You just bought your first home, congratulations! You finally have a yard and you’re ready to start your very own garden. But where do you begin?

Your garden is just as important as the inside of your home, it represents a labor of love and gives a tiny glimpse into your style.

So naturally, you want it to look good. With the right knowledge, you can create a beautiful garden, but there a few common gardening mistakes that you should avoid before getting started.

Check out common gardening mistakes to avoid

Planting at the Wrong Time

It’s tempting to come home from the store with your seeds and immediately put them into the ground, but this isn’t always the best decision.

Different plants thrive in different seasons, and by forcing them to perform at the wrong time can ruin your garden and waste your time.

When you plant seeds at the wrong time, they could rot, freeze, or go dormant because all seeds have an optimum temperature and maturation time for when they sprout.

Doing your research on the seeds you wish to plant and getting a soil thermometer can save you a lot of heartaches and allow you to get the most out of your garden.

Watering

In order to have a thriving garden, you have to find a balance between overwatering and underwatering your plants.

The results of over and underwatering are largely similar, as you will notice wilting and it will lead to sick or dead plants.

Both under and overwatering can affect plants’ growth speed, and so can the time of day that you water them.

Here’s a tip: water your plants deeply at the root and less often to retain moisture and promote growth.

Overplanting

Starting your first garden is exciting but it can also be overwhelming. There are lots of seeds and plants to choose from and it’s easy to overdo it. Gardens need care and attention to flourish and if you have too many plants to keep up with, you could end up neglecting some and wasting your efforts.

To avoid this problem, it’s best to start small and then expand. We recommend starting off with a 10 x 10 – foot garden and a few types of plants. Once you’re comfortable with that, work on expanding slowly with space and plant types.

Mulch

Mulch helps to control weeds and enhances moisture retention. But much like water, you can use too much or too little and sabotage your hard work.

Too much mulch can cause the same effects as planting too deep and not using enough leads to less moisture retention and more weed growth.

Properly mulching your garden is one of the best ways to preserve it, you can avoid applying too much or too little by using 2-3 inches.

Planting the Wrong Way

Putting plants in the wrong spot, placing them too close together, putting the same type of plants in a row, and not pruning properly are all examples of planting the wrong way.

Planting the same type of plants in a row is called a monoculture and if common garden pests come into your space you could lose the whole row.

Placing your plants too close together can negatively impact air circulation and invites diseases into your garden.

Putting plants in the wrong spot will also hinder growth because a plant’s positioning can determine how healthy your garden will be.

When you don’t practice pruning to increase yield, you end up with uneven growth and an unsightly garden.

How do you combat all of this? By reading the directions that your seeds come with and knowing your garden. Understand if a plant is full sun or half sun and plant accordingly, it will make the difference between having a beautiful harvest and a lifeless garden.

Avoid Common Gardening Mistakes

Not only is your garden an extension of yourself but its also beneficial for the environment when maintained properly.

So let’s review our tips for having a prosperous garden:

• Plant at the right time
• Water your plants adequately
• Avoid overplanting
• Use the right amount of mulch
• Plant correctly

Stick to this list and you’ll avoid making common gardening mistakes that most newcomers fall victim to.

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