Want to know basic gardening terms that every gardener needs to know? These are the vocabulary terms that you will hear when gardening and need to know how to apply them in your garden.
This post is all about gardening terms.
Starting a garden is extremely exciting! If you are like me, you are trying to learn as much as you can before starting to make this new adventure successful.
As a gardener myself, I am giving you the basic garden terms that you need to know when first starting your garden.
You are going to learn all of the important garden terms such as compost, zones, seedlings, annual, perennial, and much more!
This post is all about gardening terms.
Basic Gardening Terms
Gardening Terms: Weather
The weather plays a huge part in gardening. If ideal weather conditions are not present, certain plants will suffer.
Knowing what plants need in order to thrive is very important to establishing a healthy garden. Because weather is a huge part of gardening, we are going to discuss weather terms first.
Below is the list of words that would be very helpful to know and memorize to help you have a more successful garden this year!
1. Gardening Zone: The very first step you should take before you even start to plan your garden is to find out what zone you live in.
It’s as easy as a google search. Go to google, type in “growing zone in _________(add the closest large city to you).” It will give you a number and a letter. For example, my growing zone is 7b.
Growing zones are determined based on how cold/warm it gets in your specific area. This is important information to know, especially when trying to plan your garden. You need to know what plants grow well in your zone.
2. First Frost Date: This is the estimated date of when the first frost will happen in your gardening zone. Again, Google is your friend here. Search “First frost date for _______ (add the closest largest city to you).” Google will provide you with a month and day.
Of course this is just an estimate based on previous years, but more commonly than not, it is pretty close to accurate.
The first frost date is important for you to know because many of your plants will die at the first frost. It’s important to harvest any parts of the plant that you would want to use/keep before this date.
You would also want to prepare any perennial plants you have to give them a little extra layer of protection (such as mulch).
Knowing this date also allows you to plan when you should start planting your cold-weather plants.
3. Last Frost Date: You can find your estimated last frost date in your area by googling once again.
Search “last frost date in _________(add the closest large city to you).” A month and day will show up. Knowing this date will let you know when the last danger of a frost will happen.
Remember, frost can kill many of your plants. It’s important to know when it is a safe time to plant your plants so your efforts and money aren’t wasted.
Gardening Terms: Plants
These garden terms are all about plants. When looking into what plants you would like to start in your garden, it is important to know what to look for.
Do you want plants that you only need to last through the warm months? Are you looking to plant a garden that will last through the entire year?
Are you growing flowers, crops, or both? Where should you place your plant so it will have the most ideal conditions and hopefully thrive?
The garden terms below will help you answer these questions and more.
4. Frost Tender: This term is referring to a plant that can’t handle a frost. It will die immediately after the first frost.
If they have any chance at all to make it through a frost, precautions need to be taken. You can heavily mulch and cover the plant, or bring it inside if it’s in a pot.
A family member of mine uses her whole deep bathtub as a protector for potted plants during the winter months to help them survive!
Trying to save a frost tender plant is doable but takes planning and, in my family member’s case, sacrifice of nice warm baths during the cold months.
5. Dormant: Dormant ultimately means sleeping. Many plants will look like they are dying once the weather changes.
In my area, strawberry plants are dormant throughout the winter but will come back in the spring. During the winter though, they all look like they have died. It’s disheartening. But don’t lost hope. They come back!
Daffodills are such a welcomed sight when the warmer weather approaches around my house! But they only last for a short season.
They can’t withstand the freezing cold or the very warm heat. They also remain dormant during these months of hot and cold, but they come up when the weather is perfect for them.
6. Annual: These types of plants only last for the season they are intended for. It’s important to know your growing zone so you know what plants are annuals.
You don’t want to start growing a plant thinking it is going to last for a long time only to see it fail when the weather has a dramatic change.
For example, an annual plant in my area is the beautiful marigold (or cucumbers for a crop example).
Both examples thrive during the summer and fall months but won’t make it through the winter.
7. Perennial: A perennial plant is the complete opposite of an annual. This type of plant will survive in your garden throughout any season.
Once again, what types of plants are perennials for you will be based off of your growing zone. These plants won’t always be in their big beautiful prime throughout the entire year, but they will be able to survive throughout the conditions that are not idea for them.
What I mean by that is your plant could have the most beautiful flowers throughout the summer and fall months, but could go dormant throughout the winer. If it is a perennial, the plant will return when the warmer weather comes.
Not all perennials will do this though.
In my area, I have dusty miller plant. It has white leaves and produces small yellow flowers. The dusty miller in my area is a perennial but it looks beautiful throughout the entire year.
It doesn’t always give off the small yellow flowers, but the white leaves are a beautiful statement, no matter the season.
8. Beneficial Insects: Did you know that bugs help your garden?
Plants NEED bugs!
If you are seeing insects around your garden (even the ones that aren’t beneficial to your garden) it is a sign that you have a healthy garden.
