Gardening For Everyone » Vegetable Gardening

Planting Vegetables Through All the Seasons

Kevin — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 19:52:37 +0000

by Dave Truman

Most of us think of planting in the Spring and harvesting in the Fall. And, for the majority of crops, that’s right. But species vary, climates vary and indoor container gardening often can be carried out year ’round.

In some cases, it’s actually very helpful for next year’s crop to plant in the Fall. Many of these are designed to be plowed under rather than harvested, in order to enrich the soil for next Spring. In other cases, like certain lettuce varieties, you can plant late in the Summer and still harvest before the frost.

When to plant depends on the species and your climate zone. Get the best estimate possible on when to expect the first frost. 30-day weather forecasts, Farmer’s Almanac and others are good sources of information.

Before planting new seeds or vegetables be sure to clear the area of any spring or summer crops. Leftovers decay ..

Source: Gardening

Garden Tags: garden, indoor garden, flowers, garden supplies, vegetable garden

Vegetable gardening – A Home Vegetable Garden – Fun In The Back Yard

Kevin — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 02:07:03 +0000

Home gardening is a wonderful pastime that the whole family can enjoy. In addition, gardening has become an increasingly popular hobby for people of all ages. Currently, studies show that in the United States, eight of ten households take part in some type of home gardening endeavor. Based on these statistics, gardening is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the nation.

Typically, when people start planting their garden, they start with flowers. In addition, most people will pursue planting roses. The novice garden does not realize that roses usually take the most time and effort as compared to other flowers. With such an enormous array of flowers to choose from, it is best for the novice to start of with easy care plants and flowers.

Vegetable gardens have become quite popular too. A vegetable garden can bring a sense of pride and accomplishment when you place those fresh vegetables on your dinner table. The list of vegetable plants is endless, therefore when planning your vegetable garden choose the right vegetable for your growing climate. For instance, cool weather crops would be green beans, zucchini, and cucumbers.

Many gardeners will consider planting fruits as well. In a warm climate, you could plant watermelons, and trees such as apricots and peaches. A berry garden is also fun, planting strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. These types of berry gardens are easy to care for and take less space than a traditional vegetable garden.

Herbs are another favorite for the home garden. If you have limited space, you can grow your herbs indoors in a sunny window. The most often used herbs for cooking are basil, thyme, oregano, parsley, and cilantro. These herbs are easy to grow too.

Landscaping your yard is another form of gardening. There are different types of grasses and shrubbery to decorate your yard. Decorative rocks, ponds, and statues are also included as a form of landscape gardening. Landscaping your yard is not limited to plant life. As with a garden, your lawn and shrubbery need upkeep. As mentioned earlier, gardening can be fun and educational for the whole family. In addition, what a delight to see the flowers bloom and harvest the vegetables. However, as with anything else, to be a successful home gardener takes work. Plants need to be weeded and watered. Do not get discouraged if the flowers are not as brilliant as expected or the beans did not do so well. Research the plant in question and then try again next planting season, eventually you will have a wonderful garden.

For more information about a home garden or gardening in general, visit these sites http://www.homegardeninfocenter.com and http://www.gardeninfocenter.com

vegetable garden – What Are The Hidden Health Benefits In Planting a Vegetable Garden?

Kevin — Fri, 23 Feb 2007 06:05:01 +0000

Planting a vegetable garden is a healthy way to relieve stress, eat healthier and safer – because you control what goes on your vegetables, provide better nutrition to your family with fresh vegetables, and get some exercise while enjoying the warm sun and environment.

You can challenge your creative side by laying out your vegetable garden so that your space looks great. Whether you have a huge area for a vegetable garden, a small area, or just a deck or patio by being creative you can use your space optimally. There is nothing more satisfying than growing your own vegetables in your own vegetable garden without the use of pesticides or chemicals, keeping you and your family that much healthier.

Planting a vegetable garden will promote good health and give you some nice gentle exercise. By planting and tending to your garden you control what you eat as well as how it is grown plus it just doesn’t getting any fresher than this.

Even apartment or flat dwellers can produce a nice size vegetable garden on their balconies. Most developments will allow flower box size gardens just pay attention to the weight. Remember a vegetable garden box 15cm(6′) wide by 60cm(24′) can weigh as much as 27Kg(60lbs) when wet from the rain so you do not want to hang it over the balcony for fear of it breaking loose and falling. Instead, secure it to the top of the ledge or on the balcony floor. You can also invest in brackets that will take the weight. That way you don’t have to worry about anyone getting hurt below if it falls.

Planting a vegetable garden outside will give you more exercise than you might realise and the good news is that it’s a nice gentle exercise so just about anyone can do it. All that planting, raking, pulling weeds, and watering so that your plants grow and produce delicious vegetables from your vegetable garden, provides you with an excellent low impact workout.

Starting a vegetable garden can be a little tougher and produce a little more exercise – but hey!… that`s not a bad thing – is it?. You will need to prepare the soil for planting. Besides removing weeds and debris from your vegetable garden to be, you may need to have top soil or fertiliser brought in depending on the condition of the soil. Working the soil can give you quite a work out but you want it to be in optimum condition so that your vegetable garden is as healthy as possible.

