Basic Garden Needs

Watering

You will want to water your garden when needed, the best time to do this is in the early morning to avoid evaporation. Some years may require more watering than others.

Weeding

Weeding is a never-ending chore in the garden. There are many different techniques for this process, all with the same goal: removing all weeds from the garden before they go to seed. Here are some of the most commonly used practices:

Mulching

The idea behind mulching is to smother out existing weeds and make a poor environment for new ones to grow. You can add a 2-6” bed of mulch on your garden throughout the season. Mulch materials can range from straw, hay, grass clippings, or anything else you have on hand that can later be incorporated into your garden soil.

Hoeing

When hoeing, your objective is to slice through weeds at the soil level, severing the roots.  This ensures that that particular plant will not grow back. When choosing a hoe or any garden tool you want to pick one that is going to be comfortable to work with for extended periods of time - be cautious of the weight.

Hand pulling weeds is self-explanatory: Get down on hands and knees and pull out unwanted plants, roots and all. Add the pulled weeds to your compost pile (unless they’ve already formed seeds).     These plants should be removed from the garden and placed in your compost for later use.

Persistence is key when controlling the weeds in your garden. The best way to tackle your weed problem is to stay ahead of the game. Do not let the weeds overtake you garden and smother out your productive garden. You should do a little bit of weeding each day to ensure a weed-free, happy garden.