How to Have a Thriving & Successful Gardening Business

As you might know that Gardening in general is one of the most wonderful occupation in any size form and shape, especially if it's done right. Weather it is done on a small or large scale, as a hobby, as a source of fresh fruits and vegetables, or as a business, for that mater.

Anyway you look at this subject, if you are really serious about gardening you can turn this most beautiful activity in a nice thriving gardening business, and create a good source of income for many years to come.

I remember many years ago in my youth having an ardent desire to work outside and blend in with the nature, to admire and observe the vegetation and to look and search for some way to start a nice garden, it was a real challenge to get started in the gardening field in those days. There were not very many resources to learn and achieve some degree of knowledge regarding the gardening field.

Gardening and landscaping is really what I love doing, and therefore I take it very seriously, even with passion.

Where I come from, for example, the information was so limited if not lacking, and I had to rely mainly on what I was able to find and read in some gardening catalogs, and some limited advise from the gardening people I knew. And of course from my mother who loved gardening!

And another positive thing in my school days was that we were learning about botanical life, a subject that I really loved. It seemed to me like something natural and enjoyable.

But today with the abundance of information at our finger tips from the vast internet searches, it is so easy to find anything you can imagine just by using a few smart k-words, pushing a few buttons on your computer board and you are able to learn a lot any time. All you need is the desire, determination, and will to achieve whatever you put your mind to.

And the gardening field is absolutely one of the best in my opinion.

Providing that you are already involved in the gardening activity and you are already pretty familiar with what it takes to grow and tend to the plants, you can start planing for a thriving gardening business, and create a pretty steady source of income.

There are so many different situation that are specific to your location, the size of your premises for your garden, the demand in your area, as what kind of plant material are people looking for, and where to sell the trees, shrubs, herbs, vegetable plants, and the list can go on and on.

As you probably noticed or heard the terms about the organic gardening and edible landscaping that are growing more and more in popularity, it would be an excellent idea that should be seriously taken in consideration.

So it is also a good idea to capitalize on these popular trends and take a closer look at them. More and more people conscious about healthy living are looking for fresh fruits and vegetables from local sources, like farmers markets that started to multiply all over the country, fruit stands, road side stands, flea markets, and many other places.

That being said is pretty evident that the market is there, the demand will increase, and therefore it is time to take full advantage of the situation.

Another factor to consider is the fact that the economy does not show any promising signs of improvement anytime soon, the people is getting interested in "edible landscaping" to grow their own source of fruits and vegetables. So if you are able to bring fruit trees, berry bushes, vegetable starter plants at your stand, they will buy and your gardening business will thrive.

Once you find out what is the demand in your area, what is your competition selling, decide what kind of plants you want to grow and offer to your potential customers. I personally was always for a large variety of plant material to grow, like ornamental shrubs and trees, bedding plants, house plants, tropical plants, herbs, vegetable plants, berry plants, and any other gardening related items.

But it all depends on what are you more comfortable to grow and sell, as I'm aware of the different situations from place to place.

If you don't have your own garden center or outlet yet, you can start by going to the local farmer's markets, to different ones if there are any in other close by towns or cities, and alternating the set-up in different days. Make sure that you are always there in the same specific days at those different markets, as not to confuse your customers.

Once they know that you are offering quality fruits and vegetable plants, as well as other plant material, they will come back looking for you. The buyers will expect you to be dependable so that they can find you in those specific days. That's how you build your traffic for your business.

Make sure you attract the customers to your stand with nice colorful, vibrant green and blooming plants and offer the best quality plants at fair prices.

Be friendly and answer to their questions even when you know they are not ready to buy yet. Give them free advice when they ask for, and that in itself will pay off down the road.

Building trust is one of the keys to have a thriving gardening business.

Mike Borlovan

Growing Plants In A Limited Space For A Hefty Income

This article is about growing plants in a small and limited space to create a hefty income. Even if you have a larger place it is still wise to start small and grow as you go.

If you have hit some hard times, like we all do once in a while, loosing your job, trying hard to make ends meet and pay your bills that never seem to go away, then this could be your way out! You never know.

In other words you feel like you are in a crises, and you've exhausted all attempts to find a job to get on your feet, with no success! That is if you look at the situation and conclude that it is hopeless.

But don't look at this opportunity as a last resort only! You should view it as something that could change your life, something that should have been on the front burner. Maybe you've never thought about it like it is presented here in this article.

But remember, there is always hope and opportunity even in crises, and in hard times. Sometimes we have no idea what resources we have inside of us, if we would just stop for a moment and look around in search for some way of getting ahead, we'll be surprised of what we could be capable of achieving, just by trying and not seating idle.

Getting back to our article subject about how to grow plants for a profit in a small space, it could be easier than you've ever thought. With a strong will and determination you can do it!

And believe me, I'm talking about my own experience, it is not something I've just read about. I have done it myself. So I know pretty much what it takes and I also know for a fact that it can be done!

