Acquiring skills?

[fuzzyred]

Does anybody have any suggestions for how to learn new things, especially when they aren't a passion? I'm going to use gardening as my example. I know very little about gardening, and I don't love it, but I do like flowers and the previous owners of my home had a garden. I woukd like to keep it alive and healthy, but I'm not someone who is comfortable winging it, especially for things like pruning and trimming where I might kill the plant.

I learn best when someone shows me what to do, and can answer my questions, but instructions will work too if I don't have a person. I know I could look up many things about gardening, or pick up a book, but I'm not aure I want to wade through that much information on something that isn't a huge interest of mine. Any ideas for finding the basics on gardening, or sifting through large amounts of knowledge to find what you need?

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[dialecticdreamer]

If you want to learn how to take care of a particular plant, say a tomato plant in a one-gallon pot (yes, those can be raised indoors, with extra light), try growing one. Ask at the garden center, find an online friend who has a huge array of garden comments and then don't be afraid to say, "Back up. Before that. Before that," until you get to the point that you can easily understand the conversation.

County extension office

[librarygeek]

If you're in the United States, call or contact your county extension office. Local Master Gardeners would adore coming over and giving you a very specific workshop.

We had one Master Gardener also working at my public library as a staff member. If you don't know how to find the extension office, your library should.

Here's mine, for a search help: https://extension.psu.edu/