Flowering Trees, Shade Trees, Evergreen Trees

Planting 101: Getting a Green Thumb

Blair Brown

Blair is the Content Marketing Manager at BrighterBlooms.com, and though she's not your traditional gardener, the planting world is definitely growing on her (pun intended!). She's enjoyed digging into plant care and maintenance and growing her plant collection, especially with exotic indoor varieties.

Written by

Blair Brown

Congratulations! You’re thinking about taking the next big step in your life and you would like to have a plant. From plarent to plarent, it is truly such a rewarding and fulfilling experience, and you’re going to love every second of it. However, there are frustrating moments when you just feel like you’re not cut out for this plarenting thing, and you may find yourself wanting to give up. But don’t. All new plarents feel this way, and it’s perfectly normal to have a hard time at the beginning. You’re new at this, and even though I’ve been a plarent for years now, I am still learning too. That is why I’ve made you this guide. To help you and give you as much information as possible to help you get through such an amazing journey. Shall we begin?

Knowing Your Growing Season

Growing Season, also known as frost free season, is the time of year when the rainfall and temperature are perfect enough to help your plants grow. The length of a growing season differs depending on what growing zone you live in. Usually, however, most plants need a frost free season of about 90 days. Your growing season is your last frost in spring and first frost in fall. For example, if you live in zones 5, through 7 your last frost usually begins April 15-20 and your first frost ends October 15-20. Planting your plants during this season would be very beneficial and will help you get the best results!

Choosing the Right Plant

Now that you know what growing zone you’re in, it’s time to pick the right plant! Whatever plant you decide to choose needs to work well in its surroundings. For instance, what kind of soil do you have in your yard? Is it sandy or clay? If your yard has sandy or clay soil you will want to pick your plant with extra care because some plants have a hard time thriving in these soil types. You can easily amend your soil to make it more suitable for your plants. Try our Organic Planting Soil.

Choosing the Right Pot

If you’re not planting your plant in the ground it is important that you pick a pot that not only screams how stylish you are but also has great drainage as well. When choosing what kind of pot you want, make sure to look on the inside. Towards the bottom, you will see holes. The holes that are at the bottom of the pot are for drainage.

This is vital for the survival of your plant because if the pot is not well-drained water will sit at the bottom of the pot and cause root fungus. If you find a pot that makes you contemplate if root fungus is really that bad, you can always take a drill and drain holes at the bottom yourself. Make sure to put a saucer underneath the plant, if you would like, and empty it once it gets full. Again, letting your plant sit in water can cause root fungus.

Choosing the Right Soil

Fertilizer is not what makes your plant grow and thrive to be beautiful bright and healthy! Yes, it helps the plant, but it’s not the most important thing. Think of it as a nice cookie or brownie. It’s nice to eat and it makes you happy but it’s not needed. What makes the plant grow and thrive to be beautiful and bright? Believe it or not, it’s the soil. If you don’t have any organic matter, or simply just don’t want to buy it, you can apply mulch to the surface of the plant to seal in any moisture that is below. Now, let me be clear, though taking short cuts means you get done faster doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a good thing. Putting the organic matter into the hole and amending it is way more effective than applying it to the surface.

Blair Brown

Blair is the Content Marketing Manager at BrighterBlooms.com, and though she's not your traditional gardener, the planting world is definitely growing on her (pun intended!). She's enjoyed digging into plant care and maintenance and growing her plant collection, especially with exotic indoor varieties.

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