Tag: Fruits And Vegetables

Long-Term Plans for Planting Vegetable Gardens

Long-term Plans for Planting Vegetable Gardens

A lot of people are beginning to see the benefits of planting vegetable gardens. Its usually healthier because you get to decide whether or not to use commercial pesticide on them. Since vegetable gardens are typically manageable in size because theyre not grown for profit, its easier for people to manage the plot without having to resort to using commercial pesticides. Vegetable gardens also assure you of fresh produce because theres no need to pick the vegetables and refrigerate it. Vegetables stay fresh as long as you dont pick it from your garden, except if it becomes overripe. Aside from health reasons, planting vegetable gardens is also economical because the produce is not going to be as expensive as those that you buy from markets or groceries.

People who have been successful in planting vegetable gardens usually know that you cant keep growing only one type of vegetable in a garden. Its usually more advisable to rotate crops instead of planting only one kind of vegetable year in and out. Rotating crops will make sure that the micro nutrients in the soil will be preserved, and that diseases will not build up in soil particulates.

Planting vegetable gardens take some careful planning on your part, and also an understanding on plant families to know which vegetable types are compatible with each other. These are some examples of groups that can be considered compatible and are safe to be rotated together:

Alliums – onions, leeks, shallots, and the likes Crucifers – such as radishes, turnips, broccoli, cauliflower, and the likes Brassicas – brussel sprouts, mustards, cabbages, kale and the likes Legumes – peas and beans Cucurbits – cucumbers, squashes, melons, etcetera Solanaceae – peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, and the likes Mescluns – arugula, endive, radiccio, etcetera

Rotating vegetables of the same family would also mean that (more often than not) they would be susceptible to the same kind of pests. This makes pest control a bit more manageable for you since you dont have to adjust to different types of pests for different families of vegetables.

Vegetables such as asparagus, rhubarbs, and other perennial vegetables must not be rotated. They should be planted separately because of this. The more hardy and semi-annual vegetables can be rotated yearly so that no family of vegetables is planted in the same bed for four years. If you have done some planning before planting vegetable gardens, a small plot would like similar to this: four beds for plants that can be rotated, and one bed for perennial, non-rotating plants.

It would also be ideal for people who planning on planting vegetable gardens to spread out the kinds of vegetables they plant so that they dont harvest too much of the same vegetable in one season. You wouldnt want to be stuck with too many cucumbers in one season, would you? Throughout the growing season, try and plant varying types of short-season vegetables so that youll be assured of many different types of vegetables throughout the season.

If you really plan to get the most out of planting vegetable gardens, its best if you do your research first. Check which plants go together, check whether you have enough space to rotate your plants, check which plants you can actually rotate to prevent poisoning and depleting the nutrients of the soil, and spread out the type of vegetables you plant so you wont have too much of the same thing for the whole planting season.

Laying Out And Planting Vegetable Gardens

Laying Out and Planting Vegetable Gardens

As you start planting vegetable gardens its important to know how the garden will be laid out. The layout of your own garden will depend on what vegetable you want to grow, the planting space and if you would like to opt for companion planting. Here are some helpful tips on how to layout your own garden and start planting vegetables.

Sit Down and Plan

Before choosing a layout you need to decide on what type of vegetable you would like to grow and where you would like to plant them. Here are other factors you need to consider for your garden layout:

* Garden Space * Amount of Light in the Space * Drainage System * Soil Amendments * Type of Vegetable * Additional Space (if needed)

You should also think about whether you want to grow one type of vegetable like lettuce and tomatoes or if you want one type of vegetable with different kinds. Researching about the amount of light a certain vegetable needs and the amount of space that each need to be planted are both helpful facts to find out.

Make a list of vegetables you want to plant and find out the plant requirements of each and compare it with the garden space you have. This should give you an idea of where you want to plant certain vegetables in your space.

Choose your Garden Layout

There are three basic vegetable garden layouts and they are: rows, beds and potager style.

The most popular rows style of layout requires planting seeds in a row which could either mean planting one type of seed in a row or different seeds in a row.

The bed type of layout is similar the rows style but in a smaller level. This layout allows access to the plant beds from the exterior of the garden or as you walk through the garden path instead of coming from inside of the plant bed. This is particularly convenient to avoid stepping on the beds which tends to pack in the soil and makes it difficult to dig and aerate in the spring or fall. Plant beds are great ways to maximize a garden space and you can even use raised beds for easy gardening.

