You may have thought about gardening and wondered, which type of gardening should I use? There are so many that you can think of from the top of your head. Then you search online for some suggestions and get overwhelmed because there are even more than you think! Some of them you have never heard of. And so you go down the rabbit hole of types of gardening and continue to get lost. Yet, you still have not found the answer you were looking for.
Well, no need to worry! Because there are so many different types of gardening types, I have decided to make it easier for you. Placing them into broader categories will make your decision easier. Or if you just to read about the different types of gardening, then keep reading to find out all about the types of gardening.
Key Takeaways
- Many types of gardening can be placed into the categories of traditional, indoor, hanging, above-ground, and modern gardening.
- When choosing a type of gardening, you must consider how long the plant will survive, the size of the garden, the design, your budget, and if the plant has enough space to grow or not.
- There are so many types of gardening out there, but most of them share similarities with the types of gardening mentioned here.
Types of Gardening
Because there are so many different types of gardening, it is much easier to see them when we list them inside broader categories. These gardening types can be applied to most gardens including herbs, vegetables, flowers, etc. They are:
Traditional Gardening
By its name, you can already tell what traditional means. It is the type of gardening that has been done for many years and generations. It follows the tried and tested methods and is pretty successful when it comes to gardening.
The most common type of traditional gardening would be in-ground and direct sowing, where the seeds are directly put inside the ground. After they are put in the ground they are then covered up with compost and fertilizer and the soil is wet to allow for germination.
Types such as permaculture, Mittleider, and square-foot gardening take the observations and records of very old traditional farmers and apply that knowledge. Permaculture takes into account the ecosystem of the gardening area, backed up by science and data. Mittleider gardening was developed by Dr. Jacob Mittleider where he set out specific instructions that a gardener must follow to obtain the most yield. Square-foot takes inspiration from feudal crop-rotation farming and divides a part of an area into square feet to be able to plant in very specific areas.
Indoor Gardening
Maybe you don’t want to get out of the house to garden because of the weather and fear of pests. Then there is always indoor gardening for you! Not only will you have your own little garden in your home, but it can also add an aesthetic of nature to your home.
The most popular type of indoor gardening is container and window gardening. You can grow your house plants such as Chinese money plants, ferns, and bamboo inside little containers and maintain how big they get. And the amount of sunlight can be regulated by having them beside the window.
Another type is hydroponics, where a plant is grown inside an intricate waterway system to get water that gets circulated inside the garden itself! This is good for those plants that need a lot of water to be able to grow properly. Your plants will have a sufficient amount of water and nutrients from the soil because all of it can be regulated by you.
And finally, you have the mother of all indoor gardening: a greenhouse. An open, transparent structure where the plants can get enough sunlight and a warm humid condition to be able to grow. This is especially good for gardening during the winter when the weather conditions are difficult to grow anything.
Hanging Gardening
Maybe you don’t have enough space on the ground to grow your garden. Instead of growing flat on the ground, why not grow them vertically? The perfect solution to that will be hanging gardening!
The most obvious type of hanging gardening is to think of climbers hanging from an open roof. Climbers are often the easiest to plant for a hanging garden as they use whatever they are grown on as a support for their stems.
Another concept of hang gardening would be a vertical garden. These types of gardening are where you have towers that have space inside them to store soil for plants to grow. And some even have their own waterway inside them where you just have to pour want from the top.
For root plants such as potatoes, carrots, radishes, etc., an upside-down garden can be used. This means that the soil is on top inside a container and the plants are hanging upside-down.
Above-Ground Gardening
Sometimes, traditional in-ground gardening can be problematic because the soil is not suitable for growing. Why have everything in the ground when you can have them be at a raised platform? Enter above-ground gardening. What you do is make an alternative soil on top of the ground and there are different ways of doing so.
A raised bed is a good example of above-ground gardening. You make an area with either wood, stone, or some other material so it can hold your preferred soil mixture and plant on that. Yes, you are still planting in soil, but that soil you are using is better than just growing on the ground.
Instead of soil, are there alternatives you could use instead? Absolutely! That’s where straw bale and Hügelkultur gardening come in. In straw bale gardening, you take an ordinary straw bale and add compost and soil mixture and grow your plants inside them, all above the ground. The straw bale helps protect the plant from pests and weeds from interrupting its growth.
Similar to straw bale, Hügelkultur uses woodchips instead. A mound of woodchips is created and then all the necessary compost, soil, and straw are added to make bedding for the seeds to be planted. Most people start to plant on them immediately while others have said that waiting for a couple of months while the Hügelkultur mound absorbs moisture and creates its own little ecosystem inside makes for a better growing experience.
Modern Gardening
As the name suggests, modern gardening puts a twist on the traditional methods of gardening. In this type of gardening, you are thinking of how to be sustainable, efficient, and add a modern touch to your design.
For example, traditional gardening methods have to use pesticides to help clear out pests that destroy plants you want to grow. Organic gardening on the other hand takes that away so that the plant isn’t affected by the harmful chemicals of pesticides.
Now think about the hydroponic garden. How can you make that modern? Why not make a garden with the help of an aquarium! It’s called aquaponics, and it is when you make a garden with water from an aquarium to help water your garden. And the garden is connected to the aquarium, creating a diverse ecosystem all inside your aquarium. A very interesting idea, don’t you think?
How can you modernize above-ground gardening? Have you ever thought about farming without disturbing the soil? That’s exactly what no-till gardening is! The roots of the plant are kept inside the soil, and new soil is added on top with a mixture of compost, fertilizer, and mulch. The soil is tilled or dug, and the old plant provides nutrients for the new one.
Then there is therapeutic gardening such as Zen gardening, where you have a bonsai tree that you take care of. This type of gardening is mostly for the calmness of the mind.
Truth be told, there are even more types of gardening out there but most of them deal with or use similar techniques that are mentioned above.
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What to Consider When Gardening?
When you want to use a specific type of gardening, you will also have to keep in mind some key aspects that may limit which type you can actually use.
Size of garden
Some gardening, like a greenhouse, will require a very large area to be built in. Otherwise, it will not be possible to use greenhouse gardening. So depending on the size and scope of your garden, you would have to choose your type of gardening appropriately.
How long do the plants survive?
How long do your plants last? Or if you are growing vegetables in your garden, how long before they are harvested? You have to keep in mind how long these plants will survive and how often you might have to replace them to keep your garden fresh.
Enough Space
How fast and big will your plants grow should be considered when you are thinking of gardening. You can’t grow a tree inside a container garden, right? The plant will not be able to grow properly if it does not have enough space to grow.
Budget
A hydroponic garden or aquaponics would require a significant investment. On the other hand, container gardening with small to medium pots is cheap. So definitely consider how much you are willing to spend on your garden.
Design
Does your garden match the design of your house? An out-of-place garden would look odd and take away from the garden’s beauty, especially if you are planning on making a flower garden.
FAQs
Permaculture is based on science and data, while moon-phasing is based on a myth about how the moon affects the water and how that affects the growth and harvest of the plants.
It depends mostly on the ground you are using. Some plants have large root systems so, in addition to your soil, you might need ground where the roots can grow in. Other times, the above-ground soil has enough space for the roots of the plant.
Yes, you can! There are a variety of ways to do indoor gardening. The most convenient way is to get potted plants suitable for indoor conditions.
Final Thoughts
As you have read, there are so many types of gardening out there, and maybe there are even some that I have missed! When deciding on what type of gardening you want to do, you might be confused. That is why the types of gardening are affected by the size of the garden, budget, design, how long the plants survive, and do the plants have enough space to grow. By reading this, I hope you have gained a better understanding of the types of gardening that is out there.
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