Transform your home into a flourishing garden with the Most Productive Vegetables for a Balcony and Patio Garden, ensuring a plentiful yield in limited space and enhancing your green thumb experience.
28.06.2023 - 11:47 / treehugger.com
In container gardening, one of the biggest challenges lies in finding the right growing medium for the plants that you wish to grow. Most gardeners will source the potting mix they use from a store.
From an environmental perspective, most commercial potting mixes leave something to be desired. And from a financial perspective, they can be costly, too—especially if you have a lot of pots to fill.
In my opinion, it can therefore be extremely beneficial to think about how you can make your own potting mixes and fill the plant pots in a container garden for free using materials from your very own home and garden.
Many commercial potting mixes contain peat because it retains water well and provides nutrients. But peat comes from peat bogs—unique wetland ecosystems which should not be disturbed. Harvesting peat contributes to the climate crisis and degrades the natural environment, among other things. Read more here: Peat-Free Compost is a Must for Sustainable Gardens.
I always make my own potting mixes for seed-starting and container growing. Though there are many different recipes that you might follow to make your own mixes, below are some details of the methods and materials that I use in my garden.
The idea with a seed-starting potting mix is that it should be light and friable, moist yet free-draining. Unlike potting mixes used to grow plants for some period of time, seed-starting mixes do not need to be rich in nutrients.
To start my seeds, I use a mixture of:
Many gardeners will add perlite to this mix, but I prefer to avoid this mixed material and find that the compost/leaf mold mix is light enough for the seeds I wish to sow without this addition.
To fill containers, I often use a soil-based or loam-based
Transform your home into a flourishing garden with the Most Productive Vegetables for a Balcony and Patio Garden, ensuring a plentiful yield in limited space and enhancing your green thumb experience.
Many fruit, nut, and landscape trees can succumb to root rot caused by three types of fungi and a group of water molds (that used to be considered fungi); these include the fungi Armillaria, Phymatotrichum, and Xylaria and the water mold Phytophthora.The trees show varying symptoms from these different di
If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to add a burst of colour to your garden, then a container packed full of plants is the perfect solution. And in the middle of summer, there’s an abundance of options to bring fabulous flowers and foliage to your pots. Discover some of the best plants for glorious summer containers. Our choices include recommendations from the Gardeners’ World team and familiar faces from across the gardening industry.
Hens and chicks plants make great low-maintenance options for dry, sunny gardens. And there are so many interesting cultivars available in a range of hues, from chocolate brown to green to bright orange and yellow. The common name may be confusing until you grow them yourself and realize it makes sense. One main rosette (mama hen) will eventually produce several offsets or babies (the chicks!). Though I’ve never heard them referred to by houseleeks, their other common name, the Latin name you’ll see on plant tags for these popular succulents is Sempervivum. They are members of the stonecrop family (Crassulaceae).
Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page.
Cut a tire in half, paint it and install a cedar plank on top of it. Add the handle and eyes afterward to further decorate it. Have a look at the details here.
Explore the world of DIY container water gardens and bring nature’s serenity into your home. With these creative ideas, you can transform everyday containers into peaceful aquatic oases, perfect for growing water-loving plants.
For a funky-looking annual that’s just unusual enough to be totally awesome, how about giving some bells of Ireland a ring?We link to vendors to help you find relevant products.
Tomatoes grown in pots prefer fluffy and moist environment to thrive. They do not perform well in heavy soil. Go through this article to understand more about the Best Potting Soil for Tomatoes!
Pepper plants are a popular choice among home gardeners due to their versatility in cooking, from mild to hot and spicy flavors. If you are growing them, then learn these tips on How to Top Pepper Plants for Bigger Harvest!
Empty a 1/2 gallon milk jug and clean it properly. Make sure to choose a jug that has a handle and a plastic lid.