-depth, but homeowners should also be aware that there are other choices for a personal garden such as herb gardens, container gardens, butterfly and hummingbird gardens, moon gardens and specialty gardens. Differing types of gardens may provide the benefits you seek if one type doesn’t. Keep in mind your choices are not limited and you may decide upon two or three of these. This section explores the types of gardens to choose from so gardeners can make a choice that will provide the greatest rewards for their goals.

Fruit, Vegetable & Herb Gardens

When most consider planting a backyard garden, these are the types most frequently considered. Fruit, vegetable and herb gardens not only provide the satisfaction of planting and growing, like other gardens do, but they also provide the added value of producing fresh snacks, side dishes, and seasonings. One of the biggest payoffs of this type of gardening is the fresh smells and tastes a home garden will bring to your kitchen that store-bought fruits and vegetables simply can’t match. These types of gardens are generally planted in rows and in sections based on the variety and types of plants grown. The type of plants grown will be somewhat limited by the location, climate, season and type of soil, but gardeners will have a wide choice of plants to grow no matter where they live. Popular fruit plants include strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, and watermelon. Herb gardens often include basil, parsley, sage, thyme, rosemary, dill, cilantro, and others. Depending on available space, you may want to include tomatoes, Brussels sprouts, bell peppers, broccoli, peas, beans, beets, carrots, and a number of leafy greens. When planting fruits, vegetables, and herbs, space them for full growth and to provide enough space for you to water, weed, fertilize and eventually harvest. This means knowing whether what is being planted will grow up, out or around where you plant it. Ideally, gardeners don’t want to have to transplant growing plants prior to harvest. It can be difficult added work and often harms the plant or roots in the process.

Container Gardens

Those who don’t have a backyard or are limited in outdoor space can still enjoy gardening by planting a container garden. A container garden grows plants in pots or other containers that can be placed on a patio, balcony or even indoors. Those who live in a condo or apartment in the city are often surprised at how productive and rewarding a container garden can be. Start by deciding what types of plants you would like to grow. If you are looking to add some color, choose a flower garden grown in appealing containers. A container herb garden is popular in small spaces due to the variety of plants you can still grow in a confined area. Container gardens are also a popular choice for fruits and vegetables. Tomatoes, strawberries, peppers and more can be grown in abundance in containers. Make sure your containers are either in a position to get sufficient sunlight or at least can be moved to areas where sunlight is plentiful. When planting a container garden of any form it is important to provide containers of sufficient size so the plants do not become “root bound” in the container. So a little bit of research on specific plant varieties will help your likelihood of long-term success. It is also critical that plants not be over-watered and have proper drainage to avoid roots from rotting. And remember, containers don’t just have to sit at ground level. In the case of herb gardens, a kitchen or dining room window is a superb area. Some indoor growers have even had success with growing plants in hanging containers, especially vine-like plants like strawberries.

Butterfly and Hummingbird Gardens

Butterfly and hummingbird gardens are exactly as the name implies; gardens that attract butterflies and hummingbirds. These gardens are exceptionally rewarding because they provide the general benefits of the garden, while also attracting some of nature’s most interesting and beautiful creatures. In addition, plants in a butterfly and hummingbird garden generally are tall and colourful, although ground flowers can also attract a wide variety of butterfly species. Properly planned, a butterfly and hummingbird garden can provide hours of natural, relaxing entertainment and contentment as well as education for younger gardeners.

Plants that attract butterflies include:

• Butterfly Bush
• Coneflower
• Phlox
• Lantana
• Black-eyed Susan
• Blazing Star Flowers
• Pot Marigolds
• Aster

To attract hummingbirds, consider plants with lots of nectar. These include varieties such as:

• Red Cardinal Flower
• Bee Balm
• Sage
• Rhododendron
• Columbine
• Lupine
• Trumpet Honeysuckle
• Lily
• Trumpet Vine

Other good ways to attract visitors to your butterfly and hummingbird garden is to provide some sort of shelter and water. A shelter may be as simple as planting the garden behind some bushes or near a tree. You could also hang artificial hummingbird houses and feeders that you can buy at the store, online or even make yourself. The area should have some form of water like a birdbath, fountain or pool as well.

Since most of the flowers in a hummingbird and butterfly garden are grown from seeds, it is particularly rewarding to experience your efforts growing into place. It’s hard not to feel a sense of joy and accomplishment when your first hummingbird or butterfly pays a visit.

Specialty Gardens

Specialty gardens are inspired from a certain era, landscape or traditions of a certain country. It is not only an opportunity to plant a garden with natural characteristics in mind, but it adds another layer to learning in the gardening process. Here are some types of specialty gardens and the plants that can contribute to their authenticity.

• Japanese Gardens – These often include some sort of water feature like a small waterfall and/or pool. Moss and ferns can be placed near the water. A small Japanese Maple Tree is a nice way to add some shade with azaleas and rhododendrons along the ground. Hedges like Japanese barberry can serve as an excellent border plant. Japanese holly and irises are also often used in these types of gardens. A large Japanese garden is a perfect location for a pagoda.
• English Garden – Manicured bushes and bulbed flowers are a common feature in English Gardens. Phlox, hibiscus, hydrangea plants can be added as well. Perhaps on the most favored flowers in an English Garden is one of a variety of rose bushes that can be planted, but these can be particularly tricky for beginners.
• Mediterranean – Those who live in a more moderate or temperate climate may consider a Mediterranean Garden to include grapes, figs, flowering vines, palms, and even bamboo. Colors can be added with sedum, blanket flower, coreopsis, and even sunflower. Large potted plants in large vases can also add texture.

Other specialty gardens include German Gardens, French Gardens, Chinese Gardens, and even Victorian Era Gardens. Beginners can start with a simpler approach and add plants and decorative items as skills improve.

Moon Gardens

For those who enjoy, or want to enjoy, their outdoor space a bit more in the evenings should consider a moon garden. This is a garden that is meant to be at its best after the sun goes down and the moon shines. It will typically have plants that bloom in the moonlight, give off their fragrant aromas in the evening and have textures that are particularly attractive at night.

Light blooming plants popular in moon gardens include:

• Moonflower
• Petunia
• Cleome
• Nicotiana
• Brugmansia
• Night-blooming jasmine
• Mock orange

Choosing just the right location is important when planting a moon garden. Select a spot where it is easy to enjoy your efforts and shows best in the evening. A moon garden can be a simple bed of flowers or an elaborate garden complete with a bench or swing to enjoy evenings. It is an unusual, fun, and more unique choice when deciding on a garden and is worth showing off to friends and family.

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