Backyard veggie gardens are excellent home improvement projects to do over the weekend because not only are they fun to accomplish, but they also provide you with access to a personal source of fresh vegetables right at the comfort of your own home. Plus, it’s a great way of adding to your home’s overall value since it has both aesthetic and functional purposes that anyone would love to have if you ever plan on selling the house in the future.
Sadly, though, not too many home improvement enthusiasts ever get backyard gardens right their first time around, and most newbies often end up with a blank plot of land with no plants growing at all. And so, today, we’ll be going over some of the most common mistakes that you could be guilty of doing and just how you can avoid them the next time around.
You Forgot To Take Location In Mind
One common mistake that we have seen countless people make is just setting up shop and starting the project wherever they think to be the best by going off what they see and what they’d like to see when it’s finished. However, your veggies need certain location requirements if they’re even to grow at all, and so you might want to reconsider where you start that backyard garden.
- A Bad Balance Of Sunlight And Shade: While some plants and vegetation can get away with fewer hours of direct sunlight, most plants that you do choose to grow at home will require at least eight hours of warm radiant goodness. And if it’s already been a week and you do not see any considerable progress, you might have chosen a spot with a poor balance of sunlight and shade. And if that’s the case, we recommend relocating or adjusting the current area to get proper sunlight.
- Way Too Close To A Tree: Like how businesses compete for market share, even plants compete for their share of nutrients they receive from the ground. And one way of telling that you’ve got a bad location is when your supposed backyard veggie garden is within ten feet of a tree, which is way too close by anyone’s standards. Sure, it looks cute, and trees have many inherent benefits, but they could very well be the culprit taking away all the nutrients intended for your veggies.
Maybe Your Backyard’s Underequipped For A Garden
Sometimes the problem isn’t linked to location or lack of supervision because some backyards are just underequipped to support a fully-pledged veggie garden. If we are completely honest, not all backyards are built the same, and plenty of households don’t share the luxury of having optimal conditions for growing plants at home. Therefore, you might want to double-check on soil type and quality before moving forward.
- Potentially Bad Soil Quality: Although movies will have you thinking that digging up some ground and putting in your plant is all you need to jump-start your green thumb, soil quality plays a crucial role in dictating what crops can and can’t grow. Furthermore, some types of soil are very susceptible to displacement, especially in areas that are higher and have a slope, meaning that you’ll need to spend a bit extra for expert soil erosion control.
- Please Take Out The Weed Sprouts: Some households feature backyards that are infamous for constantly sprouting weeds every single day or so and, while they may seem harmless, they’re also stealing away precious nutrients from your veggies. Therefore, you might want to invest in a bit of mulch beforehand to stop them from growing and be vigilant with your anti-weed protocols by pulling them out to not give them the chance to spread.
Or You Could Be Doing Something Wrong
Lastly, one truth that we should all come to realize is that being a pro at home improvement doesn’t necessarily translate to any home gardening skills. Sure, your experience in crafts, renovations, and finishing projects will surely help, but these are entirely different leagues when it comes to knowledge. Therefore, you might just be doing something wrong that’s preventing the plants from growing.
- Overwatering Your Backyard Garden: Everybody knows that plants need water to grow; that’s just basic science for you. Sadly, not too many people are aware that overwatering your plants has the opposite effect on growth and harms their little veggies in the process. So, always double-check on soil moisture and get yourself some quality fertilizer while you’re at it.
You Deserve A Beautiful Backyard Garden
In conclusion, we firmly believe that everyone deserves a beautiful backyard garden, and starting one shouldn’t be challenging by any means necessary. So, take the advice mentioned above to hear and find out which of these common gardening sins you are guilty of committing.