If you are looking for a relaxing hobby that will create colorful displays, delicious vegetables, healthy herbs, and a way for you to find peace in nature, then here are 9 different types of gardening that are great to try.
There is no one-size-fits-all garden, so you can feel free to be creative, play in the dirt, and produce something totally original. There is truly something for everyone when it comes to gardening, or you can mix and match types of gardens if you can’t make up your mind.
9 Different Types of Gardening:
- Flower Gardens
- Fruit and Vegetable Gardens
- Rock Gardens
- Butterfly Gardens
- Raised Bed Gardens
- Organic Gardening
- Indoor Gardens
- Container Gardens
- Herb Gardens
Read on to discover how each variety of garden differs so that you can find one that is right for you. All will offer a fantastic hobby, but with some types of gardens you also get tomatoes and cucumbers! Also you might like When Does Gardening Become Farming?
More About these 9 Different Types of Gardening
When looking into gardening, all types of gardens provide some stress-relief, time in the sunshine, and a way to use your creativity. But you can take it one step further by channeling your interests into certain types of gardens as seen below.
1. Flower Gardens
A Single Marigold Flower
The quintessential flower garden is a great place to start as a gardener. A flower garden uses a variety of tall and short plants to create a pleasing look, and gardeners often plant according to the flower’s bloom and life span. First, do your research to see what grows well in your climate, and whether the flowers need sun or shade.
Keeping a flower garden growing well is much easier if you start with plants that belong in the region and you follow directions for planting. Flower gardens can take up an entire yard or a corner of your landscape, and you can use your creativity to combine plants in the area. Geranium, sedum, catmint, and begonias all thrive in outdoor flower gardens.
2. Fruit and Vegetable Gardens
If you would like to plant a garden that will yield a bountiful harvest of produce, spend your time with a fruit and vegetable garden. A vegetable garden is planted in much the same way as flower gardens, but instead of beauty and serenity you get food to eat. Again, research your area and the types of fruits and vegetables that will grow during each part of the spring, summer, and fall (and even the winter if you are in a warmer zone.)
Tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers tend to grow well wherever they are planted, and these would be good vegetables to start with. Berries such as strawberries can also be planted, as well as fruit trees such as peaches and pears.
3. Rock Gardens
A rock garden is an ornamental garden that uses a variety of rocks and plants to create a lovely display. In general, the plants are low to the ground and work well together with the rocks.
Many rock gardeners use a combination of rocks that might already be on their property, as well as additional rocks that they bring in. Sandstone is a smart choice to make as the basis of your garden, and usually a rock garden will be elevated from the regular terrain with extra fill dirt. Hens ‘n chicks, columbine, and snow-in-summer are all great plants to use to offset the rocks in your garden.
4. Butterfly Gardens
Butterfly on Aster Flower
Growing a butterfly garden is a great way to help with the cycle of nature, and allow for pollination in your yard. A butterfly garden is simply a flower garden that is grown in sunlight for the purpose of attracting butterflies to the area. Red, yellow, and blue flowers will attract butterflies to your garden, and black-eyed susans are especially appealing to the pollinators.
A butterfly garden will also supply a water source and a place to rest for butterflies, such as a colorful bush. Help keep the cycle of pollination going strong by planting yellow coneflowers, Joe-Pye weed, goldenrod, asters, and ironweed to attract butterflies.
5. Raised Bed Gardens
A raised bed garden is a great choice for anyone who wants to portion off part of their yard to create a garden, and especially for gardeners who may have mobility issues. In general, you would create a frame from 2 by 4’s or old railroad ties in which to plant the garden, and saturate the area with fill dirt.
This is a good idea for anyone who is worried about all of the bending and stooping that gardening involves, as you will be able to plant and weed without bending so far over. Raised bed gardens can be used for fruits or vegetables, or contain any combination of these.
6. Organic Gardening
Organic gardening is an umbrella term that can encompass any and all other types of gardens. Organic gardens have more to do with what you plant and how you take care of the plants than what shape or scope the garden takes.
In organic gardening, you will take more care in selecting the seeds and plants that you grow, making sure that they are all organically raised. Additionally, you will not use any synthetic pesticides or fertilizers on your plants, but rather seek more natural means of care such as humus or organic bone meal.
What About Gardening Inside?
As great as it is to garden outside and enjoy the sunshine and Vitamin D, climate or mobility issues might keep you inside. Never fear, you can still enjoy gardening from inside, and there are several ways to do so.
You can plant an indoor garden for several reasons. If your climate, the safety of the neighborhood, or your own ability to get outside will preclude you from gardening outside, move indoors. Using mini-greenhouses or containers can yield a bountiful harvest, all from the comfort of your own home.
7. Indoor Gardens
Just as the name suggests, indoor gardens are planted indoors, and can surprisingly yield the same types of flowers or vegetables as outdoor gardens can. Indoor gardens are great for areas with a difficult climate or for people who have trouble getting around outside.
You can create the scope of the garden you desire, from a few pots in a sunny window, to a miniature greenhouse that grows many plants at a time. Microgreens, radishes, and carrots are excellent vegetable choices, while spider plants and pothos are beautiful green plants that thrive indoors.
8. Container Gardening
Though technically a container garden could be outside utilizing a small terrace space or patio, you could also do this indoors if you have a lot of natural light. Container gardening is perfect for people who can’t get around, or who just want to grow a few things.
For instance, you might have a vibrant tomato plant in one, or a green pepper plant in another. Make sure that your containers get the proper amount of light and water so they grow well.
9. Herb Garden
Although you can grow a herb garden indoors or outdoors, they are nice to grow indoors because then the herbs are immediately on hand when you are ready to cook something.
Herbs are very prolific and very easy to grow, and mint, thyme, dill, chives, and cilantro are all very easy to care for in little pots in a sunny window. Also, since some herbs like mint can grow unchecked in an outdoor garden, this is a good way to keep control of your herbs.
In Conclusion
There are many different types of gardens, and a type of garden that matches each style of gardener. Whether you want to lure butterflies to your garden or have an abundance of vegetables to eat, there is a garden to match your interests.
All it takes is some dirt, water, sunshine, and a little bit of work, and you will be enjoying fruits, vegetables, and flowers to your heart’s content.
