Moving can be stressful, especially when it comes to making your new place feel like a home, but starting a garden is a wonderful way to spruce up any house. It may feel daunting at first, but gardening can be highly therapeutic and rewarding! Here are some tips to get you going on a new garden.
Choosing the Right Starting Point
When creating a garden from scratch, it is important to not overwhelm yourself – don’t go for a separate vegetable, herb, and flower garden at once. Try picking one option that you like most and working on that first. If you feel you must have more than one category in your garden, try picking plants that have similar maintenance schedules – such as flowers that bloom around the same time of the year, or vegetables and herbs that grow at similar rates.
And remember, just because your garden doesn’t have multiple elements from the get-go doesn’t mean it has to be boring! You can always take things to the next level by adding some cute decorations like birdbaths or garden gnomes, and once you are happy with your progress and have picked up on a few skills, you can work on adding more categories!
Preparing the Soil
Since your garden’s soil is its (literal) foundation, you will need to dedicate quite some time and attention to it. Unhealthy soil breeds unhealthy plants with nutritional problems and retarded growth.
Begin by clearing the grass off of your chosen spot. The quickest way to do this is to remove the sod itself using a spade – pro tip: use this sod to compost later on because composting does wonders for any garden! You could also smother the grass with newspapers, but this takes much longer.
Next, work on improving the soil. Add in some organic matter (like the compost you made earlier, or some manure), and some fertilizer; but don’t overdo it! Go for a 2-3 inch layer at most, and then work it into the soil using a pitchfork. And if you see any earthworms around, let them be! They mix the soil and help your garden grow!
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Transplanting from Your Old Garden
If you had a garden in your old home, and the thought of saying goodbye to it is heart-wrenching – here’s some good news! Depending on the sort of plants you had and your moving schedule, you might be able to bring a small part of your old garden with you.
To do so, you must first hydrate the plants you wish to move by giving them a deep soak the night before you uproot them. It also helps to trim them a bit so they can conserve their energy and stay healthy during the move. Be very gentle when you actually uproot them, and add more water if you need.
Lastly, replant them as soon as possible, first into temporary pots and then your new home. Moving plants is risky, yes, but it can be done given some careful planning ahead of time!
