How To Tutorials | Green Thumb Garden

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How to Start a Garden Plot

Whether you are just beginning or an experienced gardener, you may wish to prepare a garden plot for planting fresh herbs or vegetables.

Not only can a small garden plot add interest to your landscape, it can also be both emotionally and financially rewarding to grow your own vegetables and herbs. Starting a new garden plot from scratch can be intimidating but you don’t need to have a green thumb to successfully accomplish this task. In this article, you will learn the basics on how to prepare your own garden plot.
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How to Prune Properly

Pruning is an important part of maintaining a beautiful landscape.

No matter if you want to train your plants to grow a certain direction, control size and shape, improve growth or remove dead or damaged branches, pruning is essential. Pruning your bushes, shrubs, and trees properly can be challenging without adequate knowledge. Although there is a multitude of information out there about how to prune, we have put together a basic how to properly prune your plants in the follow article. Remember to always consult a professional when dealing with large trees but with the information contained in this article you should be able to tackle most pruning challenges in your yard by yourself.
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Container Gardening

Even if you don’t have a large backyard, you can still enjoy a beautiful garden.

The smallest patio, back porch, balcony or doorstep has enough room for a productive container garden. There are many advantages to container gardening. Growing your plants in pots allows you to have a portable garden that can be arranged to suit your needs. You can also bring your plants inside during cold weather so that you can enjoy year round flowers, vegetables, herbs or whatever you choose to grow.

Container gardening can be challenging. In this article you will learn how to get the beautiful, healthy container garden you’ve always wanted as well as how to avoid common pitfalls when creating your container garden.
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Building a Rainwater Collection System

Water conservation is an important aspect of the going green movement.

We are encouraged to limit our water consumption by purchasing efficient appliances and fixtures as well as adopting water saving habits. One excellent way to go green in your garden is to set up a rainwater collection system. Rainwater collectors can be used to reduce your overall water usage by giving a free way to water your garden. Not only is this great for the environment, it’s also has a desirable effect on your water bill! You have several options to help you purchase a complete rainwater collection system using pre-made barrels and gutter diverting kits. Check out the options available online. Or you save a little money and do-it-yourself. In this article, you will get a step-by-step tutorial on how to build your own rainwater collector with materials purchased from your local hardware store.
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Planting a Spring Flower Garden

Spring is in the air and it’s time to get out the gardening tools once again.

Add splashes of color to your yard this spring with beautiful flowers! Flower gardens are easy to plant and care for. All you need is some careful planning and some helpful tips to keep your landscape colorful from early spring right on through to fall. To create a flower garden that you can enjoy for months to come, simply follow the steps below.
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Building a Raised Garden Bed

Raised garden beds are an excellent way to overcome the challenges of poor soil as well as a great way to add interest and dimension to any landscape.

Raised garden beds are built on top of the native soil, usually contained in a structure on some type to keep the bed intact. Raised bed gardens offer several advantages:

They warm more quickly in spring, so you can get to working the soil and planting earlier.
Starting with clean, fresh soil, allows you to avoid the problems associated with native soil. Such as dormant weed seeds and pests.
You get better drainage with a raised garden bed.
The soil doesn’t get compacted in a raised bed because it is easily worked.
You can easily tailor the soil in a raised bed to the plants that you wish to grow.
After the initial construction, raised beds require less maintenance than conventional beds.
They are great for gardeners with limited mobility because they are built higher than ground level.

If you have been to your local nursery lately you will find that many of the finest and more unusual varieties of vegetables are simply not available.

Your only option is to grow these plants from seeds, but in order to grow a first-class garden you must know something about planting seedlings. Of all the steps in growing, your own flower and vegetable garden, transplanting is the most critical. Here are some tips that should increase your rate of success.
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