Planting and Growing
People choose to grow plants for several reasons, such as putting food on the table, feeling closer to nature, providing a habitat for insects and other animals, or making the outside of their home look beautiful.
In this section, you’ll find all the information you need for planting and growing home gardens. Topics covered include choosing plants, container gardening, soil testing, pruning, and deadheading. Find tips on home orchards, vegetable and fruit gardens, native plants, and herbs.
How to Plant a Home Garden
Planting your own garden is a very rewarding thing to do. Everyone can benefit from getting their hands dirty, whether you’re planting ornamentals, growing fruits, vegetables, or garden flowers.
The first step is to decide what plants you want to grow. Native plants are a good place to start because they are generally easier to grow and cheaper to maintain. Native trees, shrubs, and other plants also help preserve Pennsylvania’s diversity.
Once you’ve decided what types of plants you want to grow in your garden, the next step is to choose the best location. Picking the right spot for your plants is crucial. Most vegetables and flowers need at least 6-8 hours of full sun every day. They also need plenty of moisture. However, there are plants suitable for a range of different locations. For example:
- Sun to part sun and dry to moist soil: Mockernut Hickory, White Ash, Aromatic Aster, and Golden Aster
- Sun to part sun and wet to moist soil: Red Maple, American Holly, Gray Dogwood, and Blue Flag Iris
- Shade to part shade and dry to moist soil: Maple Viburnum, Wild Columbine, Blue Wood Aster, and Wreath Goldenrod
If you want to plant an orchard, choose a location with plenty of sunlight as this is key for maximum fruit production. Grapes also require lots of sunshine. Most fruits require a fair amount of space, but small fruits, such as strawberries, can thrive in a limited space.
Successful pest management includes plant rotation based on plant families. If you’re worried about the soil quality, there’s always the option of using raised beds. You can quickly build them yourself and allow for gardening in conditions that might not be ideal for growth. Growing herbs is another option because they are some of the easiest plants to grow and tolerate various soil types.
You can start your plants in several different ways. Sowing seeds is the most obvious choice, but you have to make sure you select the best seeds and provide the optimum growing environment. You can sow annual seeds indoors and outdoors. Sowing annual seeds is a relatively inexpensive way to produce garden plants.
Some of the most common annuals you can grow in your garden are marigolds, petunias, impatiens, geraniums, and zinnias. When your annual seedlings have developed their first pair of identifiable true leaves, they’re ready for transplanting.
You can also start your vegetable garden indoors. However, before you’re ready to transplant your vegetable seedlings outdoors, there’s lots of work to be done. For example, the quality of the soil is essential when you begin a vegetable garden.
Container Gardening
If space in your garden is limited, container gardening might be the answer. There’s no right way to create a container garden, however, there are four common principles you should follow. These are:
- Choose the right container
- Use the best potting mix
- Select the perfect plants
- Fertilize and water correctly
You can grow vegetables, edible plants, soft fruits, and flowers. Container gardening is also ideal for small spaces, but it is also very effective if you want to emphasize particular seasonal plants and if you want to supplement your fall landscape.
How to Grow and Maintain a Home Garden
It doesn’t matter what plants you’re growing. Vegetables, fruits, and herbs all require care and attention. Every plant has different requirements and growing needs. For your garden to be free of disease and pests and healthy, you need to water and maintain it properly.
The Penn State Extension Master Gardener Manual covers a wide variety of plant and gardening topics for beginners, advanced gardeners, and plant, landscape, and pest professionals.
Selecting and preparing your vegetable garden site will give it the best foundation. After that, various care and maintenance must take place.
Perennials, for example, benefit from dividing. In the fall, some should be left standing, and some cut down. Deadheading is another job you should do regularly, as it promotes new growth and re-flowering. Learn how to propagate using cuttings and layering, and you’ll be able to grow new plants from existing ones.
In a home orchard, correct pruning is essential if you want your orchard to be productive. Use the Home Orchard Calendar to decide when is the best time to do this important maintenance task.
Pruning Your Home Garden
Pruning is an essential task if you’ve got apples and pears or other fruit trees in your backyard. You can increase your fruit trees’ productivity with correct pruning, and you can also renovate old fruit trees that are out of control.
A variety of other plants benefit from judicious pruning. The late winter is the perfect time to prune trees and shrubs to ensure continued plant growth and vigor. Pruning plays an essential role in the maintenance of ornamental plants, and it can increase their health and beauty. Herbaceous plants benefit from pruning techniques such as disbudding, pinching back, cutting back, and thinning. The best time to prune flowering shrubs is when they’ve stopped flowering.
