Planting a Vegetable Garden for Beginners

So, you’ve decided to take the plunge and plant your own vegetable garden. While growing your own vegetables may seem like a lot of work, there’s nothing like biting into a nice ripe tomato and thinking “I grew this myself”. It’s the satisfaction of knowing that you produced it. It’s addictive though. Once you start, you will want beautiful and tasty vegetables all the time.

The first thing you need to do when starting a vegetable garden is to choose a spot. All vegetables need lots of sunshine to grow; so pick a spot that gets sun most of the day. An easterly aspect is ideal. They also need to be sheltered from strong winds. Tree roots tend to steal nutrients that are in the soil, so don’t position your vegetable garden near large trees.

Next, you need to plan the layout of your garden.The best way to do this is to get out a sheet of paper and draw your garden. Some plants can grow pretty close together, while others need to be spread out so they won’t have competition. Draw where you want to put each crop so you know you have enough room for everything.

You should then tear up the soil to make it loose. This way you will be able to plant your vegetables and their roots will be able to grow. It’s almost impossible for little plants to break through compact soil. You can then put organic material in your soil by adding compost or manure. If you don’t have this on hand, you can go pick something up at your local gardening store.

The next thing you need to do is to select what vegetable plants you want to grow. Of course, choose your family’s favorite vegetables first; you don’t want a bunch of food sitting around that no one wants. Just make sure that the vegetables you want will grow properly where you live. You also want to pick varieties you have the time and space to take care of. It’s no fun to do all that work and come out with inferior vegetables.

Now that you have your spot picked out, prepared the soil and you know exactly what to get, it’s time to get your seedlings or seeds, if you want to start from seeds. Just remember to ensure that they are organic. Good luck and happy planting!

For more information, feel free to read the post on how to make better garden soil.