Eco-Friendly Gardening Tips for Spring

eco-friendly spring gardening tips

Spring is here and it is time to grow! As you plan your garden refresh for the season, consider eco-friendly options when you plant. Helping the environment is more important now than ever.

planting tomato

Eco-friendly gardening is earth-friendly gardening. It teaches us better habits and to evolve our gardening approach in a way that revitalizes our soils, encourages sustainability, and teaches us to grow organically. It is essential for supporting our local ecosystems, wildlife, and it can even create a healthier life for you and your family.

 

The Benefits of Using Proven Winners® Eco+ Grande™ Pots in Your Garden

Benefits of Using Proven Winners® Eco+ Grande™ Pots in Your Garden

Choose plant-powered packaging for your flowerbeds and containers with Proven Winners®! Their Eco+ Grande™ garden pots are fully compostable containers that look, act, and perform like plastic. It is made with renewable plants including corn, switchgrass, and sugar beets grown right here in the U.S.

eco grande planter

How do Eco Pots support sustainable gardening practices? They have plant nutrients built right into the walls of the container that are rich in phosphorous, calcium, and nitrogen. As they break down in your soil, these nutrients and proteins are released and help nourish the plant’s roots. This helps your plants grow bigger, last longer, and prevents stress to the plant by eliminating the disturbance.

planting proven winners eco pots

When you are ready to plant, simply peel the tabs off the pot and toss them into the soil. The holes will allow the roots to grow properly. Plant the entire Eco+ Grande™ in the ground and water in thoroughly. The container will naturally disintegrate over time, while keeping your plants nourished!

 

Choosing the Best Plants for Your Edible Garden

Choosing the Best Plants for Your Edible Garden | Picture of a family picking tomatoes

Skip the line at the grocery store and grow what you eat! Creating your own edible garden can benefit your life in many ways. It will be easier to add fruits and vegetables into your diet, you can control the growing environment with organic fertilizer and pesticides, and your edibles will have a better flavor with more nutrients. Growing your own fruits and vegetables will make you feel good too! You will be getting more exercise, relieving stress, and the whole family can enjoy time together outside in your garden. There are also many eco-friendly benefits of growing your own food. It reduces carbon emissions and waste, and it helps keep our air, water, and soil clean.

picture of a vegetable garden | edible gardens

One of the joys of edible gardening is the flexibility of where and how you grow. You can create raised beds for plants, grow in pottery, or create edible landscaping. Edible landscaping or “Foodscaping” is growing in popularity. It is a way to incorporate fruit-bearing plants, herbs, vegetables, and flowers into a stunning landscape design. You can create front yard edible landscaping or spruce up a sunny area in your back yard. Add in herb flowers like lavender or add texture with oregano. You can also pair with other plants that will help your edibles thrive. Companion plants help deter pests and attract pollinators. Mix in pollinator-friendly annuals to create fullness and use tomatoes or peppers as the main attraction.

Unsure of what to grow in your edible garden? Here are some great options to plan now!

HERBS

edible garden of herbs

Edible herbs are fragrant, delicious, and beautiful. Herbs thrive on sunny windowsills, in garden beds, or in containers. You will have fresh herbs that are jam packed with vitamins and minerals, ready to enhance your meals.

VEGETABLES

tomatoes and peppers

Imagine enjoying a juicy tomato fresh from your garden. Spring is the ideal time to start planting your favorite vegetables like tomatoes and peppers. Tomatoes are one of most foods grown in edible gardens. They are relatively easy to grow and they are rich in vitamins, potassium, and fiber. Peppers are just as popular and even more versatile. They can be sweet or spicy, tiny or large. Peppers have anti-inflammatory properties and high levels of vitamin C.

For information on growing your own food for beginners, here is a gardening guide on how to start your vegetable garden.

FRUIT TREES

fruit from fruit trees | persimmons

Add some sweetness to your landscape with fruit trees. These perennial edibles produce a bounty of delicious fruit year after year, they look gorgeous in the spring, and on those Texas summer days, they can provide you and your family with cool shade. You can enjoy freshly picked for a healthy snack or transform it into a lovely dessert. Freshly picked fruits are richer in vitamins and will provide even more nutritional benefits to you and your family.

Which fruit trees do you want in your edible garden? The Texstar Peach Tree is a Texas staple.

