Learn as You Grow: What Every Beginner Gardener Should Know

Here’s a secret: It’s easier than you think. A lifelong gardener shares how—and why—to get started.

Gardening offers rest to the soul while also giving back to the environment. QKon Studio/Shutterstock

My first garden was a tree nursery—maple trees, to be exact. I was 10 years old and living in a neighborhood where maples were abundant, as were maple seeds and seedlings. I was amazed that I could dig up little sprouts with a trowel, tuck them in a backyard garden, water them occasionally, and grow trees.

Trees!