What kind of gardener are you?

[ChanellG]

I enjoy planting flowers since I love different fragrances and the prettiness of blooming flowers. A nice bouquet brightens up my day and the sweet smell of different flowers such as rose/lavender is rather soothing. I do want to give growing veggies a go and do some experimentation, but that's not for a while.

You could always start with herbs and expand to lettuce and greens like Kale. I grew potatoes last spring in a laundry basket!

Although I understand "plant/flower" people can be in better spirits around plants, I don't see much of a need for caring for a plant unless there will be a yield at the end of the cycle. There is nothing like being rewarded with fresh, delicious produce at the end of your labors. I try to harvest seeds so that I don't have to be modified seeds in the store next year. I actually feel a little bad when I kill the plant or it dies on its own at the end of harvest.

Would you see much need for caring for a flowering plant that protects your precious yield plants? Or one that enriches the soil? Or one that cleans toxins from it? Maybe you should learn more about flowering plants, particularly since many are not just edible but highly nutritious, including roses.

 

[ChanellG]

I mostly deal with hydroponics throughout my house, I have herbs in the kitchen, lettuces on the porch, and tomatoes, peppers, and beans in the living room. I love it because I always, and I mean always have fresh vegetables.

Wow, that's some pretty serious gardening. How does the taste of hydroponic grown food differ from that grown in soil? I imagine you have to fertilize a lot.

I have being planting flowers and veggies from a tender age; i think that a lot to do with me being a loner and just enjoys my own company but i think the greatest joy i get from gardening is just seeing the seeds that have planted flowering and producing food that i can consume...it's just a great satisfaction for me...even if i don't get it right at times...i always considered myself to be a gardener.

Good for you! There is something serene and even divine in gardening, and it's not something that requires the presence of another person.

Well I'm too much of a newbie to really classify myself at this point but I'd love to be an avid grower...in particular I want to grow things that I can eat/use in cooking, though I'm not oppose to pretty flowering plants by any means. I'd also like to just be more knowledgeable in general, even if I don't plant everything that I'm knowledgeable about.

Just keep growing! Before you know it you will have more and more and more plants. Look for perennials and low maintenance plants, and it will be less work. As you get more experienced and organized, you can experiment.

Me and my husband I think definitely fall into the gardening geek category! Us too, we freak out at the sight of any new leafs, flowers, produce. It is awesome. We love to grow as much as our balcony can hold and have been satisfied with our harvest every year! I don't think there will ever be a summer that we don't garden, it is like feeding our soul!

I'm geeking on sticking cuttings at the moment. I made willow water last week, and so far almost all the cuttings seem as though they may make it. It drives me crazy waiting to find out though, lol. Gardening is definitely not for sissies!

 

[DrYellow]

I'm just starting out in gardening. Therefore, I would call myself a beginner. I also do it for the enjoyment. I find it gives me a peace of mind. This past summer I planted my first garden. It was a learning experience. However, I will try it again next summer because of the peacefulness it brought. Hopefully I'll get more next summer. However, I gained some great cucumbers, which was not bad for a first time gardener.

 

[kevinkimers]

Good for you! Whether you successfully grow 85% of your food or 8% of it, it's your right to do so. I believe with careful planning and strategically chosen crops that are suitable for your climate you can do it. You can also trade with others in your area who are growing and producing their own.

Are you familiar with square foot gardening? Are you planning to grow vertically? Do you plan on canning and freezing what you produce? Have you thought about high-yield plants? How harsh are your winters? How hot are your summers? Will you build a greenhouse?

We did not know at first what we were going to do, then we made the final decision to do it all greenhouse. We live in Northern Nevada. Hot and very dry in the summer and Icy and snowy during the winter. Green-housing is our best option to ensure we will get any yield. Can't wait to begin, hopefully we will be able to start planting next spring.... right now its a crap shoot financially whether or not we will be able to. We are really pushing for it though. I plan to pickle, dehydrate, and can anything and everything. We want to be able to have our stuff year round as well as store away for emergencies. You never know with the crazy weather lately what could happen.

 

[JessiFox]

Thanks for the advice, Chanell...I've been hearing that a lot lately actually, and I think that I'll do just that to get started I always want to jump right in and try the harder things, but I don't want to overshoot my abilities so soon.

 

[ChanellG]

I'm just starting out in gardening... This past summer I planted my first garden. ....gained some great cucumbers, which was not bad for a first time gardener.

Congratulations on your cucumbers! I'll be they were delicious! Nothing like cucumbers fresh off the vine! Is there some reason why you are only able to garden in summer? There are lots of things you could be growing now from herbs to salad greens to broccoli.

 

[ChanellG]

We did not know at first what we were going to do, then we made the final decision to do it all greenhouse... I plan to pickle, dehydrate, and can anything and everything. We want to be able to have our stuff year round as well as store away for emergencies. You never know with the crazy weather lately what could happen.

Truly! We had a serious cold snap early in November with temperatures almost down to freezing and now it's hot again. I'm glad for the warmup though, as is gave me a chance to reorganize the greenhouse and get everything ready for winter - which hopefully is still at least two or three weeks away, at least in terms of seasonal temperature.

 

[ChanellG]

Thanks for the advice, Chanell...I've been hearing that a lot lately actually, and I think that I'll do just that to get started I always want to jump right in and try the harder things, but I don't want to overshoot my abilities so soon.

Gardening is a lot of trial and error, so it's best to start small and learn your plants and how they grow in your climate. Once you have success with a plant, you can expand and try your hand at new ones. I've learned that plants that require full sun do better with part shade where I live as it just gets too hot in summer.

 

[Tradewinds]

I garden for pleasure; the sights, sounds, smells, seclusion, and the wildlife that gardens attract. I love being immersed in a beautiful setting.

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I was just playing around (that's what I do best) with the sort fields at the top of the thread listings to see which threads have the most replies and came across this thread. And of course, I just had to be part of one the largest threads

 

[ChanellG]

I garden for pleasure; the sights, sounds, smells, seclusion, and the wildlife that gardens attract. I love being immersed in a beautiful setting.

Sorry to revive an old thread... I just had to be part of one the largest threads

Thanks for weighing in! If old threads weren't meant to be revived, they wouldn't show up in the box below

 

[kevinkimers]

Absolutely ChanellG, especially those that have a lot of great information in them or if new information is added.