The most decorative style of layout is the potager which means kitchen garden in French. This layout is described as geometric which allows you to layout your garden in circles or arrange plants by color or even food type.

Consider Companion Planting

The idea behind companion planting involves planting different kinds of plants together so that they help each other grow. A perfect example of this is planting beans, corn and squash together which were commonly done by Native Americans. While the corn gives the beans a place to climb, the beans gives its three companions nutrients in the soil and the squash serves as a shade to the roots of the plants beside it. This not only prevents weeds from growing, it also saves up on water.

Other great plants for companion planting are onions, which scares slugs and aphids away, tomatoes, which grow well with carrots and basil, which improves the taste of tomatoes. Another example is horseradish and potatoes which when planted together give your potatoes protection from disease.

In planting vegetable gardens, this concept is certainly worth considering and if you want to get more information about it, you can do some research online or in your local library.

Building And Planting Vegetable Gardens

The structure of your vegetable garden does not have to be entirely functional but it should also look and feel good. Building some decorative arches and some tomato cages not only makes your garden look good but also helps it produce more crops. After all, there is more to planting vegetable gardens than just cultivating a spot of land.

Function Over Form

The most well known form garden structures are those that are built to sustain plants and give them the room to climb, hold up the weight of its fruits and other plants as well.

Building cages and poles lets you have a vertical garden which boosts your produce per square foot since youll have more space to plant in the ground.

Vegetables like cucumbers, peas, peppers and eggplants need lots of garden support. Carrying these vegetables above ground not only will produce better crop it also protects it from insects found in the soil. Plus, the fruits will be less likely to rot if planted this way. Building other support structures like stakes and cages will help in making your plants grow stronger and taller.

Choose Your Structure

If you plan to shop for things for your garden online or in a garden store, youll notice how many choices there are when it comes to garden structures. A great online garden resource is a company called Garden Supply Company. Not only do they have a mail-order catalogue, they make trellises for plants like cucumbers that serve as a shade to neighboring plants, tomato cages, spiral supports, bean towers, maypoles and others.

Garden structures may vary especially in terms of form and function because they not only are very supportive of plants it also makes your garden look good. The best kind of garden is not only beautiful, but also enhances the health of the vegetables planted there.

Form over Function

There are so many options when it comes to building your vegetable garden especially if youre purpose is purely aesthetic. You can build ornaments like arches, trellises or archways to beautify your garden. You can even build walls or doorways to surround your garden for a more visual appeal.

For gardens like these, you can decorate them with plants aside from vegetables. You can plant beautiful flowers to cover your trellis but choose flowers that are sun friendly and attract helpful insects.

An example is trumpet flowers, which are not only beautiful but they attract bees for your vegetable garden. Since you also want to attract helpful creatures, you can build a bird bath or a bird house in your garden. If youre particularly into organic gardening, the birds can certainly help eliminate pests

As long as you keep your garden attractive to birds and other helpful insects, they will spend a lot of time in your garden and repay you by eating away harmful pests.

Supporting Your Plants

Building plant supports are essential garden structures which is why its necessary to use them in the proper way to maximize results. This does not mean building stakes or cages in the ground and leave the plant to grow on its own.

There are other materials like plant ties, jute cords or twines which you can use to tie up your plant to the cages or poles but dont tie them too tight.

Another great support when it comes to planting vegetables gardens are stakes. Make sure to drive them properly into the ground and space them a little further from your main plant to avoid hitting its roots.

Advantages Of Planting Vegetable Gardens

Is there a patch of land in your backyard thats been left useless all this time? If youre still undecided to what to make out of it, maybe its high time you consider planting vegetables in it. Read on to learn some of the advantages of planting vegetable gardens.

Yummier veggie treats

Many people attest that vegetables grown in their own backyard tastes much better than those bought at grocery stores. They remark how much flavorful their harvests are, whether used as ingredients in a fresh veggie salad or cooked dishes. Be it because of the extra amount of love and care these home-grown vegetables got or the person taking pride in growing crops in his or her backyard, it doesnt rally matter. What matters is what you serve on the table is fresh right off your vegetable garden and more scrumptious for every member of the family to enjoy. You are also assured that what you put on the table is fresh and free from harmful chemicals like preservatives.

