Garden Maintenance Tips

Gardeners are perhaps the most enthusiastic (or pleasantly nervous!) in the spring. Seed packets and plant tags litter nearly every surface, and it is nearly impossible to pass any display of seedlings without stopping "just to look." As the season carries on though, the gardener may find themselves wilting in the heat and humidity, and interest waning. 

It may be in the best interests of those seeds and seedlings to think about some simple tactics for reducing maintenance in the garden. Suggestions range from switching to shrubs from perennials (although caution should be used when choosing non-native species) to using mulch. 

Mulch is maybe the easiest way to take care of two garden maintenance issues - watering and weeds - while simultaneously building soil  health for years to come. A nice layer of mulch (three inches or so) in the garden can see even young plants through an unexpected drought. And if water is a particular challenge for the garden, this book (suggested by one of the gardeners over at the Hunt Park site) offers insightful ideas for gardening where water is in short supply.

So clear a little space among the seed packets or just have a seat out on the edge of the garden (you know you want to!), and start plotting a little more how to do a little less.