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If you are a first timer, start small. It can be overwhelming to grow a ton of
different things at once. Pick 4-5 plants that you want to try. And once you
have figured those out, add a few more the next season. |
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Posted by
frannie
on April 29, 2009 10:01 PM |
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i;ve got real rocky soil, so i made a box garden a few years back. took some
railroad ties and made a box right in the lawn. picked mostly sunny spot. then
filled with good dirt. my town gives away composted soil great for the garden,
so i got that for free, i get a new load every year and just refill my box.
now got a garden full of tomatos, green beans, garlic, peas, and rhubbarb.
garlic and rhubbard grow like weeds i';ve got them everywhere, anyone can grow
those. |
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Posted by
frank
on April 30, 2009 11:54 AM |
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Be realistic about what you will really use and what your family will eat. If
your family loves green beans, you're in luck because they are really easy to
grow and easy to freeze. Carrots, however, are very temperamental and difficult
for most types of soil.
Also, it's easy to plant too many tomato plants...you'll be giving them away!!!
(Which is nice for your neighbors and friends.) Be careful of invasive plants
like strawberries and squash. Plant just one and you'll see what I mean.
Consider herbs and cut flowers for your garden. These are so easy to grow. I
use lots of herbs in cooking, and at the end of the season they are easy to dry
and store for year-round use. I also love to have fresh cut flowers on the
table....but they are expensive to buy all the time. Now I at least can have
them on my table in the summer and fall! |
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Posted by
Teresa
on April 30, 2009 1:37 PM |
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Look up SQUARE FOOT GARDENING.COM all your answers there. also there is a book.
I started with this over 20 years ago and it is by far the easiest way to get
great results and not kill your self doing it. |
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Posted by
anonymous
on April 30, 2009 1:45 PM |
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I suggest reading up on square foot gardening - perfect for novices and lazy
folks like me.
This method, which uses simple raised beds, was developed by a fellow who had a
show on PBS. He has taught folks to garden for many years and knows what he is
talking about. There is a book - Square Foot Gardening - and a website - click
back to the "old" website, also, which has additional info and photos.
This method is used in many schools and is adaptable for the disabled and other
folks who need beds raised to a level from which they may be tended by a seated
gardner.
Lazy me just built a basic raised bed, set it up, and put in soil -- in a couple
of hours last Sunday afternoon. I'm all ready to plant. |
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Posted by
anonymous
on April 30, 2009 2:12 PM |
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I built two 4x4 Square Foot Gardens three years ago (used exactly what was
recommended and didn't cut corners). Every year I just add 1 bag of compost,
and I don't need to worry about crop rotation or weeding. The gardens are at
the back of my brick garage, so the heat absorbed during the day is retained a
while and released when it gets darker, which I believe is the secret to my
garage-height tomato plants.
I grow mixed greens in the front of the boxes, where it's easy to harvest, but I
space out seeding them by a couple weeks so all my salad doesn't grow and need
to be picked at the same time. Once a square has run its course or bolted, I
have other squares just filling in and can reseed the old square.
Tomatoes are at the back of the box and can be trained up the string I run
across the top of the garden at a height of about six feet.
The middle boxes are for the medium-sized plants, such as peppers, bok choi, and
some herbs.
Make sure you pay attention to where the sun shines in your yard and that all
your plants will get get enough during the day. And make sure taller plants
aren't leaving smaller ones in the shade. I don't have deer in my yard, but the
squirrels can be a pain. I wrap deer netting around the garden area to prevent
raids!
Basil is so easy to start from seed; you don't need to pay for those
"convenient" plants you see at the grocers! I usually throw some seed
in large pots instead of growing it in the garden. Other herbs are grown in my
window box so I can enjoy the scent from my kitchen.
Check local gardening blogs for fellow gardners who have extra seeds or
seedlings--I traded delicious cookies from a local bakery for seven heirloom
tomato plants for this season. Local bloggers are great for tips and are usually
very happy to share their knowledge. |
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Posted by
OtterX
on April 30, 2009 3:03 PM |
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I have been gardening for years. Here's a couple of ideas.
Never plant mint anywhere near your garden. I've heard you can grow it in a pot
which contains its roots and it will not spread.....untrue! I grew mine in a
horse trough and it has spread all over the garden. Beware of planting mint!
Dill and basil are very easy to grow from seed. They look neat and taste
wonderful!
Peas should be planted very early...like March here in Ohio. They love cold
damp weather.
