As you're planning your vegetable garden, here's a few tips for success.
1. What do you want to plant?
2. How much room do you have? Where will it be?
3. Avoid choosing your garden space
near buildings or trees, due to shade, and root competition.
4. Raised beds have benefits. see ‘Raised Garden Beds- the Advantages’
4. Raised beds have benefits. see ‘Raised Garden Beds- the Advantages’
5. All plants need sunlight and
water and nutrients.
6. Plant types can be divided into two
divisions: stems and roots.
- Stem length determines how tall a
plant grows, or how much of a spread it needs
-Root types distinguish how much
root room and root depth is needed and which nutrients are
taken from the soil.
7. Shallow rooted vegetables, such
as lettuce, spinach, or corn can be placed near deep rooted vegetables such as
carrot, or parsnip.
8. Veggies such as tomatoes are
heavy feeders and need lots of room, as do potatoes that need ‘hilling’.
9. Plant your rows north to south, to
get the most of the sunshine.
10. Sow rows of same vegetable fairly
close together, such as carrots or beans, so there will be leaf coverage to
deter weeds.
11. Plants that become tall need to
be placed at the north side of the garden. Eg. Corn. (These can also be used as
a wind break.)
12. Plants that spread out, such as
zucchini or pumpkins should be placed near the outer edges, so they do not
smother other plants.
13. Try to plant up, using trellises or fences. Eg. Cucumbers, sugar peas, pole
beans, staked tomatoes. This gives you more ground space, and can also can be used
for some shading for plants that cannot tolerate a lot of heat. Eg. Peas,
cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, lettuce.
14. It helps to start some plants
from seed early, to get a head start, and you can purchase seedlings
By keeping a record of your garden plan, you make sure
that you are rotating your crops. Wait 3 years before planting the same
vegetables in the same spot. That way you can ensure that you do not deplete
nutrients and reduce the possibilities of diseases. Legumes such as peas and beans improve the soil.
