Gardening Tips, Advice and Tutorials
The Gardening Cook has you covered for every gardening topic. Just click the photo or links below to read lots of different posts in each category. These articles will help you learn how to garden like a pro with information and advice on all gardening topics. Browse my how-to articles and tutorials for all your garden tasks, plus get tips to help you garden through the year, both indoors and out.
Discover how to make gardening easy. Whether you have experience with gardening for many years, or you are just a beginner, these articles will answer your gardening questions and give you loads of inspiration for your garden space.
The Gardening Cook has an extensive library of pages related to all aspects of gardening. Whether you are an experienced gardener or a beginner….whether you love flowers, or veggies, or herbs, I have tried to cover every category for you. If you are looking for articles on the site which deal with wildlife, you will find them here too. I am a life long gardener and am always happiest when I am digging in the dirt. 
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Liann
Friday 24th of September 2021
Nice to meet you .Your site is great
Marilyn Putz
Friday 26th of June 2020
I have a "Fluffy Ruffle" (Nephrolepis Exaltata) fern which has gone from winning blue ribbons to a very poor looking fern. It is about 35 yrs. old and has never been repotted. Can you tell me how to go about this? This fern is my pride and joy and I do no want to lose it. My ferns go outside every June-Sept. (I live in Chicago area) and when I brought them in last Sept. the fern had lost many fronds, esp. on one side and was half of its previous size. Now one whole side is nothing but brown "sticks".
Carol Speake
Friday 26th of June 2020
Boston ferns should be repotted every 2 or three years. They have a tendency to get pot bound. To repot, remove the plant from its container. Choose a new pot about 2 inches larger then the old one and add some soil on the bottom. Place the fern on the soil so it sits as the same level. Add soil to the sides around the roots. Trim off any lower dead leaves and water normally.
moh
Thursday 11th of August 2016
I like your site so much. tanks for beautiful site
Carol
Thursday 11th of August 2016
Hi Moh. Thanks for the kind words. I am glad you are enjoying my site. Carol
Veronica ntombifuthi Ka Mzizi Nesane
Sunday 30th of August 2015
I'm new in gardening. I want to start my garden,but my problem is that I'm not used to gardening terminology ,can you explain to me the difference between annuals and perennials ?
admin
Monday 31st of August 2015
HI Veronica. Welcome to gardening. I hope that you end up liking it the way I do. Basically, annuals grow for one year (and are usually a bit less expensive to buy) They flower all season and then die when the cold whether comes unless you dig them up and bring them indoors for the winter. (warm zones like zone 10-11 can grown them all year long outdoors.)
Perennials cost a big more to purchase but will come back year after year. They have a limited blooming season compared to annuals, so I plant them in stages so that I will have something blooming all the time. Once established, perennials can do with less water. Annuals need regular watering.
If you run a search on my blog for the search term "annual perennial" it will bring up additional articles about the subject.
Hope this helps. Carol
kathryn king
Saturday 25th of April 2015
Needhrlp using your website I want to learn about growing verbena
admin
Saturday 25th of April 2015
Hi Kathryn,
Verbena plants can take quite a bit of heat and drought. But they grow best if you give them adequate water when they are growing in the spring and summer.
Verbenas should be grown where they will receive full sun for at least 8-10 hours each day, unless you live in the hottest summer regions, where they will like some afternoon shade.
They like soil with excellent drainage and do not do well if left in soggy soil. Verbenas will grow and flower best if you mix in compost, or other organic material to the planting hole before setting in your new plant.
Water them regularly and thoroughly until they are well established. After that, you will only need to water them when the soil is dry.
Feed once, in the spring when the plants are about 6" tall, using a good, all-purpose liquid fertilizer.
Prune them when they get leggy to produce a bushier plant and more flowers.
Carol