Gardening Basics For Dummies

Cultivate your passion to grow

In a 1625 essay, Francis Bacon called gardens "the purest of human pleasures," and what was true then is even more so today-gardening can give you a serene refuge from the short-lived (and noisy!) distractions of modern life and a fertile basis for satisfaction that will bear fruit long into the future. To help you get started on your own leafy paradise, the new edition of Gardening Basics For Dummies grounds you thoroughly in the fundamentals of soil, flowers, trees, and lawns-and helps you get to know the names of what you're planting along the way!

In a friendly, straightforward style, professional horticulturist Steven A. Frowine distills 50 years of gardening experience to show you how to start growing your expertise-from planning out your own mini-Eden and planting your first annuals, bulbs, and perennials through to laying the perfect lawn, raising tasty crops, and even introducing fish to your landscape! He also digs into the grubbier side of horticultural life, making sure you're as prepared as any seasoned farmer to deal with pests, weeds, and other challenges the earth will throw up at you.

• Create your ideal garden plan
• Become an expert on common flora with definitions and descriptions
• Know how to look after your soil

• Get creative with butterfly and children's gardens
  Whether you're beginning with a tiny garden in a box, or beautifying your property with tree-lined groves and flowery bowers, this is the ideal introduction to the intense pleasure of gardening and will make you happy to reap what you've sown!

  Autorentext

Steven A. Frowine is a noted professional horticulturist and a longtime avid gardener and communicator.

The National Gardening Association is the leading garden-based educational nonprofit in the USA. Visit http://garden.org.

Klappentext

Let your creativity take root and bloom!

Gardening can help you relax, spark your imagination, and even provide a source of home-grown food. This new edition of Gardening Basics For Dummies is your guide as you discover your green thumb, no matter where you live or how much space you have! From growing the picture-perfect lawn to landscaping masterpieces fit for a palace, this book explains it all. With this reference under your arm and a patch of earth under your feet (or in a pot), you're ready. Your newfound plant-friends will thank you!

Inside. . . Gather the right garden gearChoose annuals and perennials that will thriveGrow greener, healthier grassProduce your own produceRaise colorful flowerbedsInvolve your kids in gardeningGarden with ponds and fish

Inhalt

Introduction 1

About This Book 1

Foolish Assumptions 3

Icons Used in This Book 3

Where to Go from Here 4

Part 1: Preparing Yourself (and Your Garden) for Planting 5

Chapter 1: Getting Ready for Gardening 7

Playing the Name Game 8

Getting used to plant nomenclature 8

Anatomy 101: Naming plant parts 10

Beautifying with Flowers (and Foliage) 11

Amazing annuals 11

Perennial plants 15

Bulbs and roses 18

Gardening for Your Dining Pleasure 18

Working with Woody (or Viny) Plants 19

Shrubs 19

Trees 21

Vines 22

The World Is Flat: Caring for Your Lawn 23

Chapter 2: Creating a Landscape That You'll Love 25

Evaluating What You Already Have 26

Looking at the big picture 26

Identifying problems and restrictions 27

Taking advantage of your yard's assets 31

Getting Ideas for Your Garden Space 33

Gardening with the kids in mind 33

Establishing a good garden for pets 34

Creating space for entertainment 35

Designing a sanctuary 36

Cooking up an edible garden 37

Zeroing In on Your Ideal Garden Style 39

Gardening around a theme 39

Perusing sources for inspired ideas 42

Keeping Your Budget in Mind 43

Bringing Your Garden Ideas to Reality 44

Sketching out the yard you have now 45

Making your drawing match your dream 46

Defining key areas to start 47

Getting Professional Help 48

Considering different professionals 48

Hiring a pro for landscaping help 50

Chapter 3: Getting into the Zone Your Garden's Zone 51

Focusing on Location Different Hardiness Zone Maps for Different Folks 52

Looking at the world's plant hardiness zone maps 52

Warming up to the heat-zone map 54

Savoring the Sunset zones 54

Reading plant hardiness zone maps 55

Fathoming Frost Zones and Growing Seasons 57

Zoning Out: Breaking the Zone and Growing Season Rules 58

Managing your microclimates 59

Cheating the system: Creating microclimates 61

Bending the rules to stretch your growing season 62

Chapter 4: Live Long and Prosper: Giving Plants What They Need 65

Welcoming the Sun Let There Be Light! 66

Facing Fertilizer Facts 67

What to use: Natural versus chemical 71

When to fertilize your garden 71

Composting: More Than Just Fertilizer 72

Demystifying Soil pH 75

Matching plants to different pH levels 75

Finding out your soil's pH 76

Adjusting your soil's pH 76

Much Ado about Mulch 77

Knowing your mulches 78

Applying mulch how to and how much 79

Tackling Watering Issues 80

Providing the right amount of moisture 80

Determining which watering system to use 82

Cutting back on watering 84

Dealing with drainage problems 85

Making Sure Your Plants Get Enough Air 86

Chapter 5: Gathering Your Gardening Gear 87

Digging into Those Digging Tools 88

Getting down with shovels and spades 88

Trowels: More than just little shovels 91

Garden forks: Not for dining! 93

Dabbling in dibbles (or dibbers) 94

Cultivating 101: Clues to Quality Tools 95

No Santa Claus: Ho, ho, hoes 96

Weeding out the weeders 97

Making the Right Cut with Cutting Tools 98

Getting a handle on hand pruners 99

Hedging your bets on hedge shears 101

Branching out with loppers 101

Moving up to pruning saws 102 Putting Power Tools to Use ...