7 Beginners Gardening Mistakes You Can Easily Avoid

Mistake 2: forgetting that plants need THREE things to prosper

We all know plants need food and water, that they pull nutrients from the ground to grow.  But the third thing they need is light and how much depends on the plant.

The lack of light or too much of it is one of the most common reasons plants die.  But you don’t need to be baffled by this.  Every plant should come with a little nametag that tells you all about what it needs.

For example, if a plant says it is fine in full sun, then in the middle of the garden is no problem.  But put it next to the hedge where the sun never really reaches, it won’t do so well.  The other side of the coin is a shade loving plant – put it in full sun and it will probably die a quick death, especially in summer.

The solution: read up on each plant you buy or plan to and make sure you know where it will live for the right level of light.  That way it will get food and light from above and below and be a happy grower.

Mistake 3: Not using the right fertiliser (or any at all)

It’s true that established plants often don’t need much in the way of fertilisers.  But you are new at gardening so I’m guessing your plants are all pretty new as well.  Newly planted specimens definitely need some help to get going but you do need to use the right fertiliser.

There are plenty of types of fertilisers including organic, inorganic and compound fertilisers.  When you buy a plant it will usually tell you what kind of fertiliser it needs – or a quick Google search will answer the question.  But there are three general nutrients plants need from fertiliser:

• Nitrogen (N) – green leaf growth
• Phosphorus (P) – healthy roots and shoot growth
• Potassium (K) – flowering, producing fruit and being hardy in winter

Then there are the two main types of fertiliser:

• Inorganic – synthetic plant nutrients or naturally occurring minerals, fast-acting and more concentrated.  Examples include brands like Miracle-Gro and Tomorite
• Organic – made from plant or animal sources, slower-acting as the soil needs to break them down.  Examples including seaweed, fish blood and bone, poultry manure pellets or liquid comfrey

Lastly, there’s four different product types that can be organic or inorganic:

• Compound fertilisers – mix different nutrients and balanced for certain types of plants or crops
• Straight fertilisers – contain one main nutrient and are often given at particular times of the year
• Controlled release fertilisers – usually inorganic fertilisers coated with a material such as sulphur that slows the release
• Slow-release – similar to controlled release but use the influence of micro-organisms in the soil to release the nutrients and are mostly organic fertilisers

As you can see there’s a lot to be said about fertiliser (and I’ll do that in another article) but as a quick snap, you can see that getting the right one is important.

The solution: read up on your plants to see what they need and when.  Then use a garden planner to track what you need to give them and when.

Mistake 4: not understanding what to plant with what

Plants might seem pretty peaceful but the truth is that they don’t always like each other.  Some get on really well and help each other with things like pest control – planting them together is known as companion planting.

But other times, plants don’t get along with each other.  Sunflowers are a notorious example – sure they look lovely but don’t let that trick you.  Other plants need to be at least a foot away otherwise they won’t do well.

Vegetables are another finicky group.  Peas and beans don’t like chives, onions, peppers or even leeks.  Don’t let broccoli or cauliflower be too near strawberries or tomatoes.

The solution: do a little research on what plants work well together and what don’t.  Then you can create a harmonious and successful garden.

Mistake 5: watering plants too much

We all know that plants need plenty of water but there’s also the thing that you can water them too much.  Yes, they can be fussy and a bit of a pain.

A classic beginners gardening mistake is to water plants too much, especially ones that don’t have high water requirements.  This can lead to the growth of mould and fungus as well as holding back the growth of the plant.  

Not only that but it makes them a bit lazy because the water’s always easy to come by.  My old neighbour was an obsessive daily waterer and I always said if we had water shortages, her garden would be dead in two days as the plants were so used to getting huge amounts of water.

The solution: mostly water the garden 1-3 times a week, depending on how much rain you’ve had during the spring and summer.  Aim to water first thing in the morning as afternoon watering can let the sun burn the leaves through the water.  And evening watering means excess can’t evaporate so fungus and mould can grow.

Mistake 6: not spotting those weeds

Weeds are the traditional enemy of the gardener but how do you know what’s a weed and what’s a new plant?  Weeds can be beneficial – there’s a whole range of things you can make with them.  But some are a real problem.

The solution: do a little reading on the big weed problems in your area and learn to spot them.  If in doubt, take a photo and use a gardening group to get some input whether this is a welcome arrival or an invasion force in the form of a small green plant.

Mistake 7: not keeping a garden record

Some people treat garden logs as a bit like a family history project.  You don’t need to go as far as that but it is good practice to keep some records about your plants.

Recording the basics about your plants means you know what’s in your garden and can better spot weeds.  You’ll know when you fertilised a plat and when it needs to be harvested.  You can even jot down things like how much fruit or vegetables each plant produced.

The solution: create a garden plan and journal.  You can go digital if you like – take a photo of the plant’s label and record when you planted it and where.  Or you can grab a printable planner and add relevant information to it.  Even just a notebook will do the job.