Simple tips and tricks for a bountiful and thriving gardening season

There’s nothing quite like the joy of watching the fruits of your labor bloom, which is why gardening is such a popular activity for many of us. Not only do we enjoy watching beautiful flowers blossom throughout the spring, but we can actually share our work with others in the form of amazing meals from fresh produce we grew ourselves.

Though gardening is fun, it also can take a little extra work to ensure a thriving garden. We at Woodland Creek Memory Care Community have come up with a list of some of our favorite tips for preparing your garden for the growing season. Take a look at our tips below, from your friendly Montgomery County retirement home.

Prepare the ground

After the long harsh winters, it’s important to take stock of the health of your soil! Over the winter, the soil becomes compacted through the cold weather, snow, and ice. While it is a bigger project than most, tilling your soil is the key to a healthy and thriving garden. It’s best to work the soil at least 12 to 14 inches deep, to ensure plenty of loose and healthy dirt for your plants to thrive in. Not only does tilling break up the compacted dirt, but it also mixes in the nutrient-stocked mulch, dead leaves, and other compost that makes the soil a fantastically rich environment for growing things.

Plan your planting

When you think of gardening, it’s easy to only think of digging into the dirt, planting seeds, and harvesting your crops. But one of the most important parts of creating a garden is careful planning. After all, what good is planting plants if you don’t feed and care for them regularly? Take a pen and a calendar and mark out your spring and summer gardening tasks. Be sure to include the dates you need to sow, transplant, and harvest your fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Schedule check-ins with your garden, including regular weeding time, watering, and pruning. We suggest marking these on your physical calendar and also on your digital calendar to ensure reminders come from several places. Last but certainly not least, be sure to block off a full weekend for preparing your garden for the following growing season, toward the end of the fall.

Think big (and little)

Gardening is amazing because there are a million different ways to find joy and peace in it. From massive acres with rows and rows of fruits and vegetables to tiny single-potted succulents in your bathroom, there are options for everyone to let their inner gardener out. Many of us assume that if we don’t have land, we can’t enjoy the beauty of flowers and plants, but this would be a huge mistake. Some of the most satisfying gardening projects can be in the tiniest details.

Include your loved one

If you have a loved one in our care, we have a great gardening prep project that you can do with them and help them be a part of your larger garden at home. In the early months of spring, many of us are planting seeds and growing seedlings indoors to transplant when they are mature enough. Consider bringing small seedling containers, a small bag of rich fertilized soil, and a selection of seeds for flowers and plants that your loved one has expressed love for.

Is their favorite flowering herb lavender? Bring some lavender seeds and spend the afternoon planting them. Transport them easily home after your time with your loved one, and then transplant them into the earth when they are ready. Take photos of the growth process to share with your favorite seniors and show them how their work has transformed your garden. It’s a project that will bond you, and bring such joy to both of you–which at the end of the day, is what passion gardening is all about.

If you have any questions about our wonderful Dresher, PA memory care community, please give us a call and we’ll be happy to arrange a tour for you!

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