Welcome to Gardening Guide
 |
|
 |
|
 |
Vegetable Gardening Basics Article
This is a selection made from among articles on Vegetable Gardening Basics. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for future reading, click here.
VEGETABLE GARDENING FOR DUMMIES
from:Vegetable gardening is not difficult. It is one of the easiest forms of gardening. Of the many books on vegetable farming for beginners that are available, there is one that explains everything in plain, simple terms that will be easy for your to follow even if you have never grown a single vegetable. Gardening for Dummies, one of a long list of “how to” books, has a chapter specifically about growing vegetables.
Vegetable gardening for dummies begins by telling the reader how to plan a garden. The beginning gardener must know something about the local climate, because that determines when vegetables should be planted and when they should be harvested. Some vegetables, like corn, peppers and tomatoes can thrive only in warm weather. Others, like peas, lettuce and radishes, can tolerate at least some cool weather and maybe even a little frost.
The next step in vegetable gardening for dummies is to select the right location for your vegetable garden. You need a spot that gets six to eight hours of sunlight a day. Leafy vegetables such as lettuce and spinach don’t mind a little shade, but peppers, tomatoes, pumpkins and squash need plenty of sunlight. Plant close enough to the house to make your gardening easier, but not right up against the house. Building foundations are often treated with pesticides that could be harmful to your plants. Start with a small garden, about ten feet by twenty feet. That is enough for a selection of leafy vegetables, some tomatoes, beans and cucumbers and a few herbs. Make sure individual plants have room to grow. Don’t plant short-growing plants where they will eventually be in the shade of taller plants. You must also have easy access to water. A fence might be necessary to keep out rabbits and raccoons.
Vegetable gardening for dummies tells the reader about soil. The gardener must have loose soil that drains well. If the soil is nutrient poor, the gardener can improve it with compost and fertilizers. Natural fertilizers are the best bet for beginners.
Beginner gardeners are often bewildered by the great variety of seeds available for vegetable gardening. They aren’t sure what they should plant. Vegetable gardening for dummies says to first select the seeds for the kinds of vegetables you like to eat. Then find out which of those vegetables will grown well in your area. All the information you need is on seed packages and in seed catalogs. Your local garden centre will also be helpful.
Plant your seeds according to the instructions on the package. Big seeds for beans and squash, for example, must be planted deeper than the tiny seeds for carrots and lettuce.
Once your planting is done, maintain your garden by watering, weeding and keeping out pests. In time you will have a good crop of vegetables, grown by your own hands.
Vegetable Gardening Basics News
Local woman launches Web site to help you grow your own food - Beaufort Gazette
It's a lot of gas and oil dependence," said Sibley, adding that during World War I and World War II, 40 percent of American produce was grown in small home gardens. "It's a common bond that we all have, the need to eat. Food gardening is a way to ...
Read more...Good Afternoon - Fort Bend Herald
Rosenberg’s Elderly. Rosenberg honors some of its oldest residents and their families at a reception 2 p.m. Sunday at the Rosenberg Civic and Convention Center. 832-595-3500. Typing Basics. Beginning typists may learn on a computer keyboard at a ...
Read more...Monroe class spreads gospel of vegetable gardening - Everett Herald
Monica Novini is a gardener on a mission: She wants to teach you to grow nutritious vegetables at home. She knows the odds are stacked against her -- and you. Our collective sense of how to coax food from the earth has atrophied. Vegetables come from ...
Read more...Get back to soil care basics - Florida Times-Union
Got your glove and shovel handy? About to buy some plants at the nursery? Ready to dig in for the fall growing season in North Florida? Stop! Wait. Not just yet. It starts with soil. Some characteristics of soil are relatively fixed, and gardeners ...
Read more...Let your yard do double duty with an edible landscape - Florida Times-Union
Need a privacy hedge between you and the neighbors? Try a nice evergreen shrub like feijoa/pineapple guava. Want a shade tree on the west exposure? Plant a grapefruit or orange tree. Are you looking for some instant color at the front entrance? Try a ...
Read more...