So if you are new vegie gardening...?

[bkreugar]

Sigh... SO I went back and talked to him last night with not great results. The kids and I had already made a list of what we wanted to grow:
lettuce
tomatoes
spinach
carrots
potatoes
corn
peppers
squash
broccoli
basil

He says get the seeds start them now in my sunroom. I suggested the raised beds usuing the leftover landscaping timbers and extra scrap wood. He said no way not big enough and he doesn't have the time to do it. AND yet... that would mean I would be responsible for the garden mostly. Not cool if it is gonna be huge, not cool at all!

So I am thinking of doing them in my raised bed flower bed in front of the front porch. It is 5' by 20 feet and other than a few very small azaleas and a rose bush, I think I could make that work especially if I also use my 4 large containers that are on the porch. So I might look ridicoulous with a veggie garden in front of my porch. Theses veggies are all what we like/eat already and I have no intentions of canning this year. Freezing maybe canning no.

I am super resisitant to be being responsible for a huge garden spot as I have a part time job,small home based embroidery business and I go to the gym 4/5 days a week as well as 2 kids with sports and horse shows. SO I do NOT want to spend every once of free time weeding OR feeling guilty that I am not weeding the garden.

We haven't done one before because I didn;t push it, now I am seeing WHY. I want him to take a bit more of it and not just have it as another thing on MY pile.

SO how strange IS it to have it in front of the porch? ANd we did have a 20'by 20' before kids (oldest is 13) and we couldn't grow corn. Is it hard or picky or high maintence or something?

 

[Kaceyx73]

Easy way to start is to add certain crops to your existing flower beds. Lettuce comes in many different varieties, from pale greens to deep wine red. I grow galactic lettuce mainly. Its good eating, and its wine red blends well for color with Bloomsdale spinach. If the soil is deep, carrots will add a different texture. Grow peppers and tomatoes in pots if you have to. The basil grows well anywhere, and most grow it in pots anyway. Potatoes can be put in pots, but do well with lots of space, and deep rich soil. If you could only do one bed, whether in ground or above, put the potatoes there. If your compost is a little too strong, the potatoes can handle it.

I've grown lots of veggies in the flower bed. There are so many colors and textures, people won't know its veggies.

 

[Robo]

If you plant beans they will choke out most weeds, but I just hate morning glory's.

 

[kellerfarm]

Yeah, I like making compost tea. I just have a few 5 gal buckets or rain water around and will put a feed sack with a few scoops of compost in it. Then fill it up and use it for feeding\\watering the garden a few times a week.


When I compare what I grow in my SFG it blows away what my friends have with traditional row gardens of over 2 times the square feet. I can juse just about every inch of space - no need for rows and walking or weeding access. And the biggest plus for me, having a full time job, 8 kids, and farm animals to care for - is that I have almost no maintenance other than watering.

My tomotoe plants grow very prolific in that 6 inches of awesome compost rich soil. The only thing I have struggle with is corn. I would like to have a tradtional row garden if I wanted to grow lots of corn. But maybe I just need to find the right corn for my setup and this Pacific Northwest climate. But I mainly focus on tomatoes, suger snap peas, carrots, lettuces, spinach, collard and mustard greens, zucchini, cucumbers, and a few pumpkins. And each year, I can easily just put up another bed if I want to expand.

Here's my garden as of April of last year. Just getting going. Corn hadn't really popped up yet, vining things not yet climbing, tomotoes not trasfered to their spots. I also start filing various large pots around to stuff with more tomotoes, squash, etc.

For being new to gardening, I have been very happy with the results. Now I just have to get all my fruit trees and berry plants producing nearly as well...

 

[kellerfarm]

SO how strange IS it to have it in front of the porch? ANd we did have a 20'by 20' before kids (oldest is 13) and we couldn't grow corn. Is it hard or picky or high maintence or something?

I like the idea. In fact, I pulled my rodies and stuff and replaced them with blue berry bushes. But I tend to be more practical and don't care for too much in the way of fancy ornamental plants... And if you try to follow the Square Foot Gardening approach, especially when it comes to the soil mix \\compost, your little raised bed garden will be very productive and very low maintenance. And have the kids help!​

 

[sune42]

I made the raised beds myself, it's not too much work. I have 2 4x4s and a 2x2 that I used with leftover scrap. They are screwed together on alternating corners, that isn't very clear I think, so I will see if I can find pics. How old are the kiddos? Are they able to take an active part in helping water/weed? My 4 year old will come out and help me, but she can't do it without supervision.

I know nothing about corn, but your tomatoes and basil you may want to buy already started plants. I just put tomato seeds in, but I don't think they are going to be ready in time, I should have done it 2 weeks ago. Peppers should be started right about now. This will help you find your zone, then you will know what needs to be started inside and when. Lettuce and basil can be grown in containers. I have a couple window box type planters that my leaf lettuce will go in this year to help prevent slugs. Just cut the leaves and they will grow back. Taters can also be done in containers, try a search for it. A couple years back my mom and daughter did them in a laundry basket lined with newspapers and filled with dirt. Broccoli, along with cabbage and brussels sprouts are difficult from what I understand because of specific bugs. If you go the square foot method, squash needs 2 ft per plant, but you should only need a couple, they are usually heavy producers.

I know here the carrots and spinach need to go in the ground soon, they are usually direct seeded.

My personal opinion, fwiw, would be to par the list down to about 4 or 5 things for the first year. Get a feel for it and see if it's something you want to continue. You have a pretty ambitious list going, and it may be something that proves too much. Picking a few easy things and getting a feel for it all would be good. You can always add to the list in years following.

 

[sune42]

Oh, and I am all for doing things in the garden bed. I have peas going in there this year and I am doing this for my beans http://www.growbetterveggies.com/growbetterveggies/2008/08/how-about-a-veg.html out front, I think it's a fantastic idea. If you are going to water something, it may as well be useful.

 

[bkreugar]

Here's a thought.....

Why not tell HIM you would like some help with it........as opposed to EVERYONE except him

signed
bkreugar's husband.

 

[welsummerchicks]

We make sure manure of any kind is composted or rotted for 6 months before we put it on the garden. We also throw in any ash and charcoal chunks left over from fires. We throw it on top and then till it in. We also add some kelp, and every other year, lime since it's clay.

Raised beds are nice, we built a couple, and once they're done they're done, but it is a lot of work. We sort of do a 'modified raised bed' - we double dig and add some top soil when we build a bed, so the bed stands somewhat raised up.

if you can site the garden on a high spot where there is good drainage, that really helps. Most vegetable plants like water but they need well drained soil. And then I think the most important thing is that they get a lot of sun.

As far as the size, I think you should go for a bigger size. To avoid weeding, you can put down weed barrier or mulch.