5 Things "Green Thumbs" Know

People always tell me, "I have a brown thumb" or "my grandfather had a green thumb." I actually don't like those terms at all. It makes it sound like gardening is a magical talent--either you're born with it, or you're not. Gardening is really a learned skill. I can grow things because I've spent a long time learning about and practicing gardening (and your grandfather probably spent many years gardening, too). If you consider yourself a brown thumb, I'll give you a head start by sharing with you the basic gardening principles I've learned in the last 20 years. I realize I'm touching on a lot of concepts that may be unfamiliar if you have no previous gardening knowledge. I'll go more in-depth on these in later posts.

1. Location, location, location. Otherwise known as "the right plant in the right place", this principle refers to the fact that different plants have different requirements. If you ignore these requirements, your plant will under-perform at best, or die at worst. Sure, I'll push the boundaries sometimes, but I don't plant something in a place that obviously won't give that plant what it needs. What do plants need? The right amount of sun, the right amount of water, and the right temperatures. Read your plant labels. If you want to branch out a little, pick up a good plant book. (The Southern Living Garden Book is my go-to).

2. The magic is in the dirt. Half of a plant (sometimes more) is underground. If you have bad soil, your plant will never be happy. Good soil gives your plant the right amount of water and nutrients. You can do a lot to improve your soil. I'll dedicate a post to this soon. If your garden consists of what you can grow on your patio or balcony, then your answer is simple: buy good potting mix. I bought cheap potting mix once--it wasn't worth it.

Both of these pansy groupings are currently in my garden.
I prepared the soil before planting one of the groups,
can you tell which one?

3. There is such a thing as too much of a good thing. Water, fertilizer, and sunshine are all good things, but too much can kill plants if you're not careful. Too much fertilizer can fry any plant, too much sunshine can fry a shade-loving plant, and too much water can drown a plant (unless its native habitat is a wetland).

4. Sometimes plants die. A lot of gardening is trial and error. Despite your best efforts, occasionally plants die anyway--that doesn't make you a "brown thumb". It could be killed by disease, you might not have the right climate for it, or it might just give up for no real reason. I've killed a lot of plants in my life, too, but it's all part of the learning process. I don't have patience for plants I have to baby too much, either. If something dies despite reasonable effort, I just won't plant another one--it obviously wasn't a good fit for my garden.

5. Your local garden center is your best friend. By "local", I DON'T mean the closest Home Depot or Lowe's. I mean some place owned locally, and staffed by people who are gardeners themselves. Those people are treasures of information. They'll tell you how to take care of your plants in your climate. If you bring in a leaf with disease or insect pests, they can tell you what pesticides to use. Not to mention, a good garden center will only sell you high-quality plants that are suited to your climate.