Happy gardening to you all! |
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Posted by
spidermonkey
on April 30, 2009 7:13 PM |
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When we wanted to start gardening I was clueless. Visit your local library and
read gardening books and get an idea of what is involved. It is much more than
just planting stuff in the ground. Do pick just a few plant varieties and be
ready to water, weed and decide how you want to preserve the fruits of your
labors. Bush plants are the easiest to work with-beans, squash and even
tomatoes. Potatoes are a fun plant to grow and consider planting garlic and
other herbs like basil, dill and sage. Also look into composting your kitchen
scraps. There are myriad ways to make compost and it is so good for your plants.
Online you have many links and blogs that you can get information and ask lots
of questions. If you have a local extension office please visit they have tons
of info about what and how to grow in your area. |
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Posted by
Viki
on April 30, 2009 9:02 PM |
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It's a great hooby, patience and a lot of TLC.
good luck |
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Posted by
anonymous
on April 30, 2009 10:49 PM |
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Every state has a Cooperative Extension office. To access all fifty states go
to www.extension.unh.edu which is NH and if
you want your own state (best for things like gardening as conditions vary)go to
the "other cooperative extension offices" choice on the left side. It
will open all fifty states, click on your state, and search.
I work for UNHCE and we offer free or very reasonable workshops, information
that you can print off, telephone numbers for more information, etc. Not only do
we have information on gardens but parenting, saving money, backyard livestock,
canning and freezing, etc, etc. Lots of practical information! |
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Posted by
Holly
on May 01, 2009 9:28 AM |
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Container gardening - last year I planted a Patio tomato plant, a basil plant
and a banana pepper plant in one 5 gallon container. All I did was water them
and watch them produce. This year I'm going to triple this and add a mint plant
container. We live in a townhome community and have very iffy soil, so container
gardening is the way to go. |
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Posted by
Ellie
on May 03, 2009 5:38 PM |
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Something my in-laws learned the hard way is to never compost tomatoes. You
will have plants anywhere you put the compost next year.
With all plants, especially tomatoes, start the plant by watering at the base
and slowly move watering away from plant. This will help the plant establish
good roots. Also tomato plants can get fungus from water the plant directly and
if they are over watered they will swell up and burst. |
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Posted by
Wanda
on May 04, 2009 10:08 AM |
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Since I am lazy, I like the method recommended by Ruth Stout in her book I read
in the 1970's- just put a lot of straw on your garden, this will cut down or
eliminate weeding, and cut down on watering. You can put your vegetable scraps
right under the straw, and let them rot right in the garden, so you don't have
to take care of a compost heap. No meat scraps, of course!
Also consider the dollar value of what you grow. Tomatoes are expensive.
Strawberries are expensive. Carrots are hard to grow and cheap to buy. I buy
fresh parsley several times a month, at $2 each, and end up throwing half of it
out, so I am going to plant Italian parsley and a few other herbs. I am going
to grow them in a hanging container so the snails don't get to them and my dog
can't "water" them! |
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Posted by
Maura
on May 04, 2009 8:50 PM |
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The Rutgers Cooperative Extension is recommending that NJ gardeners plant dill
and fennel in their vegetable gardens, even if you don't want to eat it.
Rutgers has a great entomology department, and Dr. George Hamilton is running a
study to see which plants attract the most beneficial insects to your garden.
The study isn't over yet (it is scheduled to run for 3 years), but the results
so far show that dill and fennel are great at attracting the kinds of insects
that will take care of common pests in your garden. You need to let the plants
flower in order to attract the insects. Since the study isn't over yet, there
isn't a fact sheet about it, but you can find other great fact sheets at the
site listed below.
http://www.njaes.rutgers.edu/ |
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Posted by
Veronica
on May 06, 2009 9:14 AM |
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If you don't have the space to grow cucumbers, grow them on a fence or a
trellis. They do produce well, and are easy to pick. Also, they grow nice and
straight, and are perfectly clean.
If you want to plant radishes and lettuce such as Bibb and Buttercrunch (they
are loose heads) make tapes so that you don't have to thin the plants, and they
don't get too crowded....especially lettuce because the seeds are very small.
To make planting tapes, just take toilet tissue in 2 or 3 foot strips. Cut in
half lengthwise. Lay out on a table, and dip a toothpick in white Elmer's glue
and then pick up a seed and put it down in the middle of the strip. Measure off
about 3 inches and repeat with another seed. Continue until the whole strip has
seeds glued to it about 3 inches apart. Let them dry and then fold the strips in
half lengthwise and roll them up and put them in a container. In the garden,
make your rows, unroll the seed strips and lay them in the row, cover lightly
with soil, pat down and water thoroughly.
