I am hoping to start a vegetable garden this year since we have a crap ton of empty yard space and I need something to do. Any tips for an absolute beginner?
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@cyndistar3: I would go to a nursery and ask what your absolute earliest plant date is. Ours is typically Memorial day weekend. Because it's so late we typical start indoors.
But you can always till the ground early. I like to start by adding some miracle gro plant soil. Coffee grounds is also great.
Tomatoes and peppers are virtually indestructible!
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- Pick a location that gets a lot of sun.
- Fertilize and water.
- If you plan on starting from seed indoors, make sure to gradually leave the plants outside first (for a few days) before planting them out. -
Tomatoes prefer deep watering as opposed to frequent, but little watering. It's supposed to help build stronger (not shallow) roots. Also, plant down your tomatoes. Basically take off some of the bottom leaves and dig it down, it'll develop roots as far down as you plant it. Pinching suckers (new growth between joints) will help keep them manageable. Stake your tomatoes early. They get big fast!
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Thanks guys! Thankfully I have 100+ acres of open field so finding a place that doesn't get a lot of sun is harder than finding a place that does. Definitely looking forward to tomatoes and peppers, we use a lot of those!
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I'd suggest checking out the Square Foot Gardening book. Its a great method for beginners.
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Start small and build up gradually, a small success is a lot more satisfying than a big failure and just add to it every year as you get better. Also I planted some fruit trees when I first got my garden and a few are starting to give god results now. I love trees because you get bucket loads of produce for very little effort....after all you need to leave some time for just siting down and enjoying it all...bliss.
Good luck! -
@Mrs.Someone: my friend got that book last year maybe I can borrow it! It seemed pretty cool.
@Snowdrop: I definitely plan on starting small, I have never been very good at keeping houseplants alive
I would love to do fruit trees but we are renting so idk if I want to commit to that just to move in a few years.
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I agree with starting small! The first season will be a learning season and you will figure out what grows good and where. For some foods you can plant throughout the growing season because their maturity is so fast. Its exciting and I cannot wait until gardening season!
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@cyndistar3: ah yes not good if you are renting but you can get very good results from less vigorous root stocks in large pots if you still fancy them. And I am terrible with houseplants but have no problem outside.
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My advice from a beginner to a fellow beginner is that the directions on the seed packet or plant stake are there for a reason
. I way overcrowded my plants last year and it didn't go well. I agree with start small, maybe arrange with a friend that you grow four things and she grows four things and then share so you get variety. It was trickier than I expected to manage the needs of so many plants. Oh, and the plants I started inside went crazy once I moved them outside- I hesitated to move them out because I thought they would be better off inside. My new rule of thumb is they will do better outside where a greater power can intervene on their behalf!Good luck!
I would love to do fruit trees but we are renting so idk if I want to commit to that just to move in a few years.
. I way overcrowded my plants last year and it didn't go well. I agree with start small, maybe arrange with a friend that you grow four things and she grows four things and then share so you get variety. It was trickier than I expected to manage the needs of so many plants. Oh, and the plants I started inside went crazy once I moved them outside- I hesitated to move them out because I thought they would be better off inside. My new rule of thumb is they will do better outside where a greater power can intervene on their behalf!Reply
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