There’s nothing better than having homegrown vegetables come out of your garden and onto your table. Summer staples like corn, cucumbers, tomatoes and beans are fairly easy to grow, even for the beginning gardener. Home-grown vegetables are a fun way to encourage you and your family to eat more vegetables, and can be a really fun way to introduce gardening to kids! Here are a few of Whispering Springs Nursery‘s favorite tips to keep your garden providing delicious vegetables through summer and the rest of the year.
5 Vegetable Garden Tips
- Use a planting calendar to track the seasons and life cycles of your plants. Think about the weather and be prepared for possible problems, such as spikes or dips in temperature or drought.
- Plant marigolds to keep pests away. They offer color in gorgeous orange and yellow and are also an organic alternative to using pesticides.
- Build a raised bed to improve the quality of your soil and to avoid compacting, which helps in drainage. You should design raised beds so that you can reach all your crops without having to stand inside the bed.
- Make your own organic compost. This can be especially fun for kids, and can teach them important aspects of gardening. Chemical fertilizers should be your last option, since they can be harmful to your health and can burn your crops.
- Test companion planting and grow certain plants together. Beans, carrots, celery, corn, strawberries, and cucumbers are good companion plants. Alternatively, you want to steer clear of certain combinations, like beans and onions, broccoli and tomatoes, and carrots and dill.
If you’re planning on being in the garden for long hours, make sure you wear a hat to shield your eyes from the sun, and slather on that sunscreen, particularly between the strongest hours of 10am-4pm. On extra hot days, drink extra water to keep yourself hydrated.
If you have any questions about vegetable gardening or container gardening, give us a call or stop by our Jasper garden center and one of our experts will be happy to help!
Photo credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net
