GROW IN ABUNDANCE: Common And Often Overlooked Gardening Mistakes
- k-england
- Jul 1
- 3 min read
By Sommer Cartier, for Let’s Talk Plants! July 2025.
Common and Often Overlooked Gardening Mistakes
Gardening is one of the most rewarding things you can do for your health, your home, and your well-being. But even the most experienced gardeners make mistakes that can impact the health of their plants and the productivity of their garden. A lot of these issues are easy to overlook, and just as easy to fix once you know what to watch for. Here are a few of the most common missteps and how to avoid them.
Improper Watering Techniques
Watering seems simple enough, but it’s often where things go sideways. Too much water can drown your plants, lead to root rot, and encourage fungal diseases. Too little, and plants become stressed or stunted.
The key is to water deeply and less often, giving roots a chance to grow down into the soil instead of staying shallow near the surface. Letting the top layer of soil dry out a bit between watering is healthy for most plants. Early morning is ideal, before the heat of the day causes evaporation or scorches wet leaves.
Avoid watering the foliage whenever possible. Focus on the soil at the base of the plant, where it matters most. And keep in mind that not all plants need the same amount of water. Leafy greens tend to want more consistent moisture, while herbs and tomatoes prefer things on the drier side. A simple moisture meter or just sticking your finger in the soil can take a lot of the guesswork out of it.
Overusing Pesticides
Pesticides may seem like a quick fix, but they do more harm than good in the long run. They don’t just kill the bad bugs, they wipe out the good ones too. And in a healthy garden, the good bugs are doing a lot of the heavy lifting.
Pollinators like bees and butterflies are essential to fruit and vegetable production. No pollinators, no tomatoes. There are also beneficial predators like ladybugs, lacewings, and parasitic wasps that help keep pests like aphids and spider mites in check. If you wipe them out with chemical sprays, your garden becomes much more vulnerable over time.
Instead of opting for chemicals, consider more organic and integrated pest management (IMP) approaches. Encourage biodiversity, plant pollinator friendly flowers, handpick pests when practical and use neem oil or insecticidal soap only when your other less invasive options have been exhausted. Your garden will thank you with balance and bounty.
To learn more about Integrated Pest Management visit:
Harvesting Too Late or Not at All
One of the easiest ways to stall your garden’s productivity is to leave ripe produce on the plant for too long. When a plant senses it has produced mature fruit, it often interprets that as its job being done and starts winding down production.
Harvesting regularly encourages plants to keep going. You’re telling the plant, “More, please.” This is especially true for crops like green beans, cucumbers, and zucchini. Letting fruit sit too long also impacts flavor, texture, and can even attract pests or disease.
And don’t be afraid to pull off any overripe or damaged produce. Cleaning up the garden not only keeps things tidy, but it also keeps your plants focused on what you actually want them to do - grow fresh, healthy food.
Not Spending Enough Time in the Garden
You don’t need hours every day, but checking in regularly makes a big difference. Even ten minutes can help you catch early signs of trouble like wilted leaves, chewed stems, discoloration, or pest infestations.
The more time you spend with your plants, the more familiar you become with what’s normal and what’s not. You start to notice small shifts in growth or color. You learn to trust your instincts.
More than that, time in the garden grounds you. It slows you down, gets your hands in the dirt, and helps you reconnect with the natural rhythms around you. That daily check in becomes a ritual, a quiet moment to breathe, observe, and recharge.
Gardening rewards patience, presence, and curiosity. Mistakes will happen, no matter how experienced you are. But each one is an opportunity to learn and improve.
Pay attention to your watering habits. Be mindful with pest control. Harvest often. Spend time with your garden and really get to know it. These small shifts can lead to big changes in the health and abundance of your space.
And above all, enjoy the process. Let your garden teach you. Let it slow you down. Let it surprise you. That’s how strong gardens grow. And that’s how good gardeners get better.
Sommer Cartier
Master of Arts, International Development and Social Change
Clark University
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