by The Real American

Created on: August 31, 2010

As a basic guide to the beginning gardener, there are only a few things that you'll essentially need to know. For instance, all plants absolutely require different amounts of: sunlight, water, structural medium, and mineral nutrition in order to more properly grow... and achieving just the right mix, or proportion, in each of these four physical requirements can dramatically improve your ongoing agricultural success. The secret to having a "Green Thumb" is simply knowing what each type of plant [honestly] requires along each of these lines. There's, really, nothing else to it!

The optimum amount of sunlight being required by certain plants can differ significantly from one species to another. For some plants, like the various types of ferns, it can be relatively minimal... and yet others, like tomato plants and corn, will grow dismally without a great deal of it - throughout all hours of the day. Luckily for most beginning gardeners, however, these day-lighting requirements are usually pre-printed on the backs of each package [or seed packet]. If they aren't, then don't panic... almost every store - which offers seeds or plants - also offers a variety of very useful books covering this subject.

Like sunlight, the optimal amount of water a plant needs can vary tremendously. While certain plants need a great deal of water and/or frequent cyclical replenishments, many others - such as most types of cactus - can store up water within their own physical structure; or can even suffer the equivalent to drowning - when their roots are constantly being saturated by too much of it. Moreover, since most seed packaging doesn't offer this highly useful information, it is always a good idea to either: ask someone, or read a book upon any new plant - with which you are currently unfamiliar.

Aside from the negative effects of either: over watering, or under watering your plants - the actual frequency, of your doing so, can frequently compound this ongoing problem tremendously. For instance, most plants can recover from over watering them within a few days of drying out, but they will never dry out if you are doing so very frequently... and most outdoor plants - which are under watered - will naturally adjust somewhat to the natural cycles of your geographic rainfall. Most of them are fairly tolerant of natural variances in this area. However, frequent watering will always stifle the development of deep root growth and make them far more dependent upon your own personal efforts

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• Next Page >>