Everyone’s mind and searches are on vegetable gardening right now. Those seed catalogs are like the Sirens’ song, aren’t they? Before you start a vegetable garden, ask yourself a few questions beyond which vegetables are easiest to grow.
Sometimes, long-time gardeners act as though you should know exactly what to do right out of the starting gate, or they pretend that gardening takes some kind of magic potion to be successful. While magic happens from the very act of growing things, learning how to grow is like learning any other craft. Rarely, does someone know how to knit, crochet, cook or even keep their homes without learning some of it beforehand. Here are some questions that should be asked before you ever buy that packet of seeds or potting soil.
What do you like to eat? The Ruby Red Swiss chard, shown below, is one of the most beautiful vegetables you can grow. However, if you can’t abide the taste of Swiss chard, don’t grow it. Start with things you like to eat and try one new vegetable, herb or fruit each year. As you taste what comes from the work of your hands, your palette will also grow. You may find that you love beets or turnips because you harvest them when they are small and at the peak of perfection.
When I was a child, my father loved turnips cooked with fresh ham hocks. It was kind of sweet, and pinkish brown and white and gross. I grew up thinking I hated turnips, but someone told me I should grow them before I wrote them off. After harvest, I steamed them with a bit of butter and salt and pepper. What a revelation! I love turnips now because I can harvest them when I want–small and tender. My youngest daughter loves radishes. I’m convinced it’s because we grew them from the time she was small. Radish seeds are one of the best vegetables for children to sow because the seeds are rather large and can be sown directly outside. Plus, radishes grow so fast. Great for small people with even shorter attention spans. Radishes are nearly foolproof. So are green beans.
Where does the sun shine? Vegetable gardens need six to eight hours of sun to do their best. In uber-hot years, southern states like Oklahoma may need some shade cloth during the heart of summer, but most gardens beg for a sunny spot. One exception to this rule is lettuce and other greens. You can often grow them in a bit of shade. In fact, in hot climates, they appreciate it.
Is water nearby? This is probably the most important question. If you don’t have water close to your garden, it will not thrive in Oklahoma or other hot climates. In fact, you simply must water a garden in most places in the U.S. because it is a continental climate. Before you buy seeds and potting soil–if you’re using containers–plan for water. You need easy access to water whether it’s Netafim drip irrigation, or a spray nozzle. Where you grow has a lot to do with the way you’ll water too. Think about where the sun shines. Will you be growing on a patio that has in shade at least part of the day? Is your garden in full sun? These are important questions.
How big? Like hungry children at a buffet, seed catalogs and early spring make it easy to overindulge when it comes to gardening. Above, is my large garden, but I don’t suggest it for beginning gardeners because it is too large. It’s very easy for things to get out of hand. Start small with containers, or raised beds and have a simple plan. Below is the rough draft of the balcony plan I drew for my book.
Here is my potager–kitchen garden–in early spring. See how tidy it is? Well, the next photo is at midsummer.
It may seem overly simple, but plants grow. As they grow, they take up more and more space. So, try not to over plant and start small.
So, these are the questions I consider whenever I plan a new garden bed, whether it’s for veggies or sun-loving ornamental plants. What have I missed? What are the things you think about when planning a new garden space?
Love the advice in this post! I am always preaching about growing what you eat – and giving the veggies of one’s childhood a second chance in the garden 🙂
Thank you Maria. I love your blog.
Great advice. It’s always such a dreamy time of year trying to decide what to grow. The only other thing I like to consider is to have some veggies that will keep well into the winter and some that are easy to can or freeze. I like spaghetti squash because it keeps all winter (as do other squashes) and we love canned scarlett runner beans which are so good fresh as well. I’m planning to do a few edible flowers this year for something new.
I’ve been balcony gardening for a few years and finally have a backyard in OKC to try my hand at a real garden. Found a load of concrete blocks I plan on making a raised bed. Trying to resist ordering too much from my Burpee catalog–your advice to start small was much needed.
Hi Brent, it’s always a good idea to start small.
Your advice on starting small, also on simply growing what you like, ring big time here.
We lived in small spaces before we had children. Then, we started having kids and moved into a home that’s on a couple of acres. I’ve always been an enthusiastic plant person, so when we moved here my mind went WILD with the possibilities. That winter after we moved my seed stash increased 10-fold, with stuff I never had a plan for but wanted to try. On top of that, while I love veggies and eating weird things, my husband is pretty textbook when it comes to his veggies. He tries stuff but he likes the norms- potatoes, corn, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce, and spices to cook with the meats. He does have an interesting obsession with peppers though. He won’t eat greens, beans, radishes, or beets. Don’t even make him try a ground cherry (one of my favs of the garden). My kids are even pickier, but they do like tiny sweet green peas and beans.
Since I’ve learned what it’s like to have too many seeds and not enough space or people to eat the stuff I grow, It’s been almost liberating sticking to growing what we’ll use only. That leaves me lots of room for more petunias!
Anna, I loved reading this because it reminded me of own trajectory into gardening. I started very small, on a balcony, had a tiny plot and then, finally, moved out to the country. I’ve found that my mind can expand much faster and easier than my body can keep up. Yay for petunias, and roses, peonies and bulbs. 😉
This year I am thinking of what will we really eat?? My veggie garden is small, so space is limited. I’ve vowed this year I will raise only a few tomatoes, because I still have enough tomato juice and sauce in the freezer for another winter. Famous last words–we’ll see if I stick to that resolution:) I’m also thinking about raising squash in some kind of raised bed, because the squash bugs have gotten to the plants the last few years in the garden. I’m not particularly fond of swiss chard or kale, but I often grow both just because they’re so pretty!