- Workshops
$15.00
Hands-On Miniature Terrarium Workshop
When 05/23/2024Length 1.5This workshop will present the basics of building and maintaining terrariums. You will have the opportunity to create a miniature terrarium with a live Sinningia plant to take home! - Workshops
Free
Native Plant Walk
When Multiple Options AvailableLength 1.5Learn about identifying common native plants, managing invasive species, and the benefits of native plants to wildlife. - Webinars
$10.00
Know Your Natives: Secrets to Seed Sowing and Germination
When 04/22/2024Length 1 hourDiscover the significance of germination conditions and how to replicate them in your garden. Explore diverse native plants, delving into factors like cold moist stratification and scarification. Essential knowledge if you're keen on cultivating your own native plants! - Workshops
Free
Master Gardener Training Info for Butler County
When Multiple Options AvailableLength 1 hour, 30 minutesAre you fascinated by gardening? Do you enjoy volunteering and sharing your gardening knowledge with others? You may be interested in the Penn State Master Gardener volunteer program! - Webinars
Free
Master Gardener Training Info for Bucks County
When Multiple Options AvailableLength .5Attend this virtual event to learn how to become a Master Gardener in Bucks County. - Workshops
Free
Pennsylvania Native Species Day Walk
When 06/05/2024Length 2 hoursExplore the benefits, identification, and mutual dependence of native species, including an understanding of keystone species and biodiversity. - Webinars
$10.00
Orchids for Everyone: How to Repot, Divide, and Mount Orchids
When 02/12/2024Length 1.25Gain tips from the experts on how to carefully and successfully re-pot your indoor orchids. - Webinars
$5.00
Living on a Few Acres: Tree and Small Fruit Production
When 05/09/2024Length 2 hoursIdeal for those with trees or berry plants, or those starting a small orchard. We cover basics, guaranteeing a fruitful harvest in no time! - Articles
Understanding Wildflower Seed Mixes
Is it a good idea to plant a wildflower seed mix? This article explains what is considered a wildflower and gives you tips for selecting and planting a wildflower mix. - Articles
Cilantro, a Unique Culinary Herb
Learn more about growing cilantro, an herb that has become quite a trend and is also one of the most divisive food ingredients. - Workshops
Free
Master Gardener Training Info for Franklin County
When 05/21/2024Length 1 hourAre you fascinated by gardening? Do you enjoy volunteering and sharing your gardening knowledge with others? You may be interested in the Penn State Master Gardener volunteer program! - Webinars
Living on a Few Acres: Mushroom and Vegetable Production
Length 2 hoursJoin us to learn about mushroom and vegetable production in this informative webinar. - Workshops
$5.00
Gardening with Nature: Growing Pumpkins and Gourds at Home
When 05/16/2024Length 1.5Master the art of cultivating, nurturing, and reaping pumpkins, gourds, and the elusive "Great" Charlie Brown pumpkin while crafting the quintessential birdhouse gourd. - Workshops
Free
Master Gardener Training Info for Delaware County
When 05/16/2024Length 1 hourAttend this in-person workshop to learn how to become a Master Gardener in Delaware County. - Webinars
$10.00
Water Features in My Garden
When 05/02/2024Length 1.25Discover how to build a mini-bog for native plants, create a sunken garden, landscape a water garden for aquatic life, appreciate native flowers, and find bubbling boulders for wildlife water sources. - Webinars
Free
Master Gardener Training Info for Delaware County
When Multiple Options AvailableLength 1 hourAttend this virtual event to learn how to become a Master Gardener in Delaware County. - Webinars
Free
Master Gardener Training Info for Lebanon County
When 05/13/2024Length 1 hourAttend this virtual event to learn how to become a Master Gardener in Lebanon County. - Webinars
$10.00
Good Gardening: Vegetable Plant Partnering Based on Science
When 05/08/2024Length 1 hourDiscover which vegetable and herb plants thrive together, which combinations hinder productivity, and learn how to minimize pesticide and fertilizer usage in your garden. - Workshops
$10.00
Mother's Day Container Workshop for Youth
When 05/04/2024Length 2 hoursMake a beautiful arrangement to gift for Mother's Day! - Workshops
$25.00
Pollinator Friendly Container Garden
When 05/04/2024Length 2 hoursEngage in an enriching experience alongside Master Gardeners as you explore the art of crafting a stunning container garden filled with vibrant plants. - Workshops
$30.00
Succulent Secrets: Discover and Design a Succulent Terrarium
When 05/04/2024Length 1.5Explore various succulent types, master the art of creating succulent terrariums, and understand the optimal environment for cultivating succulents in confined areas. - Workshops
Free
Colorful Climbing Clematis
When 05/04/2024Length 1.5Discover the mysteries of three distinct groups of clematis, each with its own pruning methods, along with planting tips, bloom times, and a variety of species—from non-vining to impressive 10-foot performers. - Articles
Mulch - A Survey of Available Options
A gardener has many choices when it comes to mulch. This article covers the pros and cons of various types of organic, non-organic, and living mulches. - Articles
A Gardener's Guide to Peas
This article unscrambles the sometimes confusing common names of peas and gives instructions for how to grow this popular cool-season vegetable. - Workshops
Free
Garden and Landscape Symposium and Marketplace
When 04/27/2024Length 6 hoursAttend this educational event for Home gardeners of all levels and landscape professionals featuring renowned horticultural professionals.