Gardening Advice for Beginners: Why the Answer Is Always “It Depends”

Gardening is the only hobby where a person can ask one simple question and get an answer that somehow involves a soil sample, a weather report, a compass, three photos, and a brief history of the property.

You might ask an experienced gardener, “How often should I water my hydrangea?”

They’ll lean back, narrow their eyes, and say, “Well, it depends.”

That’s not because gardeners are trying to be difficult.

Although, to be fair, some of us do enjoy it a little.

It’s because almost every gardening question really does depend on several things. It depends on what you planted, where you planted it, what kind of soil you have, how much sun the plant gets, how much rain fell last week, whether the wind has been blowing, and whether a squirrel has developed a personal problem with your container garden.

Gardening advice sounds simple until you try to use it in your own yard.

Then it becomes a negotiation.

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“How Much Sun Does This Plant Need?”

This seems like an innocent question.

You pick up a plant at the garden center. The tag says “full sun.” You take it home, plant it in full sun, and three days later the poor thing looks like it was left on the hood of a Buick in a grocery store parking lot.

Apparently, “full sun” does not always mean the same thing in every yard.

Morning sun is polite. It arrives gently, warms the leaves, and behaves like it was raised right.

Late-afternoon sun in Georgia is a different story. It comes stomping through the yard at 4:30 p.m. wearing steel-toed boots and carrying a grudge.

A plant may enjoy six hours of pleasant morning sunlight but object strongly to being roasted against the western side of your house beside the dryer vent.

That’s why experienced gardeners ask follow-up questions.

“How much sun does it get?”

“Six hours.”

“What time of day?”

“I don’t know. I have a job.”

And there we are.

“How Often Should I Water It?”

This is the question everybody wants answered with a schedule.

Folks would love to hear, “Water every Tuesday and Friday at 7:15 a.m.”

That would be nice. You could put watering on the calendar right beside trash pickup and the dentist appointment you’ve already rescheduled twice.

Unfortunately, plants do not use calendars.

A newly planted shrub in July may need water often. That same shrub in October may be perfectly happy with rainfall. A plant in a container may dry out while you’re still putting the hose away. A plant growing in heavy Georgia clay may sit in water long enough to qualify as waterfront property.

The real answer is to check the soil.

If the soil is dry, water deeply.

If the soil is wet, leave it alone.

This sounds easy until you remember that many gardeners express love through excessive watering.

We don’t mean to drown the plant. We’re only trying to help.

But plants, much like houseguests, can get uncomfortable when you keep offering them another drink every 20 minutes.

“What Is the Best Fertilizer?”

This question causes otherwise reasonable adults to stand in the garden center staring at bags of fertilizer like they’re choosing a retirement plan.

There’s rose fertilizer, shrub fertilizer, bloom booster, slow-release fertilizer, organic fertilizer, liquid fertilizer, granular fertilizer, and one bag with a tomato on it that looks suspiciously confident.

So which one do you need?

It depends.

It depends on the plant. It depends on the soil. It depends on whether your soil already has plenty of nutrients. It depends on whether the plant is actually hungry or simply unhappy because it was planted beside the air conditioner drainpipe.

Sometimes the correct fertilizer is no fertilizer at all.

That’s disappointing because buying fertilizer feels productive. It feels like action. It lets you carry a bag through the yard and look like a person with a plan.

A soil test is less dramatic, but it can save you from feeding a plant that wasn’t hungry in the first place.

“When Should I Prune It?”

This question can get gardeners stirred up in a hurry.

Some shrubs bloom on old wood. Some bloom on new wood. Some bloom whether you prune them or not. Some refuse to bloom because they sensed weakness in your character.

Prune certain hydrangeas at the wrong time and you may remove next year’s flower buds before they ever get a chance to show off.

The shrub will probably survive.

It may even look healthy.

But it’ll spend the entire summer standing there leafed out and flowerless, silently reminding you that patience is not the same thing as forgiveness.

Before pruning anything, identify the plant.

Don’t rely on a vague memory of buying “one of those blue hydrangeas” from a garden center six years ago.

That description narrows it down to approximately half the plant kingdom.

“Why Is My Plant Dying?”

This is where gardening turns into detective work.

The leaves are yellow.

Is it too much water? Not enough water? Poor drainage? A nutrient issue? Too much sun? Too little sun? An insect? A disease? A dog with no respect for landscaping?

The plant is not going to tell you.

It’ll simply stand there looking disappointed.

That’s why gardeners spend an unreasonable amount of time crouched in the yard inspecting leaves. From a distance, it may look like we’re communing with nature.

In reality, we’re muttering, “What is wrong with you now?”

