Are you wondering how to get your garden started? Here's a short introductory guide for garden planning stages.
Today I want to share my garden starting experiences to help you for the 2021 growing season. This post will share how I would start a garden if I were starting over again. Start small so that it is manageable for you. You can always expand your garden later if you feel you can handle more.
First, you will want to decide where to place your garden(preferably where you will get more than six hours of sun in the day). Any less than that, and you will have trouble growing most vegetables. Once you have identified your location, you need to determine what type of garden will work best. You will have to decide if you want a raised bed garden, no-till, or a no-dig garden bed. I have no experience with rototilled garden beds. If you have no yard, maybe it's still possible to have a container garden.
Once you have your location and method chosen, you will need to determine where your shadows will be during the summer months. Once you calculate where the summer shade will be, you can map out your garden area and settle on the vegetables you would like to grow, keeping in mind the hours of sunlight required for the growing varieties. Map out where you will plant each vegetable now that you have a plan in place and start getting prepared or seed starting.
I like to have my garden planned by February, so I'm not scrambling around when it comes time for me to seed start. Typically you will want to place compost or mulch down in the fall, so over the winter months, it will break down and add organic matter to your soil, thus giving the vegetables the nutrients they need to thrive. Get your compost or mulch down as soon as possible before you plant your seeds or seedlings.
My first year was horrible. I was wondering if I wanted to continue the following year. I decided that I will try another year, and I'm glad I persisted. The next year was full of surprising rewards that made me realize I love to garden, and I'm excited to get started every year. Don't give up if you have a terrible year. If you keep going, you will see tremendous rewards!! If you have questions concerning your gardening endeavor, leave a comment, and I'll try to answer as best I can to help you grow your garden.