First day gardening in 2017, what a challenge
By Nancy Zink
@ramapo17 (30441)
Melbourne, Florida
March 21, 2017 11:45pm CST
The weather here in Florida is so nice this week that I had to get out and start gardening. My husband built me a nice raised garden as the soil down here stinks and I needed some good soil.
We moved in last May and I planted some things that just totally died. Some others are on their way out. I dug those up and moved them to another place and hopefully they will survive.
I also have to get use to things that I grew in the northeast are not growing down here. I have to get a new way of thinking here. The plants that grow outside here I use to have as house plants in the northeast.
I have to retrain myself to plant according to the life in the deep south.
8 people like this
10 responses
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
23 Mar 17
@JudyEv A local store had big bags of mulch on sale for $1 each. We bought about 50 bags and are using that to fill in here and there. I also bought a few big bags of soil as I am not putting my plants in the horrible dirt that is here. I am potting them all in different sized and colored pots and scattering them in the different gardens and on top of the mulch. I got the red mulch. I put the pots either on top of the mulch or down a little in the mulch. I want to put a few of the big pots on their side for a different look.
1 person likes this
@Courtlynn (67082)
• United States
22 Mar 17
What do you plant? Flowers? Vegetables?
3 people like this
@allknowing (139073)
• India
23 Mar 17
If the soil is no good you will find it difficult to get results. May be you could get some fertilizer.
1 person likes this
@allknowing (139073)
• India
25 Mar 17
@ramapo17 What soil will you be using for pots?
1 person likes this
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
25 Mar 17
@allknowing Fertilizer wouldn't be any good as the soil is so bad. I am sure planting the plants in pots and placing them all around will be good. The beauty of doing it this way is I can move the plants to a different area if I want to or even bringing them in my screen room if I want to.
1 person likes this
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
25 Mar 17
@allknowing I buy a big bag that has all the nutrients in it that I need.
1 person likes this
@shaqziad1610 (506)
• Malaysia
23 Mar 17
What a drag. Looks like you have to do a lot in order to adapt to gardening in a new place. Different climate, different plant, different habit. That's a lot to digest. Be strong pal.
1 person likes this
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
22 Mar 17
I am trying. I realized the soil is so bad that I planted everything in pots in good potting soil.
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
22 Mar 17
I won't do any plants that are food any more. I have planted them for years and had no success. In the northeast the deer ate everything and last year the armadillos destroyed everything.
The only success I had was growing the tomato plants my dad started from seeds. He would start them in his basement under grow lights in February and when the time was right to move them outside he kept a dozen and gave all the rest away. I had all the ones he didn't give away and sometimes I had over 50.
I had them up on my huge deck in big pots or the hanging ones. I had so many tomatoes and my husband doesn't eat them. I gave a lot away.
1 person likes this
@Fishmomma (11377)
• United States
23 Mar 17
Hope your flowers do well. Good luck with whatever you decide to plant.
1 person likes this
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
25 Mar 17
@Fishmomma Thanks. I planted a lot of things that I am familiar with.
1 person likes this
@AbbyGreenhill (45494)
• United States
22 Mar 17
We had a raised bed built, We have a lot of property but only wanted something smaller and easy to use. Ours is 8 x 16, we had to learn new ways and things to plant when we moved south.
1 person likes this
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
22 Mar 17
I understand completely. I never thought about the different climates. I also found out that the stores down here in Florida do not sell some of my favorite plants I had in the northeast. I am going to get some when I go to New Jersey in a few weeks and bring them back with me. When I worked in New Jersey we use to get our plants from Florida.
It is driving me crazy.
@Tampa_girl7 (50942)
• United States
22 Mar 17
Enjoy your beautiful weather and gardening 
1 person likes this
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
22 Mar 17
The weather is really great and I got so much done this week. My husband called my grandson in New Jersey today and he said he is still shoveling snow. Poor kid but he is making money.
@Marilynda1225 (83424)
• United States
22 Mar 17
Having a raised bed sounds perfect for gardening. I'm sure you'll have some pretty flowers growing in record time. I'm sure the different climate is a challenge but I'm looking forward to hearing about how your garden comes along
1 person likes this
@ramapo17 (30441)
• Melbourne, Florida
22 Mar 17
I am sure you will be hearing about any problems I have and I will keep you up to date of nice things too. I am determined to have nice flowers. I bought a few potted plants two weeks ago and some did not take very well so I took them out and repotted them in nice pots and placed them around in some gardens.
If I can figure out how to get a picture from my cell phone to this site I will post it.
