Vegetable Gardening Tips

Saturday, August 22nd, 2009 at 2:29 pm

There are no second opinions about the fact that vegetable gardening is a much more satisfying experience than any other form of gardening. This is more so because one gets the opportunity to relish the dishes made out of ones own produce. However, vegetable gardening is also not as easy as other types of gardening and one needs to plan well in advance, even before starting tilling the ground for the seeding purpose.

1. One important factor that needs consideration while planning is the climatic conditions. There are some vegetables that can be cultivated only in a certain type of climate and season. For example, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and broccoli can only be grown in cold areas, whereas, peppers, eggplants and tomatoes grow better in hot and sunny weather.

2. Another gardening tip that can be effectively used is that there are certain kinds of vegetables that do very well if exposed partially to sunlight. For example, lettuce is a plant that grows fantastically when exposed to sunlight for half a day and then kept in shade for the remaining half. One should plan the placement of ones vegetables in the garden keeping such factors in mind. Other vegetables that grow very well under partial exposure to sunlight are carrots, spinach, cauliflower, cucumbers, Swiss chard, radishes and beets.

3. Is your garden located in a region that either has a very long growth season or a very short one. Based on its weather conditions, a garden can be cultivated with the help of the following gardening tip. Gardens with long growth season are apt for growing vegetables like tomatoes, beans (lima, soy and dry), artichokes, celery, peppers, potatoes, asparagus, rhubarb, eggplant, onions, kale and leeks. Whereas, the gardens located in short growth areas must have vegetables like beets, cabbage, carrots, turnips, beans, peas, radishes, peas, mustard greens, onions and lettuce.

4. The next significant gardening tip is based on your level of expertise as a gardener. If you are a beginner, you will do much better by growing vegetables like beans (dry and green), potatoes, squash (summer and winter), radishes, tomatoes, beets, salad greens, beets, sunflowers, lettuce, Swiss chard and any other root crop, that don't offer great challenges and put you off in no time. In case you are a seasoned gardener and wish to take on the challenges, you can try your hand at celery, watermelon, parsnips, leeks, cantaloupe, Chinese cabbage, cauliflower, leeks, peas and corns.

5. At the time of planning for your vegetable garden, you must also include the space constraints that certain vegetable plants may impose. Some vegetables can do with minimum space while others may require yards and yards to come good. This gardening tip will help you classify the vegetables by the space that they require to grow. Vegetables that consume maximum space are artichokes (globe), cauliflower, cucumbers, peas, potatoes, winter squash, broccoli, corn, melons and sweet potatoes. Least space consuming vegetable plants are beets, Chinese cabbage, tomatoes, eggplant, lettuce, radishes, mustard greens, parsnips, beans (bush and pole), carrots, turnips, Swiss chard, leeks, sunflowers, peppers and onions. You must take care while planting these vegetables that you leave enough space for you to move around in the garden.

It is strictly advisable to not to use any chemicals in your vegetable gardens to get rid of weeds and insects. There are several organic methods that can be used without employing chemical herbicides and pesticides. Use of such chemicals kills both the good and harmful bugs in the vegetable garden. Moreover, the chemically exposed vegetables can have severe impact on the consumer health in the long run. You can always make use of a good naturally prepared mulch to get rod of weeds in your garden.

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Planning a Vegetable Garden

Sunday, July 26th, 2009 at 2:19 am

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Plan for vegetable garden Planning a Vegetable Garden

Here's all you need to know about starting your first home vegetable garden. Regardless of where one lives, growing conditions are bound to be different from the conditions described in most Gardening books. To plan a successful Garden, ask some questions. Which vegetables grow well in this area? What soil types are common? Are there unique conditions in the Garden to consider, for example, high winds, compacted soils, poor drainage and wet spots? Finally, what are the first and last frost dates and the growing season? Later as skills develop add more difficult Crops such as small fruits and perennial vegetables, and add more area to the Garden's size. When selecting plants of a first garden, keep in mind several suggestions. So before I even get started the garden is already divided into four equal quadrants that are easy to identify and keep separated. When planning the layout of the vegetable beds there are four main considerations that I keep in mind to guide my planting and growing strategy. If you plant a particular crop or family of related crops in one raised bed the previous year, it goes in a different area or garden bed the next time around.

A very important consideration when planning your vegetable garden is to think about the size, height, and growth habit of the crops and to plant according to these characteristics. Getting this right will enable you to employ succession planting techniques to grow two or three separate harvests in the same space that many gardeners grow a single vegetable crop. When the bulbs are harvested in mid summer the bed can then be used to plant fall crops such as kale, mustard greens, cabbage, broccoli, and other cool weather vegetables and planning ahead the same area can be used to grow tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants can be replanted with your crop of fall garlic. In September after the tomatoes have slowed production, pull the vines, add a layer of compost to the bed and use the area to plant garlic to over-winter, or sow transplants of other fall and winter vegetables. There are many unique vegetable varieties available that are not only tasty, but can also add an ornamental flavor to the vegetable garden with their unusual shapes, textures, and colors. There are several factors to consider when planning what will be grown in the vegetable garden.

Growing from seed gardeners should consider whether they are willing and able to grow any of their plants from seed under fluorescent lights. In cooler climates, starting seeds indoors helps to extend the growing season and provides the gardener with more control over what specific varieties of tomatoes, peppers, beans and other vegetables will be cultivated. When planning the vegetable garden, decide which plants will be grown from seed, and which plants will be purchased as seedlings. Gardeners who grow vegetables may also enjoy growing fruit in the garden. Planting a fruit tree such as apple, pear or cherry is also a satisfying addition to the vegetable garden. Gardeners tend to neglect the plants they don’t like to eat. To avoid being wasteful, gardeners should grow only those edible plants that are regularly eaten in their household. Although most vegetable plants grow in varying shades of green, some heirloom vegetables grow in a wide variety of colors. Incorporating edible flowers such as nasturtiums or violas also adds a touch of color to the vegetable garden. When planning the next seasons vegetable patch, gardeners will also need to consider the time and energy they have available to spend working to maintain the garden, as well as any storage space required once the baskets of fruit and vegetables begin to be harvested. Sunlight full sun is the preferred exposure for growing most vegetables. Install your beds away from trees or other objects that could shade the garden. Remember that trees are plants too and locating garden beds too close to tree roots will place your vegetables in competition with trees for water and nutrients.

Windbreaks trees, fences, walls, even hedges can be used to protect young plants, as long as they are far enough away from your garden not to cause shade or competition problems. The size of your garden depends on the vegetable needs and wants of you and your family, what land is available to you, water requirements, and how hard your want to work at it. Many people enthusiastically plant gardens larger than their needs and their abilities to care for them, and then realize, late into the season, that their vegetable garden has just gotten away from them. Spinach, radishes, leaf lettuce and other like vegetables need relatively little space. There are new bush varieties that are constantly being developed for these types of plants that can be used in small gardens. Placement if you are planting corn in your garden, plant it on the north side, so it wont shade other plants as it grows taller. Map your garden when your deciding what goes where, so next year, you can rotate some crops. Successful garden all deepens on you and your planning so get started on your new garden. For more information on gardening go to www.Teegoes.org