Looking for tips and tricks to start my gardening journey

General
1

tldr LF tips in gardening Specifically urban outdoor gardening using pots

Hello this forum I am a 29y/o recently single guy trying to get into gardening as a hobby to help distract myself from everything

I posted here because I am looking for tips and tricks to become a better gardener I have found a lot of materials online but since I live in a different area and climate much of the info I see does not really apply to my situation

So here is a bit about me

I live in a humid climate near the equator which is tropical and has a rainy season and a dry season Right now I have a small outdoor setup in an urban space with clay pots filled with different ornamental plants and a lot of weeds I managed to harvest a small pineapple that I grew before the pandemic and ate it in early 2023 It was sweet and juicy but small The plant is still growing in the pot and I want to propagate it and take good care of it Any tips on that I also need help with removing weeds and keeping them from coming back since most of them come from the empty lot next to my house

I know different plants need different kinds of soil but I am just using soil from a local garden shop I am not sure what it’s called but they said it is good for filling holes and such I apologize if this info does not help I am learning more about soil and what it’s made of

Irrigation Do you know any good YouTube channels where I can learn to make my own irrigation system using common household items I have plenty of 1.5L plastic bottles that I could cut and shape

What about fertilizer Do you buy it from the store How do you start using organic methods I heard about a 3 bucket method where you put worms with soil and food matter together and then you get compost Any insights on this would be helpful What about a compost bin Is it similar to the 3 bucket method

I’ve heard about using eggshells for fertilizer Some people boil them grind them into powder and let it sit with vinegar and water to help increase calcium for plants Can someone explain how this works

I would also like to learn how growing cycles affect plants What plants should I grow at different times of the year and why

Here are some plants I would like to grow If you know of any beginner-friendly plants please share

  • Herbs and Spices like Basil Parsley Chili Peppers Bell Peppers etc

  • Aloe Vera I have seen gardeners use Aloe Vera for propagating plants so I think it would be nice to have

  • Flowers I want to attract more bees I am looking into propagating roses sunflowers or just buying flower seeds from the store How hard is it to root and propagate roses Any tips

  • I made a craft video about extracting seeds from a supermarket bell pepper dried them for a few weeks and now I have some seeds to plant I am not sure if they will grow since I am new to this

I am also curious about hydroponics and vertical farming If you have experience could you show your setup and how you keep a simple hydroponics system going

I am eager to research in my free time but I would love to hear about your personal experiences and tips here

I want to know which plants are good for a beginner like me vegetables fruit trees like citrus or berries or any of the plants I mentioned before

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You might be making things harder for yourself At the risk of sounding rude I want to say it sounds like you have a lot on your mind

You mentioned weeds That should be your first step Pull them out and clean the area so you know exactly what you are working with

Once you’ve done that come back with a new post focusing on one thing you want to do We’re a helpful group here and we will try to assist you

Growing plants brings a lot of joy Take it slow and enjoy the process it’s not a race

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@Corey
Thanks for the advice That sounds like a good plan Baby steps It’s time for me to get rid of the weeds

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Bryn said:
@Corey
Thanks for the advice That sounds like a good plan Baby steps It’s time for me to get rid of the weeds

Make sure to put weeds in the trash Even if you have a compost bin sometimes they don’t get hot enough to kill the seeds

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@Corey
Exactly OP The reason for this is that you don’t want the weed seeds to come back in your garden

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Visit a nursery and pick out a few pretty plants Watching YouTube videos can be helpful Starting seeds is easy Just put them in a wet paper towel then into a sandwich bag and let it be There’s something peaceful about taking care of your plants and talking to them Good luck

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You should try growing mint or lettuce They are both easy to grow Take some mint stalks and lettuce stalks put them in water and when roots grow you can plant them in a pot

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Cleo said:
You should try growing mint or lettuce They are both easy to grow Take some mint stalks and lettuce stalks put them in water and when roots grow you can plant them in a pot

Lettuce doesn’t thrive in tropical climates I’m in Zone 5 so I can’t help OP much You could grow beautiful flowers and tropical fruits though Passion fruits are what I’ve always wanted to grow

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@Zara
Zones What does Zone 5 mean
I am curious

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Bryn said:
@Zara
Zones What does Zone 5 mean
I am curious

The USDA created a growing zone map based on the average lowest winter temperature It was originally for the US but has been extended to other countries You can find zone maps in the sidebar of this forum

For example in Australia: https://www.anbg.gov.au/gardens/research/hort.research/zones.html

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@Nico
I appreciate this I just found out I live in a zone 12-13 It is warm most of the year with some rain I now have an idea of what plants can grow well in my climate Thank you

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Bryn said:
@Nico
I appreciate this I just found out I live in a zone 12-13 It is warm most of the year with some rain I now have an idea of what plants can grow well in my climate Thank you

Great so Mark’s content should be perfect for you You can grow things like ginger and turmeric which I would struggle with in my zone 7 He also has plenty of videos on container and urban gardening

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Check out content by Mark from Self Sufficient Me He lives in tropical Australia and has many videos on these topics you are interested in I am not sure if I can post a link here but you can find him on that video platform everyone uses

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@Nico
I haven’t heard of him before I’m going to check him out Thanks

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Pro tip Never plant mint in the ground unless you want mint to take over your whole garden Always keep mint in a container and watch for its runners

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Oh I just saw your mention of containers Kevin from Epic Gardening has great info on container gardening