Start Your Own Vegetable Garden

child picks ripe tomatoes from a branchThere’s nothing quite as delicious as fresh produce. Buying locally is a great option, but you can also grow your own! Get started on your vegetable garden with this guide.

Find a Perfect Spot

When it comes to the location of your garden, there are a few things you need to keep in mind. First, for the most part, your vegetables will require six to eight hours of direct sunlight each day. This means they can’t be under any trees that would provide shade throughout the day. Second, you need good drainage to prevent root rot. If you notice your soil often has puddles of water, you might want to go for a raised garden instead. The third thing to look for is how much wind there is. Strong winds could knock down and uproot your growing plants. Finally, every successful garden needs nutrient-rich soil. Luckily this is easy to provide by mixing in garden soil or compost.

Start Small

It’s easy to get overwhelmed with caring for plants, so start small. If you are planting directly in the ground, a 10′ by 10′ garden can be manageable, but when in doubt, a smaller one is better. However, raised gardens are a little different. Keep them no wider than four feet so you can easily reach everything without stepping into the plot. For length, start at four or eight feet.

No matter what type of garden you decide on, make sure your layout allows you to easily weed and water your plants without trampling them! Don’t be afraid to leave empty spaces for walking.

Choose Vegetables

The most exciting part of gardening is picking out your plants! Whether you want to buy seeds or already sprouted plants, it’s important to put thought into what you need. Ask yourself what vegetables you eat the most and how often you eat them. Being realistic will help prevent waste. Also, consider planting vegetables that aren’t as easy to get in stores.

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When to Plant

You might think you should get everything planted all at once so you can be done. However, if you don’t think about the growing time of everything, you might end up with too much produce at one time. Instead, plan out a schedule and plan according to that. Then you can have fresh produce throughout the month!

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