Calling all fellow plant lovers! The first week of June is National Gardening Week and members of Ivy Tech Warsaw’s Gardening Club are sharing some tips on how to have a successfully grow your plants this summer.

Academic and Learning Resource Assistant Kayla McAllister and Allison Dubbeld sat down to share their gardening experiences which involve tried and true methods and a lot of patience.

Getting started:

Don’t worry about the space—you can grow plants whether you live in an apartment or house. While most plants prefer the outdoors, there are several indoor plants and herbs that can successfully be grown inside.

Kayla recommends pothos as a great starter plant. She describes it as long, trailing vines, plus, it can be grown inside. Other plants easy to grow indoors with little maintenance include snake plants, aloe, and succulents.

If you have a yard, Kayla suggests starting a raised garden bed for non-perennials or plants that require specific soil.

“It doesn’t have to be expensive at all,” Kayla says. “I used weed cloth, bricks, and boards for the bed and placed an ‘X’ where I wanted my plants.”

Kayla says most perennials can grow successfully in Indiana soil and come back each year.

But if you’re scared of messing up your yard, most plants can be grown in containers.

“Potatoes, strawberries, tomatoes. I’ve seen people use buckets and laundry hampers. I like cloth pots because you can get the aeration for all the roots.”

If you’re on Ivy Tech Warsaw’s campus, you can check out the free seed library in the library to start planting. There are no limits on how many seeds a person can get.

Gardening Tips:

1. Acclimate plants

“A lot of people are just like, ‘I got these plants that grew in my house and can put them outside when it instantly gets warm.’ They will start getting burnt.”

So, what do you do?

Kayla suggests introducing your plants slowly to the outdoors, so only take them outside for four to eight hours for the first two weeks. Then leave them outside indefinitely.

2. Know your soil

“Some people think they can use any type of soil. Different plants need different drainage.”

Not every plant will thrive if planted in the ground. Some prefer sandy to rocky or dry to moist. If you’re buying potting mix from a store, bags usually list recommended plant types including if the soil is good for indoors or outdoors.

3. Do your research

“Do your own research and ask more and more questions,” Allison suggests.

When it comes to growing plants, there is a lot that comes with it. Soil, water, sunlight, it can be hard to keep track. Ask other gardeners you know for advice or look up information online. There are several great guides that can keep you informed.

4. Just keep trying

“If something doesn’t work one year,” says Kayla. “Try something different the next.”

Gardening comes with a lot of patience. If one method doesn’t work out, you can try a new way the next year.

“Every gardener has killed a plant. That’s how you learn. You have to have perseverance because it’s trial and error.”

See photos from their trip to the Ball State University greenhouses!

About the Gardening Club

Kayla recently stepped down from leadership, and members are looking for a someone new to take on the advisory role. Their bi-monthly meetings consisted of new planting tips and field trips to different gardens, like the greenhouses on Ball State University’s campus. They also helped plan a campus plant sale in April.

If you’re interested in an advisory role and continuing the legacy of the club, contact Student Life at fortwayne-studentlife@ivytech.edu.