I’m a gardening pro – a common mistake is ‘killing’ your yard and when you need to ignore viral advice
A GREEN-THUMBED influencer has shared the common mistake people are making while gardening.
The content creator revealed the popular pest control measure that often harms your yard, and why having a “dirty” garden is a good thing.
The 29-year-old TikTok user, who goes by the persona Gardening Failures (@gardeningfailures), shared her top tips and tricks with The U.S. Sun.
The gardening enthusiast explained that her “passion in life” is community engagement.
“I engage members of the community on projects that shape the design, planning, or current function of a road, park, etc,” she said.
Through her TikTok platform, the influencer carries out similar work in relation to gardening.
“I’m scratching that itch to foster community through shared knowledge and growth,” she explained.
The Washington State native has been interested in gardening from a young age.
Watching her grandma work to develop “a beautiful garden,” she was inspired to follow suit.
However, the TikToker admits that she wasn’t always a natural at the activity.
She explained: “I had tried my hand at gardening and growing plants, which began in absolute disaster.
“It got to the point where people started gifting me plastic plants, so I could at least have the illusion of fauna,” she said.
Despite this, the influencer found herself determined to succeed at the hobby.
“Eventually I had my first successful harvest of bell peppers, strawberries, and pineberries that I had grown on my apartment Juliet balcony,” she said.
The content creator keeps her slower start in mind when giving advice to aspiring gardeners.
“Aim for a yellow thumb, nothing in your garden is 100 percent green all of the time,” she said.
The gardening fanatic continued: “Insects will come, diseases will hit, the weather will be unpredictable, and space will always be tight.”
And if you’re a renter without an outdoor space, the TikToker recommends making the most of your local community garden to pursue your passion.
When maintaining your garden, the influencer recommended avoiding pesticides.
She explained: “I have [seen] so many gardeners who are striving for that ‘Instagram perfect’ garden and will soak their entire garden in pesticides at the sign of any bug or critter.
“There are some instances where pesticides may be needed to help reign in an out-of-control aphid infestation, but this should not be a go-to method and should be saved as a last resort,” she said.
It was picture-perfect gardens plastered all over social media that motivated the influencer to begin sharing her own journey.
According to the expert, pesticides may cause more harm than good to your garden.
“More often than not, people end up killing off all their beneficial insects, making their garden more susceptible to disease and pests,” she said.
The TikToker also advised any budding gardeners to be weary when taking advice from social media.
She explained: “You should immediately be skeptical of anyone giving universal gardening advice.
“Someone preparing for summer in Florida and someone preparing for summer in Alaska may look extremely different,” she pointed out.
When it comes to tackling disease and pests in your garden, the influencer recommends making the most of companion plants.
She said: “For example, deers do not like to eat aromatic foliage, such as rosemary and sage.
“So planting rosemary and sage nearby a favorite deer snack can help deter the deer from nibbling on your young plants, the same is true for diseases and pests too,” she added.
The TikToker also shared the importance of having a so-called “dirty” garden.
“If your garden is growing moss and weeds, then it is healthy,” she said.
The TikTok user continued: “We have been conditioned to look at dandelions or patches of clover and think ‘weed.’
“What we often label as a weed, is just as beneficial of a plant in our garden as our flowers and vegetables,” she explained.
“I actually moved over a little clover that had sprouting in my backyard to a raised garden bed to act as a living mulch, helping converse water in the soil over our hot summer months,” she said.
The gardening pro also pointed out that moss can be used to help retain moisture.
So if you’re looking for any advice before you begin your garden, the TikToker recommends simply starting.
“Embrace the gardening failures as they come and use them as a learning experience,” she said.