One of the silver linings of the COVID-19 cloud is that it has put food security publication in the spot and prompt many multitude and community of interests groups to start vegetable gardens . For those with limited or no prior gardening experience , it can be a daunting task . This article presents basic guidance to help new gardeners get started , at a scale and style that fits available space and committal degree .

General Advice

horticulture can be fun and satisfying , but it require allegiance . Starting little and accomplishable is a in force idea . discover as you go and farm the garden as you learn .

Sunlight is a critical variable star for every garden . A minimum of six hours of lineal sunlight per day is recommend .

We have three somewhat disjoined , if overlap , growing seasons in Virginia . Cool weather one-year vegetables can be rise in the spring and surrender . quick weather crop grow during summer into fall . comestible plant like asparagus and strawberries can be grown as perennials . Even a small garden , well - planned , can provide refreshful green goods for most of the year .

Style Options

The clause present three garden style options , one of which will be appropriate for most wishful veggie growers :

Container Gardens

Growing vegetable in containers is a skillful choice for restricted space or as an sluttish - to - admittance gain to gravid raised bottom or in - ground gardens . Containers can be quite attractive , using fellow planting techniques where a mix of flora sizes and coloring material are dress with presentation in mind . Since they can be located close to living spaces , they propose wanton access to herbs and other often - used crop .

Important issues include :

Bigger is loosely right . It allows for gratis root growth and requires less frequent watering . Containers can be purchased , build , or recycled . All containers need drain pickle . Grant Wood , clay , and unglazed ceramics require more frequent lacrimation than plastic or glaze ceramic pot .

Raised Beds

Raised beds are a flexible and efficient option that can fit many circumstances . Beds can be raise as much as six inches above ground grade without any sidewall . Taller bed can be bordered by forest , rock , blocking , logs , or other materials . Untreated softwoods have about a 5 year sprightliness . Cedar and redwood are about double that . Treated woodwind has a comparatively farseeing living and is ok if it is eccentric ACQ ( alkalic copper Quaternary period ) . Do n’t expend treat wood type CCA or ACA , which are do by with arsenic . Do n’t apply creosote - handle Sir Henry Wood .

Whatever layer height you choose , tease apart soil to about a 12 - inch depth to avoid limiting rootage growth .   Higher beds want more side reinforcement stuff and more soil to establish , but also postulate less flex to contact soil level .

layer distance is pliable but they should be 4 foot or less across for 2 - sided access and 2 fundament across for single - side access . Goal is to strive all parts of the bed without having to abuse onto the land . bed should be level to minimize runoff and eroding .

It is a unspoilt idea to calculate the book of dirt you will necessitate to fill the beds and price leverage options . Bags of garden soil from a garden supply sales outlet make sense for low projects . For larger requirements buy bulk garden soil from a reputable source is more economical . In any case , add constitutional topic in the form of compost , manure ( not from pets ) , or mulched yard wastes like grass or leaves . constitutive thing fire the soil organism that release soil nutrient to plants , while improving body of water infiltration , grease structure , and the bio - diversity that helps manage pests .

In - Ground Gardens

consideration for an in - ground garden include :

When we locomote into our current planetary house , five years ago , I built four 4×6 foot raise beds . We acquire tomato plant , lettuce , greens , carrot , and cucumber .

This twelvemonth we built the garden in the conception vignette at left and photograph at right . It has grass access paths ,   lasting in - ground beds , and is 480 square feet full . Bysuccession plantingin natural spring , summertime and fall , it will supply plenty of vegetables for a family of four for much of the year .

Advice for All Garden Styles

What to plant

How to plant

When and How Much to Plant

Where to plant

Plant Care

Give Vegetable Gardening a Try !

I hope that strain to make this clause comprehensive has n’t made vegetable gardening seem complicated . There is a lot to it , but after you get a canonical reason , it makes mother wit . BothVirginia Cooperative ExtensionandNorth Carolina State Extensionhave produced publication that address multiple aspect of start a garden and are good extension .

Vegetable gardening can be fun . For many of us , the garden is a refuge . It promotes healthy eating and connect us with our environment at a time when it is existentially important . If you are still tentative , set off small . But please , start .

source :

Texas A&M Agrilife Extension , Planning a Garden , https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu / library / horticulture / preparation - a - garden/

atomic number 92 of Maryland Extension , Planning a Vegetable Garden , https://extension.umd.edu / hgic / topics / planning - vegetable - garden

NC State Extension , Vegetable Gardening : A Beginner ’s pathfinder : https://content.ces.ncsu.edu / home - veg - gardening - a - immediate - reference - guide

VCE , Home Vegetable Gardening , https://ext.vt.edu / lawn - garden / home - vegetables.htmlhttps://growforit.ces.ncsu.edu/2020/05 / container - garden - is - for - everyone/

NC State Ext , Create a Container Gardenhttps://content.ces.ncsu.edu/how-to-create-a-container-garden-for-edibles-in-the-north-carolina-piedmont ,

VCE , name plant life problem : https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu / content / dam / pubs_ext_vt_edu/426/426 - 714/426 - 714.pdf

West Virginia University Extension , Companion Planting Chart : https://extension.wvu.edu / files / d/0b887573 - 5fcf-4d17 - a47f-6de7465ad0a8 / berkeley - gardening - familiar - planting - chart.pdf

VCE , Container and Raised Bed Gardening , https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu / content / dam / pubs_ext_vt_edu/426/426 - 020/426 - 020.pdf

VCE , Intensive Gardening Methods , https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu / content / dam / pubs_ext_vt_edu/426/426 - 335/426 - 335.pdf

Crop Rotation Tips for Vegetable Gardens , Robin Sweetser , The Old Farmer ’s Almanac , October 3 , 2019,https://www.almanac.com / news show / gardening / gardening - advice / crop - rotation - hint - veg - garden

VA Cooperative Extension , https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426-708/426-708.html , Integrated pest Management for Vegetable Gardens , https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/426/426 - 708/426 - 708.html

Texas A&M Agrilife Extension , Fertilizing a Garden , https://agrilifeextension.tamu.edu / library / gardening / fertilizing/

Featured Photo:“Raised bottom Garden”byLori L. Stalteriis licensed underCC BY 2.0