airaze.com Gardeners need to follow good hygiene and always wash their hands after handling a plant. Once you have harvested any part of the plant, wash the produce. This will help to reduce the chance of spreading plant pathogens. A plant in distress might look dead, but it will probably recover on its own with a little TLC. If a leaf shows brown patches and wilting, spray it with water and wait a few hours before deciding whether to throw it away or resuscitate it. A few dead leaves are OK as long as they aren’t on the whole plant. Some plants, like potatoes, should not be replanted from year to year. Some perennials and vegetables can be grown from seed and you might want to try that. Most vegetable seeds are sown in early spring, and vegetables can be harvested in late summer and autumn for fall crops and as a perennial plant. Some vegetables like beets, carrots and onions should be left in the soil to grow the next year. The roots are left in the ground to store food and make more leaves and roots to develop in the spring, when it’s time to plant. How to plant veggies You can start seeds in small pots in a sunny windowsill for about a month before transplanting to larger pots. Then, plant in a fertile area and water regularly during the growing season. Some vegetables, like broccoli and cauliflower can be divided in the ground in autumn before frosts. Fruit trees can be bought bare-root, or you can buy rootstocks and young trees at local nurseries, too. The young trees can be planted in autumn when the temperature is cooler. Winter-hardy citrus trees may need to be kept outdoors during winter but should be watered regularly. Winter pruning of fruit trees might be necessary to stop them from getting overgrown and to shape the tree. This can be done in summer or winter. Spring-flowering fruit trees may be winter-flowering. These need to be protected during winter to avoid losing their flower buds and not to have a long bare branch in spring. If you are buying a fruit tree from a nursery, you might want to ask them if they have winter care techniques that will maintain the tree’s winter vigour. Planting bulbs in autumn or summer is a good idea. Seedlings don’t need much attention until they grow to several inches tall and start flowering and producing fruit. When to plant fruit trees Plant young trees, such as apple and cherry trees, in the fall or spring in temperate areas. Pines, spruces, oaks and several other trees will also grow and give a good crop of fruit in the following summer. A good time to plant young trees is in autumn, especially if they are to be grown in pots. It’s wise to cover the pots with newspaper and plant them in a shady area to prevent frosts from damaging the young roots in the spring. Mature, well-rooted, and mature trees can be planted in summer when it’s a little warmer. Plant hardy plants such as lavender, rosemary and rose when they are dormant and protected with their mulch of straw in a windless, sheltered area in the garden. You can plant fruit trees or roses from late spring to late summer. They can be planted before pruning. You might have to wait for the ground to warm up a little before planting. Spring-flowering fruit trees can be planted in early autumn, while they’re dormant. Plants such as camellia need cool conditions for the first few weeks of the year. For many deciduous fruit trees, a heavy cover of straw can prevent frost damage. If you can’t plant trees in the winter, use a protective covering over trees in the garden in the spring. They will continue to grow as the weather warms up. How to grow strawberries Strawberries like a long, warm, dry, sunny growing season. You can plant strawberries outdoors, but strawberry runners do better if they’re kept inside or under cover. You might have to keep strawberries in a heated greenhouse, especially in cold climates. If you want to have strawberry plants indoors during winter, you can move the plants to an outdoor area in early spring and then transplant them to your heated greenhouse or sun room. Plant new beds by preparing the soil, planting and protecting plants until they’ve got established. Make sure to protect the bed with mulch, and put up some netting if necessary to keep out rabbits and deer. Planting strawberry plants in autumn, or when it’s warm enough, in the spring is a good idea. They should not be overwintered indoors. These usually produce fruit in the following summer. Strawberry runners planted in early autumn will put up a lot of new growth in spring. If you have some strawberry plants, you can simply dig up your runners and plant them into new soil. Plant runners under a shelter, preferably a cloche, before winter. You should cover the strawberry plants after all danger of frost has passed and before they put out new growth. Keep the soil moist during the winter. Growing vegetables from seed or seedling Vegetables that are started from seed have been grown under special conditions and have had a good start in life before being planted outside. These include celery, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and chard. Be sure to sow young plants carefully. Small holes are good for young plants. Sow a few seeds per hole so the plants are not crowded. Thin seedlings when they are ready for harvest. Sowing in pots You can buy seed for almost all plants online. You can order seeds of your choice from garden centres, nurseries, mail-order and online retailers. The simplest way to grow new plants from seed is to sow the seed into the soil. Or you can buy small pots and plant seedlings in a protected area in the garden. If you are growing plants from seed, you need to watch the plants for a year or two. You can help them grow by giving them a regular dose of water, a well-balanced fertilizer or a little fertilizer once a month. Transplanting new plants Sometimes you may have to transplant young seedlings from the nursery to their permanent home, but if the soil is not particularly good for plant growth, you can sow a tiny seedling in a larger pot or into a small garden bed before transplanting. When you buy seedlings, don’t give them any sort of chemical treatment. Wait until the plant is ready to be transplanted before you use a fertilizer. The seedling is not completely established. Seeds and plants ready to be sown should be treated gently at first, especially when you transplant seedlings. Young plants should be transplanted carefully when they are almost mature, so they don’t get damaged. This means that you should avoid transplanting plants in full sunshine, especially in hot, dry conditions. Fertilizing plants Fertilizers are needed for the plant to grow well, flower and have a good crop. If you are adding fertilizers, apply a little at a time and test your soil every year. Pots and containers that are kept inside might need fertilizer or compost added every now and then. It’s better to use well-balanced compost or organic fertilizer, as a high level of nitrogen may damage plants that need water regularly. There is no plant that is not benefited by having a bit of fertilized soil or compost to grow in. Many organic fertilisers can be bought ready to use and applied to the soil and composted plants regularly. This means that you should apply fertilizer only a few times a year, or if your plants are in pots. You might need to fertilise new seedlings in the spring, but not grown plants. If you use slow-release fertilizer, you need to put it into the soil for new plants when you’re ready to transplant. You can either dig the whole pot into the soil, or place the fertilizer on the soil surface. Add water to make the fertilizer dissolve well. Some plants, such as peas, spinach, beans and root vegetables, need a heavy dose of fertilizer when they are young and sometimes a little more after that. This is due to their rapid growth in the garden. Plants need regular, well-timed watering, and you can water plants well before they show drought symptoms. You should keep pots or containers well watered and never leave plants in the sun too long or they might wilt. Growing on compost Organic compost is needed by almost all plants. It’s especially important to grow fruit and berry plants in a rich, well-drained soil. The best compost for a vegetable garden is partly decayed horse manure, cow manure and well-decayed garden waste. The soil needs to be changed every year as soon as you pull out your old plants. Compost is the right type of fertilizer for all plants and will improve soil structure and make new plants healthy and strong. It is not beneficial to feed plants that have gone through the composting process, such as strawberries. Composting plants and putting compost into your soil can help improve the soil in your garden.