DIY Gardening: The Complete Guide for Amateur Plant Growers

If you’re interested in container gardening for beginners, Patio Growers can help ensure a vital, thriving garden. With our complete guide to DIY gardening for beginners, you can learn about which plants are easy to grow, as well as essential maintenance and health tips for your flowers, herbs, and veggies.

With our help, you’ll have a stunning swathe of greenery to enjoy, and you’ll be able to harvest fresh, healthy food. So start learning about DIY gardening now!

Flower Tips & Tricks

Many flowers could be the perfect choice for container gardens. Whether you have balcony planters or a shelf of pots on the patio, you can control the soil type, sunlight, and variety of flowers in your mini garden.

Choosing the Right Flowers

If you’re wondering where to start when choosing flowers, check out our recommendations below!

Marigolds

You can find these flowers in shades of gold, orange, red, and yellow. They’re a great summer plant that can handle the heat with the right amount of moisture.

Chrysanthemums

Mums are a great autumn flower that thrives in many climate zones. They’re perennial florals that don’t require too much watering, and they come back every year!

Sunflowers

Sunflowers grow quickly in sunny places and come in a variety of sizes. They literally brighten up your garden like the sun.

Begonias

These flowers are the ideal choice if you have a partly sunny spot. Grow them in hanging planters on your eaves or put them in the window box outside your kitchen!

Herb Tips & Tricks

For many in the DIY gardening world, growing herbs is even more fulfilling and rewarding than growing flowers. Take container gardening for beginners to the next level with easy herb options that you can harvest for use in everyday recipes.

When it comes to herbs, we recommend growing them in a sunny area with temperatures that don’t exceed 90 degrees Farenheight. Opt for well-draining soil and regularly fertilize to keep your plants growing strong.

Choosing the Right Herbs

Most herbs are pretty easy to grow and can be left alone (especially with our automatic watering system). We do suggest pruning any blooms immediately to ensure the plant doesn’t use up its energy on flowering. Check out some of our favorite herbs for easy DIY gardening here:

Rosemary

This herb is the perfect choice for nearly any spot. Rosemary does well in both sun and shade.

Parsley

Unlike rosemary, parsley prefers a bit more shade and doesn’t do well when it gets too hot. Keep it out of bright afternoon sunlight to prevent it from burning up.

Lavender

This herb does surprisingly well in dry and arid environments. Put it in a sunny spot and watch as those purple flowers blossom.

Basil

Versatile and tasty, basil enjoys warm weather and likes full sun to ensure optimal growth. There are so many varieties of basil that you can explore tons of unique flavors and aesthetics.

Vegetable Tips & Tricks

Choosing the right location for your vegetables can be a bit trickier than for flowers and herbs. A successful vegetable garden requires six or more hours of direct light daily, as well as soft soil that’s easy for roots to penetrate. You should always enrich your soil with compost to provide plants with nutrients and check to ensure your garden drains well. 

Choosing the Right Vegetables

Your plants need space to grow, so we recommend providing each with their own pot of appropriate width and depth. Check out these vegetables that are great for beginner DIY gardening.

Lettuce

Lettuce is a salad essential and super easy to grow. Plant your lettuce in a shaded area and snip off their tops to harvest for meals.

Tomatoes

The most popular vegetable for many people, tomatoes are versatile and hardy. Place them in a spot with a lot of sunlight and provide support for their vines.

Dealing with Pests

Pests and diseases are a fact of life for DIY gardening. You’ll need to keep an eye out for warning signs and take preventative measures to keep your container garden for beginners thriving.

Healthy Soil

Healthy soil is all about balance. When you overwater, you create a breeding ground for pests like mosquitos. Underwater and your plants are too weak to withstand the occasional bite of aphids or caterpillars. Conveniently enough, when you use an automatic watering system that is gravity fed, you won’t have to worry about under or over-watering your plants. 

Ward Off Bugs

Keeping bugs out is an essential part of DIY gardening. You can prevent them from reaching your plants with apple cider vinegar, eggshells, and garlic in the soil. For bugs where natural remedies don’t work, you may want to consider chemical sprays.

Good vs. Bad Bugs

Not all bugs are bad! If you see bees, ladybugs, spiders, ants, praying mantis, and ground beetles in your garden, let them be. Did you spot any cabbage moths, slugs, snails, mites, cutworms, or aphids? Get rid of them as soon as possible!

Pro Gardening Tips

Once your container garden for beginners starts to thrive, you may want to take a more hands-off approach to your everyday maintenance. Consider using a self-watering system to allow more time for other DIY gardening tasks! Use the Artesian watering system with 6” to 10” pot for the best results!