It is almost impossible to write everything about this vast subject in a single article, but if you stick with me for a while, I will explain the best I can in a series of articles related to this very subject.

Please notice that I'm not trying to sell you anything! This article is simply to help you get some ideas of how to start this plants growing business, and where to begin. Growing and selling garden and landscaping plants to create an income, even from your own backyard, is easy.

And let me tell you a little secret of mine. I've been involved in the sales business most of my life. And at times when nothing else seemed to sell, plant material always were selling!

There is something about gardening, that many people find pleasurable and enjoyable just to get away from their every day problems, and spend quality time in the tranquility of their little paradise!

And another thing about growing plants is that they never talk back! He-he-he! They just grow while you sleep. Isn't that nice!

But let's get to it orderly and in a step by step fashion to achieve this simple start up business of growing plants for creating an income, as much as the size of this article will permit.

First you need some space, be it a small space or a larger one if you have available. If you have a back yard and a front yard, you'll need to start your growing operation in the back, and a small sales space in the front if you can.

Or you can sell the shrubs and seedlings from the back yard as long as you let your friends and neighbors know that you have plants for sale. There are many other ways to sell plant material, that I'm going to explain in another article.

Now let's get started by choosing a nice sunny spot in the back yard, where you want to place a small greenhouse.

When you choose the location, there are a few considerations to keep account of:

1) A close source of water. That's a must. You can not grow anything without water.

2) A plot that is level and not too sloppy.

3) The plot should be clear of rocks, tree roots protruding from the ground, and free of grass and weeds.

If you can get some gravel for the ground base that would be perfect. If not, a roll of ground cover from your hardware store would be great, to keep the weeds from growing in your greenhouse.

4) Build a small greenhouse. This is not as hard as you might think. You can build it on the cheap, with very little investment.

A) Mark the spot that you prepared for the greenhouse in the 4 corners with stakes. Let's say you have a small space of about 40 x 20, or 20 x 50, or 30 x 10. It doesn't matter.

B) Measure from the extreme stakes in diagonal from one corner to the other: adjust the stake in the ground accordingly, to make sure the whole layout is a perfect rectangular shape. This will make it easier for you when you'll cover your greenhouse.

C) Drive in the ground some treated 2 x 4's pieces of about 3' long, on the sides, front, and back of the greenhouse in a straight line, leaving 1 foot above the ground. The distance between the 2 x 4's depends on the size of your greenhouse. I would drive them in the ground at about 4 feet apart.

D) Get some 1x4x10 and nail them against the 2x4 driven in the ground at the base level, all around the frame of the greenhouse, to have something to staple the plastic film cover. (After you covered the greenhouse, nail a strip of 1x2 alongside and on top of plastic film and the 1x4, to keep the plastic cover from being snapped up by the wind.)

E) Get some 20' long PVC water pipes 1.5" or 2" diameter, with a schedule 20 or 30. They are more flexible and easier to work with to create several bows. Doesn't have to be schedule 40.

F) Fasten the ends of the pipes to the 2 x 4 that you've driven in the ground, using nails or brackets from the hardware store. Make sure the end of the pipe bows are well fastened to the 2x4 that' driven in the ground.

G) Get some scrap wood of 2x4 and 1x4 to build some kind of frame in the front and back of your greenhouse to enable you to fasten the plastic cover. Make sure you have doors in the back and front for access and air circulation.

The doors can be made of light frames with 1x2's or 2x4's and covered with plastic film. And have a pair of hinges on each door.

Once you've fastened the end of the pipes across on each pair of 2x4's making a bow, you are ready to cover your greenhouse.

G) Buy a roll of clear plastic film, 3 or 4 mil is preferable, about the size of your greenhouse. Now you are ready to cover your new project to house your rooted cuttings and seedlings.

Before you start rooting your own starter plants, it would be a good idea to just buy a few from an online or local Nursery source, just to get you started.

You are going to need this Greenhouse to grow and protect your rooted cuttings and/or seedlings during the winter time. You want to buy and grow the kind of woody shrubs and tree plants that do not require heating in the winter, only some protection from the elements while they are still young.

We'll talk about the rooted cuttings and the seedlings a little later. For now we are working on a little greenhouse made of cheap materials, many times available around the yard. The PVC water pipe system is inexpensive, is pretty flexible and it will withstand the wind.

You need to put them to good use. It's so easy, and very achievable and profitable, too.

If you really need to get to some money faster, you can locate some reasonable wholesalers of plant materials in your area, and start buying and selling for a profit.

In the autumn and winter people buy shrubs and dormant trees to give the plants time to get established in the ground for the next growing season. So plants are selling anytime.

Another thing you want to look for, is to find some source of used plastic pots and trays from some Nurseries around your area, or from some large department stores that have a Garden Center section. Many times they give them for free or very cheap. Just ask around.