Insects do not want to eat food that is covered by chemicals…and neither should you. Insects are a part of nature and help to make your plants grow and reproduce.
In the case of crops, they help to transfer pollen from one plant to the next in order to grow more food. Even ants can do this!
Of course there are insects we don’t want around our plants because they will destroy them. But we can prevent or take care of these kinds of pests without harming the rest of the beneficial insects.
Using pesticides will eliminate ALL insects, not just the pests which is not great.
For more information on strategic planting of certain plants to help repel unwanted pests, read my post here.
9. Starter Plants vs Seeds: There are different ways to purchase plants. Two of them are to purchase starter plants or purchase seeds.
Neither way is wrong.
Growing starter plants is a bit easier and offers more instant gratification. These would be the types of plants you purchase at a local farmer’s market or plant nursery.
They have already been started for you and are on their way to becoming beautiful plants ready to join your garden.
There is also the option to grow your plants from seeds. By growing from seed, you will save a ton of money. When you get a seed packet, it will have PLENTY of seeds for you for just a few dollars.
The seed packets will give you many more plants for your money than purchasing starter plants.
However, there is a wait for the seeds to germinate (start to grow up through the soil).
There are also conditions that the seeds need so they know when to start growing. Most seeds need warmth and to be wet. The seed packet that comes with your seeds will usually offer very helpful information!
It is such a rewarding feeling when you see those little sprouts come up through the soil and watch them get bigger!
Either way of growing plants is good. You just have to make the decision for you which is best in your situation.
10. Tubers vs Bulbs: Tubers and bulbs both refer to the root system of a plant.
If you think about an onion, you notice that there are layers on the outside of the vegetable that need to be peeled before used in cooking. The onion is part of the root system of the onion plant.
Because it has layers (just like garlic), it is a bulb.
A potato is also part of the root system of a potato plant but it is lacking the layers that an onion has. Instead, it has a harder, protective outside layer that will eventually grow “eyes.”
We have all had those potatoes that we don’t eat quickly enough and they start to sprout a bit. Those are the eyes. Each one of those eyes can grow into their own plant! Isn’t that so crazy?!
Anyways, if you order these different plants to grow in your garden, they will come as just a bulb or tuber which you plant into the ground, similar to a seed. But they are usually much larger than a seed.
These bulbs and tubers can remain dormant through certain months of the year. Many are perennials (again, depending on your growing zone) that will make their appearance year after year. Some flower examples of tubers are dahlias (my favorite flowers), daffodils, and tulips.
11. Full Sun: Knowing where to plant your plants is key to having a happy thriving garden! Different plants need a different amount of sunlight. If you try to grow a plant in full sun that cannot tolerate that much heat, you will scorch your plant. Full sun means that your plant needs between 6-8 hours of sunlight each day.
12. Partial Sun: Plants who need partial sun/partial shade need between 4-6 hours of direct sunlight. Anymore will cause them to be too thirsty and get too hot. Any less won’t give them the amount they need in order to get the energy to grow.
13. Shade Loving: These types of plants do very well in areas where a lot of plants can’t survive: the shade. Lillies are a great example of these. Because a lot of shaded areas also remain a little wet (or at least don’t dry out as quickly as those areas in the sun), these plants tend to enjoy the moistness of the soil as well.
Gardening Terms: Soil
The next garden terms we will discuss is all about soil. Soil is the growing medium that your plants will set their roots in and grow from. Having a well balanced, healthy soil is vital for your plants.
Different plants need different types of soil, but it doesn’t need to be complicated, so don’t get scared.
A good example is a succulent plant (such as a cactus). A succulent needs to grow in a more sandy soil, whereas most other plants need a bit more structure and nutrients in their soil.
If you are purchasing soil, read the information on the bag it comes in. It usually tells you what types of plants it’s good for…succulents, roses, vegetables, flowers, potted soil, flower beds, etc.
Many of these soil bags will also have a fertilizer within them that lasts about 3 months. I usually always make sure the soil bags I need to purchase contain this so I know my plants will have plenty of food for their first few months after being planted.
If you are planting in the ground, you may need to amend your soil a bit…you will learn what amending means later in the post!
14. Mulch: When you think of mulch, you might be only thinking about the type of mulch found at the store. They are usually wood material offered in different colors. These types of mulch would work to keep your soil covered, but they are not your only options.
There are different types of mulch that can be used. Mulch really can be any organic material used to cover your soil.
Side note: soil needs to be covered in order to retain moisture and looseness. It will create a healthier environment for your plant.
Hay, straw, dried leaves, grass clippings, pine needles, etc can all be used as mulch for your gardens.
Mulch is also a huge benefit during the cold winter months, even if you aren’t growing anything in that soil until the weather warms up. It will keep the soil moist and healthy instead of drying out and freezing too much.
15. Amending Soil: Amending soil just means that you are adding certain things into your soil to make it more beneficial for your plants.
