Three Flower Gardening Ideas For The Busy Bee

Do you love flower gardening but don't have the time and space to accommodate any? Solve your dilemma pronto by checking out the following list of low-maintenance flower gardening ideas for busy people like you.

1. Use pots. Since you won't be working on the whole backyard, you'll spend a shorter time tending to your potted flower garden. This means less dirt, less backbreaking work and less maintenance. What's good about gardening is that it requires only two steps: potting a container and watering your potted plant.

Although the term sounds redundant, potting a container simply means preparing your flower pot for planting.

First, select a pot liner. Usually a plastic container, the liner facilitates aeration and water distribution, and enhances drainage.

Second, select a flower pot that you like and place it in the liner. The ideal pot has holes (covered with coffee filter) at the bottom for drainage.

Third, add rocks or broken pot shards inside the bottom of the flower pot. The rocks and pot shards help facilitate aeration and help enhance drainage.

Fourth, add potting soil. Unlike ordinary gardening soil, potting soil constitutes a variety of less organic material (like tree bark, moss and peat), creating a nice balance between water retention and drainage.

Fifth, plant your plant and finish off by adding a top layer of potting soil.

Once you've potted the container, maintain your garden by watering your potted plants as needed. To avoid either under watering or over watering, check first the moisture level of the soil before doing any watering. To do this, dip your finger into the soil or use a commercial moisture meter. If the soil is dry one inch down, your plant needs watering.

2. Use flower boxes. If you want to enhance your deck or window area semi-permanently, use flower boxes. Although larger than pots, flower boxes operate under the same basic principles of pot gardening.

First, optimize the soil for plant growth by mixing the potting soil with some water and fertilizer. Fill the flower box two-thirds of the way with this well-mixed potting soil.

Second, before removing plants from their pots, arrange the plants on the flower box. When you've already decided how to arrange your plants, gently remove them from their containers.

Third, replant the flowers starting from the center of the flower box and working your way to the sides. Add top soil as you go about.

Fourth, finish your handy work by lightly watering the flower box until water starts to drip. You're now ready to hang the flower box at your window area.

3. Select low-maintenance plants. The definition of low maintenance greatly depends on the existing conditions and temperature your place has. Exploit your knowledge of your area to the fullest. For instance, if your place gets too much sun, plant daylilies. If you're too busy to even notice these things; however, then settle for the ever-reliable petunias, hostas, and succulents like purple rosettes, rattails and caped ivies.