A few hints to get you going this season:
- Start small. You can grow a lot of food in a 4 x 8 bed.
- Choose a full sun site – minimum 6-8 hours direct sun.
- Site near a water spigot for convenience.
- Avoid siting your garden in a frost pocket.
- Locate your garden where you will pass it every day (between your car and your house) for timely harvest and easy upkeep.
- Good air movement helps prevent disease. Don’t crowd your plants.
- Plant what your family likes to eat.
- Plant seeds when you are growing a large crop of one thing, or when that vegetable prefers to be sown directly into the garden.
- Planting veggie transplants gives you a serious jump-start on the season.
- Mulch after planting to prevent weeds.
- Add compost every year.
- Harvest on a regular basis.
- Plan your dinner menu around your garden harvest.
- Grow organically – it’s safer for kids, people, pets, and the planet.
How can I be more sustainable?
- Set up a compost bin in your yard.
- Compost your vegetable scraps.
- Compost healthy garden residues.
- Plant cover crops to build better garden soil.
- Think “whole yard” sustainability.
- Use pesticides only when necessary and start with the “softest pesticide” possible – greener living is better for your family, pollinators, and the planet.
- Add pollinator habitat for a more productive garden that nurtures nature.
Ruth’s Favorite Organic Fertilizers:
Neptune’s Harvest Organic Fish/Seaweed Blend Fertilizer 2-3-1 OMRI
Symphony 5-4-3 OMRI
Joy’s Favorite Organic Fertilizers:
Bio-tone 4-3-3
Down To Earth Vegan Mix 3-2-2 OMRI
Many other high-quality fertilizer choices are available in our Garden Shop.