Thursday, 23 September 2010
Top 5 Things Not to Do Now that Summer 2010 is Officially Over
Can’t say I miss it though. This summer was very dry and very hot, something that has become the norm down here in the south. Much of the watering I did was just to keep my plants alive and protect them from drying out. While there were many “peaks” in this season (I bought some really nice things to for my garden, planted my first tomatoes, added a water fountain and finished my mailbox area), I had a lot of valleys. My summer was filled with classes, traveling and other obligations, so I barely had time to even water my plants. I had to install automatic timers just to keep them all alive. What I love about gardening though is that you are always given another opportunity to try again next year. Thank goodness my survival is not based on how much food I can grow! So, instead of crying and whining about what I didn’t get to do, I think I’ll leave some tips on what NOT to do in the next season. Feel free to use my what NOT to do list:
- Never buy more plants than you can handle. Some of my plants died simply because I didn’t have time to transport them into my garden. Plants kept in pots dry out faster and need more frequent watering. I found this out the hard way.
- Avoid planting high maintenance plants. That’s why I love perennials so much. Many of them are low maintenance and they don’t have to be replanted. Make sure your plants are made to survive and thrive in your zone.
- Never put off tomorrow what you can do today. I had a hard time keeping up with my daily gardening tasks, but even on my weekends, I was so drained and exhausted and continued to put things off until the next weekend. If you have the time, use it!
- Never buy high maintenance plants unless you have the time to plant them and you know where to plant them. Although most plants are pretty cheap, make sure you are ready to plant the ones you spend the most money on.
- And lastly, never plan garden projects if you don’t have the time to finish them. It’s never about the starting, its always about whether you can finish your projects. I still have many of my summer projects still unfinished.
So now I can close out my summer with a lesson learned. You must anticipate how many other obligations you have during the summer months and plan your season accordingly. You can save yourself a lot of money and time buying things you will not have time to use. On a brighter note, I look forward to this fall and blogging about my indoor plants as well as planning for next spring and summer.