Kids’ Seed Gardening Kit

Many people are using this time at home to start their first garden. It can seem overwhelming if you haven’t gardened before, so we asked Pike Nurseries for some advice for first-time gardeners. 

Pike Nurseries is offering curbside pickup and delivery of everything you need to get started with gardening. You can order online or by phone.

Annuals

Colorful annuals are a good “starter garden” plant. Annuals can be grown in a small garden bed, around the mailbox and in containers by the front door or on a balcony.

Annuals are seasonal plants that live for one season; but in the Charlotte region, that season is much longer! Many spring blooms will last for months and even when they fade, gardeners can easily change them out for summer flowers that will last into fall.

For colorful blooms to plant now – look for petunias, calibrachoa, snapdragons, marigolds, dahlias and more.

For shade options – choose flowers like begonias, impatiens, and torenia and pair them with interesting, colorful foliage plants like caladiums and coleus.

Vegetable (and Fruit) Gardens

This is a great time to start a vegetable garden. Not only will it get you outside and doing something productive, but it will supply you with healthy food as the spring and summer progresses. If you have kids at home, gardening is a great learning activity that they will enjoy.

What should you grow?

• Most vegetables like eggplant, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and squash thrive in warm temperatures and will produce a bountiful harvest come summertime. These plants will need full sun (6-8 hours a day). These are among the easiest to grow.
• Pike Nurseries also offers Garden Kits on the online order form. You can place an order for a Veggie Kit that includes everything you need – plants, soil and fertilizer.
• Herbs like mint, basil, thyme, rosemary and more are also super easy to grow in containers and don’t need much space.
• Fruits like strawberries and blueberries are a fresh, nutrient-packed addition to modern-day victory gardens, too. Strawberries do well in pots or hanging baskets. Blueberry shrubs vary in size, so these can be planted in the ground or a compact option like a container.

What materials will you need?

• Materials include plants, soil and fertilizer. Most vegetables can be planted in containers or landscape.
• Choose a vegetable soil like Pike Vegetable & Flower Soil if planting in the ground or a raised bed. Be advised that Charlotte residents will need to amend native soil, which tends to be heavy clay. Amend it with a vegetable or planting mix to loosen up the dense soil so water drains better and tender new roots can grow more easily.
• If planting in a container, use potting soil like Pike Potting and Container Soil.
• For fertilizer, opt for a granular slow-release food just for vegetables, such as Dr. Earth Homegrown – an organic tomato and vegetable food.

How-to guides

Pike Nurseries has a number of how-to-videos and DIY guides in the advice section of their website.

Just a little bit of what you’ll find:

• How to create a butterfly garden
• Garden plots to for a Victory Garden
• Video on planting shade annuals
• Video on planting perennials
• Video on planting and caring for blueberries

Get Your Questions Answered

Call your closest Pike Nurseries and their pros can answer your questions.

Charlotte area Pike Nurseries:

Pike Nurseries, Highland Creek
9825 McKay Road
Charlotte , North Carolina 28269
704-800-5613

Pike Nurseries, Lake Norman
18234 Statesville Road
Cornelius , North Carolina 28031
(704) 800-4110

Pike Nurseries, Matthews
1016 Devore Lane
Matthews , North Carolina 28105
704-288-0782

Pike Nurseries, Ballantyne
12630 N. Community House Rd.
Charlotte , North Carolina 28277
Phone:704-341-7453

If you find that the stores are inundated with calls, ask on Pike Nurseries’ Facebook or Instagram and you’ll get an answer.