The joys of vegetable gardening range from planning in winter to harvesting in the summer or fall. Vegetable gardens are unlike any other gardens on our property. So, it is very important to know how to prepare the garden before we start vegetable gardening.
The most imporatnt requirements for vegetables to grow are sunshine and water. Other requirements are loosened soil, some fertilizer, and a little bit of weeding. If we have an area in our yard that gets sunshine most of the day, which is 6 to 8 hours in summer; then, we can have a vegetable garden. It requires a little extra amount of work to start, but once we start, it is not hard at all. The ground where the plants will grow needs to be loosened up to allow the air in the soil. The roots are the only way the plants take up water and nutrients, so the plants should be able to do that by itself. Therefore, soft soil is very important. But, the soil in most yards is very hard because we don't use it, so it's compacted over the years. Therefore, it is easy to dig in early spring as the soil is moist enough to dig easily but not so wet that the soil is muddy and heavy. We have to make sure that there are no trees and shrubs around it with roots that will spread in our garden.
After that, we have to remove grass and create some type of border around the garden to keep it neat and weed free. We must dig the soil to loosen it up, to allow the air in which will alow the roots to breathe. The depth that is recommended is at least 12". Then, 2" of compost must be added to the soil and mix it well with the soil. Adding too much compost to the soil thinking that it will make the garden healthy is wrong because it will over-fertilize the garden.
When it looks like a good place, then, we are ready to plant vegetables. But planning before planting vegetables is always good. We need to plan to make sure that it has enough room for the plants to grow. Plants generally get very lage and we need to give them enough space to grow out healthy. Most of the plants we purchase will have the information on how much room they will need when fully grown, so it should not be hard to figure that out. And lastly, we should always put the tallest ones in the back because sun is very important for all plants. So, we should make sure that they do not shade the shorter ones.
The most imporatnt requirements for vegetables to grow are sunshine and water. Other requirements are loosened soil, some fertilizer, and a little bit of weeding. If we have an area in our yard that gets sunshine most of the day, which is 6 to 8 hours in summer; then, we can have a vegetable garden. It requires a little extra amount of work to start, but once we start, it is not hard at all. The ground where the plants will grow needs to be loosened up to allow the air in the soil. The roots are the only way the plants take up water and nutrients, so the plants should be able to do that by itself. Therefore, soft soil is very important. But, the soil in most yards is very hard because we don't use it, so it's compacted over the years. Therefore, it is easy to dig in early spring as the soil is moist enough to dig easily but not so wet that the soil is muddy and heavy. We have to make sure that there are no trees and shrubs around it with roots that will spread in our garden.
After that, we have to remove grass and create some type of border around the garden to keep it neat and weed free. We must dig the soil to loosen it up, to allow the air in which will alow the roots to breathe. The depth that is recommended is at least 12". Then, 2" of compost must be added to the soil and mix it well with the soil. Adding too much compost to the soil thinking that it will make the garden healthy is wrong because it will over-fertilize the garden.
When it looks like a good place, then, we are ready to plant vegetables. But planning before planting vegetables is always good. We need to plan to make sure that it has enough room for the plants to grow. Plants generally get very lage and we need to give them enough space to grow out healthy. Most of the plants we purchase will have the information on how much room they will need when fully grown, so it should not be hard to figure that out. And lastly, we should always put the tallest ones in the back because sun is very important for all plants. So, we should make sure that they do not shade the shorter ones.
