To start and maintain a healthy garden you'll need to fertilize it. Fertilizer will help your vegetables grow, make your flowers bloom and ensure that your trees and shrubs stay hearty and healthy. The tips contained in this guide will teach you how to fertilize a garden.

To start and maintain a healthy garden you'll need to fertilize it. Fertilizer will help your vegetables grow, make your flowers bloom and ensure that your trees and shrubs stay hearty and healthy. The tips contained in this guide will teach you how to fertilize a garden.

• Knowing when, how and why to apply fertilizer to your garden is a key aspect in creating and maintaining a successful garden. The different types of fertilizer and various fertilizer application methods can be overwhelming to the novice gardener. However, under most conditions, provided that you apply the right amount of fertilizer at the appropriate times, your garden and plants therein should flourish.

(Creative Commons photo by *Susie*)

• Unless you have recently laid down fresh soil, it is a good idea to have your soil tested. The results of a soil test will provide you with an idea of your soil's PH and let you know whether it is lacking in any particular nutrients. You will then be better informed to choose the right garden fertilizer. You can purchase a soil testing kit at most garden stores or may be able to have your soil tested for free or for a small fee at a local university or college.

• Different types of plants require different types of fertilizer. Analyze your garden to see what is growing there or, if you are starting fresh, figure out what you are going to plant. You should also measure your garden, since most fertilizer labels recommend the amount of fertilizer to apply based on the area of your garden.

• Different types of plants require different formulas of fertilizer. All fertilizers contain a certain percentage of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium, along with several other trace nutrients. The numbers on a fertilizer package will let you know the percentage amounts of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in that order. For example, a 5-10-10 fertilizer contains 5% nitrogen, 10% phosphorous and 10% potassium. Grasses and green leafy plants like fertilizers that are high in nitrogen, while a fertilizer high in phosphorous will encourage flowering plants to bloom and produce larger vegetables. Read product labels carefully and ensure that you are buying the correct type of fertilizer for your garden.

• Fertilizing your garden will help it stay productive and healthy. The most important aspect to fertilizing is to carefully read product instructions to ensure that you are buying the right type of fertilizer and applying the correct amount. Avoid getting fertilizer on the plants or too close to their roots and always water your garden after you fertilize.

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1. If you can, you should fertilize your entire garden before you plant everything. Do so by spreading the recommended amount of fertilizer evenly over the garden and then working it in using a trowel or hoe. You should always water the ground after you fertilize to help the fertilizer dissolve and ensure even fertilizer distribution.

2. After your plants have begun to grow, you will want to fertilize them periodically throughout the season. You can do so using a method called sidedressing:

3. Using a hoe or trowel, dig a trench about 2-3 inches deep and 2-3 inches to the side of your plants

4. Sprinkle some fertilizer in the trench

5. Cover the trench with soil

6. Water your garden thoroughly

7. Always avoid getting fertilizer on the leaves or too close to the roots of plants, as it may burn them.

• Introduction
• Step 1: Test Your Soil
• Step 2: Know What You've Got
• Step 3: Buy Your Fertilizer
• Step 4: Fertilizing
• Conclusion