There are many different ways to amend your soil but the most common I have found is by adding organic compost and gently mixing it into your soil. Organic compost will add nutrients (food) to your soil so the plants are getting what they need.
16. Worm Castings: In essence, this is worm poop.
Gross, I know.
There are many types of poop that are super beneficial to your garden (rabbit, cow, and chicken).
However, if you aren’t in a place to have these types of animals, having your own worm farm is a wonderful alternative that is a lot of fun to have!
A worm farm is simply that…a farm of worms. There are a ton of videos on youtube that show how to create one and it’s super easy and cost-effective.
I don’t have a very large worm farm, it is just in a 16 quart size storage container with the lid on. There are holes drilled in the bottom of the container with a bit of breathable cloth on the bottom to keep them from escaping.
You add a bit of moist soil and worms!
Easy peasy!
Your worms need to be fed and we just feed them our scraps. Again, there is a lot of information out there on exactly what kinds of scraps are ok for them, but it is a WIDE variety of produce that they eat.
They also love coffee grounds (even with the paper filters still on them) and brown paper bags (the less ink the better).
When you are needing to add fertilizer to your plants, you get some of the soil out of your bin and mix it into your current soil. The worm soil will contain the worm castings as well which is what you are really wanting.
There is also something called compost tea. It is where you make a tea out of the worm castings to allow you to get the most distance for your castings.
To do this, you let the castings sit in water where it will turn to a “tea” just like you would for a tea you would actually drink. Then, you can water the soil with this compost tea and provide nutrients this way.
Additional information about worm farms….think about worms…you rarely see them in the sun because they dry out so quickly. Your worm farm needs to be in a shaded area, and protected from rain.
Gardening Terms: Tools
There are a lot of gardening tools that you can use to help make gardening easier. There are different types of spades, rakes, watering cans, gloves, etc. But the list below doesn’t discuss those types of tools. There will be another post for that. However, I did discuss some different types of tools that would be a helpful addition to your garden.
17. Green House: If you have the space, a green house is a great addition. The greenhouse can have many uses but the main use, in my opinion, is to help control the environment in which your plants are growing.
When it is too cold outside for your plants, the greenhouse offers protection from the cold. It will still allow the sun’s rays to come through the cloth surrounding the greenhouse, giving the plants the light it needs.
During the warmer months, the plants are protected from the heat because of the shade cloth (a term you will learn about next) that offers a barrier between the sun and your plants. When it’s hot in the greenhouse, the sides usually roll up to allow for a breeze to reach your plants.
One additional benefit for a greenhouse is that it gives protection again other types of weather…rain, harsh wind, hail, etc.
18. Shade Cloth: A shade cloth does exactly what it sounds like…it offers shade for your plants. It is usually a sheer material that provides shade for your plants when they are receiving too much sunlight.
Here is a type of shade cloth that is recommended, but there are a lot of different types and sizes of shade cloths. You will need to decide what size you need for the types of plants you are trying to protect.
19. Frost Cover: A frost cover is different from a shade cloth because it is designed to keep any precipitation out, including rain and snow. When using a frost cover, you plants still need to be watered, even in the winter.
A frost cover offers a nice protection for your plants as it traps in a little heat (not a lot but sometimes enough) and keeps the freezing cold rain/snow off of the soil.
A little note about my garlic and frost covers this year. I planted a lot of garlic in 3 Greenstalks (a tall planter that holds many plants at once).
I only had 2 frost covers and the American company that sells them were out of stock. So I thought I would just do an experiment and see if the garlics truly needed the frost cover or not.
We had an abnormally hard freeze for one or two nights so that pushed the limits as well. The garlics that had the frost covers on them are growing just fine.
The one Greenstalk that was lacking a frost cover has absolutely no garlics growing.
Frost covers are very beneficial to helping your plants survive the cold. There is a link below for one type of frost cover. But again, you need to decided what size/type of frost cover you will need to protect whichever plants need protecting.
20. Trellis: a trellis is a support system for all kinds of plants. Not every plant needs this support system. It is more for the vine-type of plants.
A trellis could be one that is purchased at a store, you could make a homemade one, or it could just be a natural structure such as a fence or tree.
Sometimes the plants will attach themselves to the trellis on their own and sometimes they need a little encouragement.
To offer this encouragement, you can gently tie (if the type of trellis being used is capable of this) the stalk of the plant to the trellis. You could also help encourage the plant by weaving it in and out or around the trellis.
Here is one below to give you an idea of a homemade one I made a couple years ago. I grew red malabar spinach on it, and it did wonderfully!
Conclusion
After reading this post, these basic gardening terms should help you feel more confident with growing a healthy and luscious garden full of amazing plants. There is a lot to learn with gardening, but it doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Start with the basics, learn, and grow from there. You can totally do it! Just start small if you are just starting out. Happy Growing!
In this post, you learned all about gardening terms.
To learn about how you can build up your soil naturally, check out our post on 5 Efficient and Effective Ways to Build a Healthy Garden Naturally.