Get a feel of it, and in the meantime you can start to google all you can, to learn about plants and the Nursery business, as much as possible. Or just read our nursery related articles.

In the following articles we'll be talking about how to collect and root your own starter plants, how to water and fertilize, and a lot more related to this growing plants business in a small space to create your own income.

Until next time, keep your hands dirty, and profit from it!

Mike Borlovan

How To Prepare Your Trees And Shrubs For Winter

Since the Autumn has just arrived, you might think that it is a little premature to think about to prepare your trees and shrubs for the winter, but it is not.

To take some small steps in your garden or your landscape, would be a pretty good idea, just in case. The time seems to just fly away so fast, that before you know it Thanksgiving will be here, and then you'll start preparing for the Christmas season.

So, how should we start and where? Well, pretty soon the leaves are going to start changing their colors, turning yellow or red, other brown and will begin to drop off. There'll be some raking to do and piling them up in the compost pile in to corner of your garden, or any other place that you chose for that purpose.

The leaves that you are going to gather could very well serve a double purpose.

First, you can use them as mulch around the base of the trees and shrubs, to protect the root system from the harsh winter elements, that will surely come. You can put a layer of 2 to 3 inch thick to make sure the plants are well protected.

Second, they will eventually decay, and the nutrients will seep down to the roots.

Thirdly, the leaves are an excellent material for composting for future use in your garden. As the soil is depleted of the nutrients, they must be replaced, if you want to have a good crop of fresh vegetables for next season.

But before you place the mulching around the trees and shrubs, make sure that you cultivate around the base with a hoe and get rid of them pesky weeds.

For mulching you can use not only leaves, even so they are preferable because of the several benefits described above, but if you don't have enough of them, you can also use pine straws. A good layer of about 3 to 4 inches will be fine.

After you cultivated and got rid of the weeds, the mulching will keep control of other weeds by not allowing them to pop up again.

Another thing that needs to be done to prepare for the winter, is pruning. But the pruning of the trees and shrubs is better if it is done when the plants are in a dormant state.

As far as the time to do pruning, it all depends on the region of the world where you live.

Make sure that you prune the dead limbs and branches, the limbs that are crossing each other, and for the sake of making them look good. Or some of the shrubs that are over grown, you might want to cut them back.

By pruning and trimming you will encourage new healthy growth and it is beneficial to all the plants. They will grow more robust.

So there is a lot to do in a garden or in a landscape for that matter, but if you do it a little at a time you can make some progress, and when the Holiday season is coming you don't have to be stressed out and be worry about your garden.

These are just a few tips and ideas as how to prepare your trees and shrubs for the winter.

I trust that you enjoyed this article and it helped you with a few good ideas.

Please leave a comment and share this post with the social media of your choice.

Come back soon for other gardening and landscaping ideas, as we continue to post often.

Create Your Little Garden Paradise

Create your little paradise, away from the problems of the world, right in your back yard.
If you have your little heaven, like your back yard or even front yard, with a little planing you are a step closer to a healthier, more self sufficient living!
My, my, my! What a potential that we many times neglect. With a little careful and thoughtful planing, you can create your own paradise, in no time. Take a look at your sunny spot, and make a simple plan on a sheet of paper, mark the spot to grow your vegetables.
Make a list of what would you like to grow. This could be endless, but you can limit it to what would you like best. Like, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, snap beans, peas, kohlrabi, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, cantaloupes, etc. We could go on and on. These are just a few examples, but just use your imagination, and you'll find out how easy it is.

It all depends on how much space you have, how committed and passionate you are about gardening, and how much time you want to spend and dedicate to your garden. And remember, this is one of the best exercises you can get, without paying any fees and dues like at the fitness club.

Look at where is the sun coming up, and where is it going down. This is pretty important, to know how to plan your layout of your little paradise.

What are your preferred fruits? Think about it, and plan accordingly. How about some apple, peach, plum, cherry, apricot, and other fruit trees that you would like to have and pick them off the trees with your own hand? It can't be any fresher than that.

All these fresh fruits and vegetables have tremendous health benefits! And what kind of garden would that be, without some berry fruits as well? How about some blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries, and more. Rich in vitamins and minerals and antioxidants, very beneficial for your well being.

And how about some Herbs? Parsley, dill, lemon balm, mint, oregano, cilantro, catnip, basil, rosemary, chives, lavender, sage, arugula, peppermint, etc.

As you can see, it is not hard at all to create your own little garden paradise.

To get some ideas about what seeds, berry plants and fruit trees to purchase, please visit one of my sources at: http://stores.shop.ebay.com/borlovansnursery

This is just the first article post in a series that will follow. Please visit us soon for more information and related articles.

To find more detailed information about any specific gardening ideas and resources, check the links on the right side of this blog. Just click away and see what you will find. There are loads of tremendous helpful hints about anything you can imagine in gardening.

Have fun, and check back soon for more useful tips.

Happy gardening!

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