 

The Importance of Pollinator Plants in Supporting Biodiversity

The Importance of Pollinator Plants in Supporting Biodiversity | butterfly on salvia

What is a pollinator garden? It is an area of your landscape that is designed to contain the best plants for pollinators like bees, birds, and butterflies. These plants provide food and shelter for our friendly pollinators which helps support the local ecosystem. Pollinator decline is occurring at an alarming rate and this can greatly impact the vitality of our world. Adding pollinator plants attracts and encourages the essential movement of pollen from one flower to another. There are many ideal plants for pollination. Try mixing annuals and perennials in your flowerbeds for year-round color and support for our pollinators.

WARM SEASON ANNUALS

marigolds | warm season annuals

Marigolds and Zinnias are fantastic pollinator plants. Bees and hummingbirds are attracted to the yellow florets of Marigolds.

zinnia

Zinnias are also popular pollinator plants. They are a fa heat and drought tolerant and a favorite to butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees.

SPRING PERENNIALS

shasta daisy | spring perennials

Perennials are a great choice for your landscape because they will rebloom year after year. Shasta Daisy and Salvia are some of the best pollinator plants for your garden. They are popular to bees and butterflies. Plus, they are drought-tolerant and vigorous growers. Coreopsis is a favorite for butterfly gardens and birds love to eat the seeds in the fall.

 

The Benefits of Organic Gardening: Why More Gardeners Are Making the Switch

The Benefits of Organic Gardening | Picture of a gardener raking organic dirt

Creating an eco-friendly garden starts with natural gardening. From plant food to potting soil, growing organically is better for your health and our environment. The taste of your fruits and vegetables will be better, your garden can be free of toxins, and you can ensure our beneficial insects and other pollinators are not harmed by chemicals. Organic gardening can also create less erosion of topsoil with the addition of organic matter and compost.

calloway's garden compost

Start your spring garden with Calloway’s Organic Garden Compost. It is made from the highest quality ingredients to replenish and condition your soil naturally. Mushroom compost is another effective soil amendment that adds organic humus and nutrients to your flowerbeds and gardens. Try Espoma® Organic Mushroom Compost while planting or as a top dressing.

For containers, we recommend Calloway’s Organic Container Potting Soil. It is the ideal soil for planters so you can maintain your natural gardening approach.

mulch

Mulch for gardens is essential. It reduces water use by preventing evaporation and allowing the plants to absorb water at a steady rate. It also regulates soil temperature protecting delicate root systems and reduces weed growth. Calloway’s Premium Organic Mulch is a 100% organic top dressing for all your garden plants. It is long-lasting and will instantly complete the look of your landscape.

Feed your garden the organic way with Espoma® Organic® Tones plant food! They are packed with natural proteins and beneficial microbes for all areas of your landscape. They have 100% natural and organic ingredients that provides your plants a long-lasting, slow-release feeding.

 

Planting Trees for the Future: How Your Actions Today Can Benefit Future Generations

Planting Trees for the Future: How Your Actions Today Can Benefit Future Generations | Picture of people planting a tree

Plant a tree and save the earth! Planting trees is very important for the environment and future generations. They are a natural and affordable way to help pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. Trees clean the air, filter our water, and provide shade.

shade leaves

Trees support wildlife and they can increase the value of your property. You can choose from shade trees like a Southern Live Oak, or for seasonal blooms, select a Little Gem Magnolia.

 

Designing Your Wildlife Garden: Tips for Creating a Habitat that Works for You and Your Wildlife

Designing Your Wildlife Garden | Picture of a hummingbird

Want to do more for the environment? Create a backyard wildlife sanctuary for our Texas birds! This low-maintenance wildlife garden is easy to set up and fun to enjoy. Attracting birds to our landscapes will help with insect control, weed control, and of course, flower pollination.

bird seed

Garden birds need food and relaxation too. Bird Feeders filled with quality seeds allows us to balance out any food limitations and help keep their bellies full. Try Calloway’s Bird Seed Blends to provide energy and nutrition to our feathered friends. With each “flavor”, you can attract an array of different birds to your home.

bird house

Add nesting boxes like bird houses to your garden and give our Texas birds a break. Bird houses provide an ideal spot to rest while protecting them from other wildlife or weather conditions.

 

SHOP WITH EASE

gardening for spring

At Calloway’s and Cornelius, we have everything you need to create your eco-friendly garden this spring! Visit us today and explore our entire collection of seasonal blooms, fantastic pottery, indoor plants, fresh vegetables, and so much more! Shop one of our 27 neighborhood stores or shop online now!

Have questions? Ask our Texas Certified Nursery Professionals; they are here to help!

 

 

 

 

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