Sometimes the plant recovers.

Sometimes it does not.

Sometimes you move it three feet to the left and it immediately starts thriving, just to make the whole situation feel personal.

The Yard Next Door Is Not Your Yard

One of the most dangerous statements in gardening is, “My neighbor planted one, and theirs is doing fine.”

Your neighbor’s yard may look like your yard, but it is not your yard.

Their soil may drain better. Their plant may get morning sun while yours gets the afternoon furnace blast. Their gutter may send rainwater toward the shrub instead of dumping it into the driveway. Their dog may have chosen a different corner of the property for personal business.

Gardening is local.

Sometimes it’s so local that the conditions change between your mailbox and your front porch.

You can have one shrub thriving beautifully on one side of the house and another shrub of the same variety struggling 30 feet away like it just got bad news from its accountant.

Gardening Is Not a Formula

This is the part nobody tells beginners.

Gardening is not a tidy list of instructions where every plant behaves exactly as expected.

It’s more like cooking without measuring spoons while the oven temperature changes every afternoon and rabbits occasionally break into the kitchen.

You learn by paying attention.

You learn where water collects after a storm. You learn which side of the house gets the harshest sun. You learn that containers dry out faster than you thought possible. You learn that deer will walk past acres of perfectly good greenery to eat the one flowering shrub you bought as a birthday present for yourself.

Most of all, you learn that “it depends” is not a useless answer.

It’s the beginning of the answer.

The Best Gardening Advice for Beginners

Start with the basics.

Choose the right plant for the right place. Pay attention to sunlight. Check the soil before watering. Learn what you planted before pruning it. Get a soil test before buying enough fertilizer to qualify for wholesale pricing.

Then accept that something will still go wrong.

A squirrel may dig in the container. A deer may eat the buds. A summer storm may flatten the plant you just staked. The forecast may predict rain for six straight days and deliver three drops, all of which land on the neighbor’s driveway.

That does not mean you’re bad at gardening.

It means you’re gardening.

The yard will teach you what it needs, although it may use a teaching style best described as unnecessarily expensive.

So the next time you ask a gardener a question and the answer begins with “it depends,” don’t get discouraged.

That gardener is not avoiding your question.

They’re just trying to figure out whether your hydrangea needs water, shade, fertilizer, pruning, better drainage, or a restraining order against a squirrel.

And the honest answer is still:

It depends.

Helpful Gardening Tools for When the Answer Is “It Depends”

Gardening would be much easier if every plant came with a clear instruction manual and then agreed to follow it.

Unfortunately, plants prefer mystery.

One hydrangea wants more water. Another hydrangea wants less water. A tomato plant wants full sun until the temperature rises, and then it starts acting like it has been personally betrayed by the weather.

The right tools won’t answer every gardening question, but they can help you make better decisions before you start moving shrubs around the yard like furniture.

This post may contain affiliate links. If you buy through one of our links, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only share products we think may be helpful for gardeners.

Check the Soil Before You Water Again

A simple soil moisture meter can help you determine whether the soil is dry, damp, or wet before you water a plant that may already be considering swimming lessons.

This is especially helpful for container plants, newly planted shrubs, and garden beds where the top of the soil looks dry but the root area may still be moist.

Find Out What Kind of Dirt You’re Dealing With

A basic soil test kit can help you better understand your soil’s pH and nutrient levels. This can be useful when a plant looks unhappy and fertilizer starts calling your name from the garden-center shelf.

Before you start adding random products to the soil, it helps to know what’s already there.

Water Deeply Without Standing Outside All Evening

A soaker hose or drip irrigation system can provide slow, steady watering around shrubs, flowers, and garden beds.

It also gives you time to focus on other important gardening responsibilities, such as standing on the porch and staring suspiciously at squirrels.

Stop Guessing How Much Rain Actually Fell

Your yard may receive less rain than you think, especially when the forecast promises a downpour and delivers six drops and a light breeze.

A rain gauge helps you track what actually happened in your garden, not what the weather app claimed was going to happen.

Make Watering Easier During Hot Weather

A hose timer can help you water more consistently during warm weather, especially when newly planted shrubs need extra attention.

It is also useful for gardeners who fully intend to water in the morning and then remember sometime around supper.

Need More Hydrangea Help?

Still have questions about your hydrangea? Visit our Hydrangea Help page for practical guides on pruning, watering, fertilizing, blooming problems, brown leaves, drooping flowers, and more.

Whether you’re trying to identify your hydrangea or figure out why it isn’t blooming, we’ll help you find the right information without making things more complicated than they need to be.

Visit the Hydrangea Help page →