Great tips, Dee.
Hi Rose, my space is small or large depending upon whether I plant that large rectangle. I’ll see what this year brings. Swiss chard, Bull’s Blood beets and kale are among the prettiest of veggies. They look great no matter where they’re planted or how they are consumed. Good advice on the tomatoes. I’m trying many fewer this year. Trying.
The photographs of your potager in the winter and summer are dramatically different. I like the red fountain in the center of your potager. I wonder if it is too late to plant the ruby red Swiss chard in zone 8? The asparagus is popping up and some of our trees are budding out with this warm weather. Isn’t it funny how vegetables grown in your own garden taste better, especially to children?~J
Jeanette, you may want to see if you can buy the chard as small plants now. You can transplant it easily into good garden soil, and I know a lot of nurseries carry it as an ornamental vegetable further south. Heck, even here, I sometimes see it. It’s a pretty thing. That’s for sure.
Great reminders, Dee. It IS a lot of practical thinking, isn’t it? I always wanted a big veggie bed when I was a little girl and had magical thinking and, of course, never had one. But now that I’m an adult I have a little veggie bed (which I love!) and a lot of practical knowledge under my belt and hoping for that large piece of land in which to practice my knowledge.
Great info, love your veggie garden! It’s worth noting that here in the maritime Northwest, there are much different rules for veggie gardening – there’s a great book called Growing Vegetables West of the Cascades by Steve Soloman that is very useful. Thanks for the great post!
Great information Tamara about the Pacific Northwest book. You’re right. Your world is so very different from ours. I’ve seen your little veggie bed, and it was fab–as was your pollinator garden. Yay for pollinators!~~Dee
Lots of good advice here. Thanks for the nudge about planting seeds. Even here in Massachusetts it is time to get out the seed starting equipment.
Always glad to give a nudge or two. I’m going to start my indoor seeds soon too. Happy planting!
I started small and was surprised at how much I loved to grow vegetables. I have weeded some things out of my vegetable palette. Now I grow tons of kale, chard, lettuces, basil and garlic. Cherry tomatoes are a must. I need to try a hand at growing onions. I grow a lot of flowers among my vegetables, too. I love my potager and I can’t wait to set foot in it again!
Hi Kathy, I like how you said you weeded things out of your palette. I do that too. I will always plant Black Seeded Simpson lettuce, but other lettuces have come and gone. I think you should start with onion sets. They are so easy to grow, and you just thin them by using the green onions. So delicious. I love my potager too. I’m grateful for it every day.
I think you hit the most important questions, Dee. I just ordered my seeds for 2015. I’m excited! P. x
Pam, I went over and read your latest post. Just the most excellent information about seeds and starting your spring garden. Lovely.
Thanks so much, Dee.
At my place, I have to consider what grew where last year and rotate crops. Timing — timing is everything.
Nematodes: I must plant root knot nematode-resistant plants and work toward improving soil so there is more rich matter and fewer sand grains for nematodes to cling to.
Nell Jean, I like that you said timing is everything. It truly is. It’s nearly time to get out the seed starting stuff and begin again. I do it at the end of February which is fast approaching. Oh, and about Nematodes…I am with you there. I have a terrible with root knot nematodes on my tomatoes. So, I definitely choose resistant ones along with crop rotation. That was a hard lesson to learn.
Perfect timing and great questions to ask onesself. I was just looking at my veggie garden this weekend since it was nice and warm. I saw a couple of sprigs of chives greening up. It was so exciting to see. It won’t be as long as it has been and things will start growing. I envy you your greenhouse right now. 😉
Hi Lisa, I do love that greenhouse–which reminds me I need to go out there and water again. We’ve had some warm days, and plants really suck up the water on those days.
Good advice! Over the years, I’ve always made sure I had space for Tomato plants in my little patch of sun, because they’re easy and I love them! I remember all the errors I made over the years. Tee hee. But the experiences and experimenting were fun, and I learned so much. 🙂
Hey Beth, yes, gardening is all about errors. I still make tons of them. Sometimes, it seems like I have amnesia over the winter and make the same ones again. I hope you get tons of tomatoes this year.
Excellent tips for vegetable gardeners off all experience levels.
Oh, how I love early spring planting!! It just makes me happy. We’ve already put in about half of our cool season veggies, with the rest being done tomorrow. This will be the biggest garden we’ve ever attempted. (I can testify to the strength of that Siren song you mention. I won’t mention how many seed catalogs sat in my lap in January. Ahem. Good thing we like to eat a big variety of stuff!) We recently moved to a semi-rural area, so not only are we starting a new garden area, but had to build a pretty stout fence to protect it from the many “critters” that like to roam here. We also had a soil test done to see what we were dealing with. Pretty typical for Oklahoma soil, but we did learn a few things that should help us to make this year’s garden better. This is such a great time of year!!
Tammy, I can tell you have spring fever girl! I do too. All these beautiful days make one want to plant everything. Have a great spring.
I’m eager to plant our first large garden. I too live in Oklahoma. Just North of Shawnee. Any suggestions?
Hi Bryant, so glad you’re planting a large garden this year. You live in Shawnee? It’s a great place to grow. If you’ll click on the links in the above post, they link back to my previous posts on seeds, cool weather crops and everything vegetable in Oklahoma. Good luck. If you have a specific question about something, please feel free to ask.
Although I’ve had my hands in the soil since a child, this will be my first attempt at growing more than tomatoes, squash or cucumbers. Looking forward to trying
I’m so excited for you Linda. You’ll have a blast.