Guaranteed no harmful chemicals

Chances are you might not fully know whether the vegetables you buy at the supermarket are free of pesticides. Some vendors claim that their vegetables are free from harmful chemicals. What about if the soil where those crops grew was exposed to pesticides before or they were planted next to crops sprayed with pesticides? Prolonged dietary exposure to pesticides is linked to various adverse reproductive and developmental effects, although there is little data to support this. Your children are at higher risk to the dangers of such chemicals on the vegetables they consume. Their bodies are not yet fully developed to properly metabolize or excrete such substances.

A great way to workout

If you got little or no time to go to the gym or health spa to workout, then let gardening provide your daily dose of exercise. Tending your vegetable garden for at least 30 minutes a day is a great way to burn those excess calories and lose weight. You are able to work several major muscle groups in the body, like the legs, arms, back, buttocks and many others. Gardening is also improves your flexibility each time you stretch to reach for weeds or bend to plant a seedling.

By the time your crops are ready for harvest, you will notice a change in your body, especially if you look after your garden on a regular basis. Picking the car key that fell on the floor or reaching for a book at the top of a tall shelf will be a lot easier for you to do. Unlike jogging, playing basketball and others, gardening has less impact on your joints. Gardening is best were vigorous exercises is not applicable, such as for people with high blood pressure, heart diseases, bone joint disorders and many others.

Help save the environment

If commercially grown vegetables receive little demand from consumers, then commercial farmers will find no reason to expand their plantations. So theres no need to cut down rain forests and devastate habitats of wild animals. Also, if demand is lowered farmers will use less pesticide and other harmful chemicals that pollute our rivers and the rest of the environment. You might feel that you as a concerned citizen cannot contribute that much positive impact on the environment by planting vegetable gardens. But imagine the difference made if a lot of people started to plant their vegetables in their own backyard.

The Basics Of Planting Vegetable Gardens

Not a lot of people try planting vegetable gardens these days, especially not in the city. What with the busy lifestyle, constrained spaces, and pollution, it seems inconceivable that a vegetable garden would survive. The fact is, you can actually grow them even if you are smack in the middle of a busy city. Its only important that you get the basics of planting vegetable gardens right.

First things first. Soil preparation. This is one of the most basic things that any new gardener will have to learn. Whether you plan to use a plot of land in your backyard or start a vegetable garden in plant boxes, soil preparation plays an important role in whether your vegetable garden will survive or not. There are three types of soil that you need to be familiar with; sand, clay and silt. Sandy soil is loose and helps the roots of plants breathe because it lets the air pass through easily. Clay soil absorbs water faster and keeps it inside longer, a soil composition that has more clay particles in it would be ideal for places that are too hot and the soil dries up quickly. Silt is a fine mixture of sand and clay particles.

When preparing the soil for your vegetable garden, dig up the soil and break off the lumps. Take out the rocks, roots, and weeds while youre at it. Check if you have just the right mixture of sand, silt, and clay before you begin planting vegetable gardens. Ideally, silt and sand should both be 40%, and clay should just be 20%, this is to make sure that the water isnt trapped inside too much that the roots will choke. Also, if the water is trapped too long inside the soil, the roots will rot. One good way to test whether the composition of your soil is good is by scooping out a handful and forming a ball with it. The soil should hold the shape of a ball without too much difficulty. If the soil cannot hold the shape, you might have too much silt or sand in the mixture. If the soil holds the shape but does not crumble easily when you poke it, it might have too much clay in it which you need to balance out with a little silt or sand.

Once you have finished cultivating the soil where you want to plant your vegetables, pick what kind of vegetable you want to grow there. Keep in mind that some vegetables dont grow well when you plant them too close to certain types of other vegetables. Potatoes, for example, shouldnt be planted too close to squash or tomatoes because it inhibits their growth. They can be planted in the same garden, just dont plant them beside each other.

After you have decided on the kind of vegetables you want and planting them into the cultivated soil, youll have to learn about how to water them properly. Vegetables need to be watered consistently. When planting vegetable gardens in a big space, you might want to consider using a soaker hose. A soaker hose has many holes along its body that waters your garden by letting the water seep through its holes.

Planting vegetable gardens require manual labor (yes, actual work), and a lot of patience. The rewards are very well worth it, though. Especially for people who are concerned about their health. Growing your own vegetables makes sure that theres the least amount of poisonous (and in the long run, carcinogenic) particulates in it as possible.