Gardening 101
Plant a seed and watch it grow!
Everything from a flower garden, herb garden, or a vegetable garden, it takes some planning and patience to move through the process starting from scratch. The rewards from it though include relaxation and another rewarding and benefiting hobby. Take these few steps in creating your garden; choose your garden type, pick the spot, test the soil, determine if weeds will be a problem, consider your sunlight, buy the plant, water and mulch, and just watch as they grow. I for sure would like to know where my food comes from and being able
to walk outside to my very own produce aisle will definitely keep my thoughts at peace. All good things in life take time and hard work, a vegetable garden is no different.
Let’s get started!
The key for the perfect spot to start your garden is a lot of sunlight. That means try to find a spot that can receive at least 6 hours of full sunlight every day. The sun is lower in the winter and higher in the summer, you’ll have to consider the level of sunlight reaching the location later in the growing season. The time you want to put into your garden is how big you should consider it to be when you start building it. Whether you build a box, leave it in the planters, or directly plant it in the ground, your garden needs space, air, and lots of care to make sure it stays alive and thriving.
Get prepared!
There is a great term you may have heard of for layering materials for your vegetable garden. Lasagna gardening: layer your materials like grass clippings, leaves, straw, compost, and shredded newspaper over the lawn to create a new garden bed. There is no point in planting anything until you know if the soil you have is suitable for your garden. Testing the soil is important to help your garden grow, you may need to add certain nutrients or work to raise or lower the pH to create the optimal growing environment for your plants. A pro tip for you, re-test your soil before each growing season to determine what it may need.
Buy and Plot!
Some may want to take on the true adventure of being a gardener and start with planting the seeds, but those of you who are a little hesitant to do so, how about just starting with a plant from an honest nursery for your first start. Look for the ones that are strong, green, and appear lush. The leaves and stems should be solid, not rigid, and not floppy. Any leaf discoloration that’s not normal for that variety should definitely be taken as a warning sign. Another pro tip when planting your new plants is keep the tags on them for reference so that way you know exactly what you’re looking at when you need to nurture them. Water your plants well to help the soil settle and ensure that everything is well saturated and then mulch. Mulch does not only help keep the roots cooler in the hot summer, but it also helps hold moisture in during the hot days.