You may need to frame your garden space so that the soil stays contained within your vegetable garden area and is easy to work on. If you are going to use a wood frame, do not use wood that has been treated with anything that can contaminate the soil. Framing your vegetable garden beds will also increase the depth of the soil giving better growing conditions for your plants.

When the soil is ready it’s time to start to plant out your vegetable garden. You will need to decide whether you want to use young vegetable plants or seeds. There are pros and cons to each. Young vegetable plants cost more but they give you the edge to get your plants rooted and growing. Seeds are cheaper but they may not all come up. Both are healthy so it’s really a personal choice.

Deciding to grow your own vegetables in your own vegetable garden is one of the smartest things you will ever do for you and your family. Not only are you going to get to enjoy some sunshine and thus get your vitamin D, you’ll get some exercise which these days we all can use a little more, and you are going to be feeding your family a lot healthier.

You’ll be feeding your family fresher fruits and vegetables that you get to control. You decide what fertilisers and pesticides are okay to use on your vegetable garden or whether you are going to do the smart thing and use natural products that will keep your family even healthier.

These days when we buy fresh vegetables at our grocery store or supermarket they often aren’t that fresh after spending days travelling. On top of that, too often they are picked too early which reduces the amount of nutrients you get. With your own vegetable garden, it just can’t get any fresher and there is no need to pick early. There’s nothing like a fresh salad or a tomato picked right off the vine.

Planting a vegetable garden is going to give you good health in more ways than one – you will get a little exercise, excellent nutrition, chemical free vegetables, and you can spend a little time outdoors soaking up the nutrients the sun has to offer.

vegetable gardening – My Easy Gardening

Kevin — Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:10:44 +0000

If you are an apartment dweller, look to your patio and balcony to provide the perfect place to start your indoor container vegetable garden. Herbs can be grown indoors easily as well. An added benefit to indoor container vegetable gardening is you can do this all year round!

You may raise an eyebrow or two at this suggestion, but it can be done, within limits. Certainly pumpkins, squash, and sweet corn are not going to be items grown inside the average home. But, many leafy crops, root crops, tomatoes, and other vegetables can be grown indoors during the cold months of the year. You dont need a large outdoor garden to enjoy growing fresh vegetables.

Container gardening is great because you can position your containers for the best light exposure and best growing conditions. Although vegetable production will be limited by the number and the size of your containers, indoor container gardening can be very rewarding. So, lets get started with a plan for your vegetable harvest for this year!

Here are a few vegetables to consider for indoor growing: Cherry tomatoes, Hungarian sweet peppers, Gypsy peppers, Short vined cucumbers and squash, Endive, Radishes, Spinach, Swiss Chard, Leaf Lettuce, Miniature cabbage, Eggplant, Chives, Green onions, Bush beans and most any Herb.

Planning your garden is one of the most important parts of container vegetable gardening. You can have hanging baskets, pots, and planters filled with various crops that will perform fairly well if lighting, pollinating, watering, fertilizing, and temperature requirements are met. Decide what pots you want to use, and then choose your soil carefully. Soilless mixes like peat-lite are usually too light for container vegetable gardening and will not support plant roots effectively. However, indoor gardening soil is different than regular garden soil, so inquire at your local nursery as to the best soil for your container gardening. Preparing your garden soil for planting is the most physically demanding part of vegetable gardening and may also be the most important part.

Next, you need to decide whether you will be starting your vegetables from seed or from started plants. If you are new to gardening, starting vegetables from seed may be too huge an undertaking, instead purchase plants. Successful vegetable gardening involves far more than just popping a few seeds into the ground and waiting for a tomato to appear. Even if you start with a small existing plant, you will have the joy of tending, nurturing, and stacking your growing vegetables. Added to the pleasure of vegetable container gardening will be the satisfaction derived from eating your vegetables fresh.

Learning is a process, vegetable gardening needs time. As in so many other pursuits, it is true in the art of vegetable gardening: practice does make perfect. Indoor container vegetable gardening might not be quite the same as growing the same plants outdoors, but it can be fun to tend an indoor vegetable garden when the snows are blowing and the winds are roaring outdoors! Your family and friends will be delighted and surprised when your serve that salad with the green onions and cherry tomatoes they discover that you harvested that day from your indoor container vegetable garden!

vegetable gardening – Tips on Vegetable Gardening

Kevin — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 06:10:27 +0000

Here are some tips on vegetable gardening that should help make your gardening experience easier and a very fruitful experience. The most important part of a vegetable garden is preparing the soil for planting. The basis of any successful garden is proper soil that creates good seed germination. Vegetables love garden soil that is well drained, deep, contains high organic matter and retains moisture. Make sure the soil is dry before you try plowing or working the dirt. Check the soil acidity or PH for the different vegetables you are going to plant as some may require varying degrees of PH levels.