It takes time to make the tapes, but you will be happy with the results. You can
lay the strips end to end if you have longer rolls, and you can tear them into
shorter strips if necessary.
If you want a Strawberry bed, make it separate from the rest of your garden. And
always keep a light layer of straw around the plants so that the strawberries
will be clean. Unless you have lots of room, don't bother with everbearing types
of strawberries. They may bear all summer, but it takes a lot more plants to get
enough at one picking to make a meal. The June bearers will produce only one
crop, but it will be much heavier. And June bearers can bear earlier than June,
depending on your planting zone. We are in Arkansas, and have been picking ripe
strawberries off our brand new bed (that we planted in March) for a couple weeks
now. Had fresh strawberry shortcake for dinner tonite.
Harlean from Arkansas |
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Posted by
rockytopp
on May 10, 2009 12:57 AM |
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We have tried all different types of gardening from row, to raised bed, to
square foot. We now have a little of 2000 square feet of garden and are getting
ready to add another 625 square feet. We have built little by little.
Editor's Note: To read the rest of this comment about building a
vegetable garden, go to:
http://www.tiphero.com/tips_1493_row-raised-bed-square-foot-gardening-how-tos.ht
ml |
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Posted by
anonymous
on May 11, 2009 8:34 AM |
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Spend more money on the soil than you do the plant or seed. It's the quality of
your soil that largely determines the quality of your vegetable. I use rabbit
manure as an organic fertilizer and it works wonders. You can ammend your soil
with all kinds of things including kitchen scraps (no meat - just
vegetable/fruits and egg shells), old plants, grass clippings, hay, mulch, etc.
Spend your money on the soil! I learned this the hard way but I know it works -
fertilize, ammend your soil...and your vegetables will appreciate it! |
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Posted by
anonymous
on May 25, 2009 8:45 PM |
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Use raised beds. 3x3 or larger. Don't waste money on the ones from gardening
supply companies. Get some lumber and deck screws instead. In a 3x3 planter, I
do 6 tomato/eggplant plants, or 9 cucumber/zucchini/pepper, or 12 herbs.
You will spend most of your gardening money on dirt and fertilizer and mulch.
Be sure to get the right kind of fertilizer for the plants.
I insulate with red plastic sheeting and swear by it. Red - not white, not
black. Email me if you want comparison pictures of insulated w/ red plastic vs.
not insulated vs. black plastic. I have no idea what is so special about red,
but it works great for me.
I buy established plants - around $2/plant. Yes, a whole seed packet is $1-$2,
but having only half the seeds germinate, and then losing another half of those
seedlings in transplant is frustrating and a waste of time. Remember, the bulk
of costs will be in the soil - not the plants themselves.
Don't forget to budget for stakes/support systems. Tomatoes and eggplants
definitely need them. You can get vining plants like cucumbers to grow up, too.
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Posted by
DogMama
on May 28, 2009 3:14 PM |
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My garden is "based" on Square Foot Gardening method, I have raised
beds and the soaker hose are too big and heavy and might break my baby plants.
So, to save money and water, I use bath water and plastic water bottles. Here's
how it works:
1. To save bath water, either take a bath or a shower in a tub/shower combo
with a plug (for me that means I take a shower in my guest bathroom because in
my master bathroom it's a shower stall--can't plug that).
2. Scoop the bathwater into a bucket.
3. I also save plastic water bottles (I take bottled water with me to work).
4. Poke small holes on one side of your water bottles. I use a diaper pin for
that. Also, I find it helpful to draw a vertical line with a permanent marker
so I can easily tell where the tiny holes are.
5. Take the top of the plastic bottles and immerse them in the water in your
bucket filled with bath water, when your bottles are filled, screw on the tops
and leave them in the bucket with the extra water to prevent loosing any water
while carrying the bucket to the garden.
6. Place each water bottle with the holes facing the soil (if you drew a line
with a permanent marker, this should be very easy) near each plant (or between
two plants, if they're close enough).
7. You can control how much or how little water comes out of the water bottle
by adjusting the top (the tighter it's screwed on, the less air it lets in and
the less water comes out).
An added bonus--because the water in the bottles drains slowly, it gets warmed
up by the sun, which the plants really love (just like most people don't enjoy
ice-cold showers, your plant's roots get shocked by the cold water coming out of
the water hose). |
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Posted by
anonymous
on June 28, 2009 12:09 PM |
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