Want to start gardening, but aren鈥檛 sure what to do or how to begin? 黑料新闻 Garden Journal鈥檚 Charlie Nardozzi has some gardening tips for beginners to keep in mind this season.
鈥淪tart small,鈥� he told 黑料新闻鈥檚 Where We Live. 鈥淕et comfortable with gardening. Get used to going out there and visiting the garden everyday for a couple minutes. And get some success doing it. Once you鈥檝e been successful with gardening, then you鈥檙e hooked.鈥�
Start small
Take a look at your space and decide what you want to grow, whether it鈥檚 flowers, vegetables, herbs or shrubs.
From there, keep it small. Nardozzi suggests beginning with a couple containers, a small raised bed, or some small herbs.
Starting small will allow you to get comfortable with gardening and remember to take care of it everyday with minimal maintenance techniques. Place the garden somewhere you will see it everyday, which will help remind you to take care of it.
Here comes the sun: Discover the 鈥榮un spots鈥�
Where is the sun? How much sun do you get in your yard?
To locate the sun-filled areas, go outside every couple of hours and see how sunny it is. Take note of how long the sun stays in each spot before you start planting.
A full sun area will receive six to eight hours of sun per day, while partial sun areas will get three to four hours a day. Shaded areas will only receive a few hours a day, but plants can still grow.
Locating the sun-filled areas is an essential step before putting anything in the ground.
Find your zone
are developed nationally by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The zones are broken down from 1 (coldest) to 11 (warmest) and helps gardeners know which plants are able to grow in that zone.
黑料新闻鈥檚 zones range from 5 to 6, and occasionally a 7. When purchasing plants, the zone is marked on its tag, allowing customers to know where and when to grow them.
鈥淒o not go warmer than your zone,鈥� Nardozzi said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 when you鈥檒l lose the plant.鈥�
To discover your specific area鈥檚 zone, visit the and enter your zip code.
Know your soil
Knowing what鈥檚 in your soil is key to a successful garden.
UConn offers that will give a report about the nutrients, organic matter and pH levels of your soil. The results also help understand what to add to balance it out.
Adding organic matter to soil can change the way the plant grows. Things like compost, straw, shredded leaves or grass clippings from your lawn.
For raised beds or in ground planting, mix 50% compost and 50% topsoil for a nice, rich soil.
For containers, use potting soil mixed with fertilizer.
A few more tips
When is the right time to start?
You can begin gardening after the last frost date in your area. Frost date information can be
What tools should I start with?
Some basic beginner tools include gloves, a shovel, a garden fork/rake, as well as hand pruners if handling trees or shrubs.
Don鈥檛 worry too much!
Ultimately, though, don鈥檛 sweat it, Nardozzi said.
鈥淭here鈥檚 definitely some magic to the whole gardening thing,鈥� he said. 鈥淓ven experienced gardeners will tell you: We still kill plants. I still try plants 鈥� I think that they鈥檙e in the right place in the right conditions, and they still die. So that鈥檚 just kind of part of the whole gardening experience.鈥�
Listen to Nardozzi鈥檚 entire conversation with 黑料新闻鈥檚 Where We Live.
黑料新闻's Tess Terrible contributed to this report.