How to start your first vegetable garden

If you are a first time gardener, you might be wondering how to get started. I know there is a lot of interest in growing some of your own food and I have to say that there is nothing more fun than picking a fresh pea pod and eating it.

Gardening may seem intimidating if you are a newbie to the process. There are some things to understand but the key is to NOT stress out. Working with plants is supposed to be relaxing. So many people say that they don’t have a green thumb or everything they plant dies. I say find another plant and keep trying. Some plants don’t thrive even though they look great when you buy them.

Plants need regular appropriate watering, which is the most common cause of non-success in my experience. In your garden, germinating seeds and seedlings have almost no root and need light watering frequently, maybe even several times a day. How often depends on how much sun and/or heat they are getting. For example, they need more water if they are planted along your house or a fence which reflects extra heat onto them.

Once the seedlings have gained some size – there is no official measure for, this but usually it is when they have several leaves – they have more roots and don’t need such frequent watering. At this point they need a deeper watering. And then when they are well established and really growing, they need longer watering to encourage the roots to go deep and help the plant self-maintain from a wider space in the soil.

When you water, keep in mind that roots need air as well as moisture. So if you have soil that doesn’t drain well, don’t drench that kind of soil. Your seedlings need moist, not sodden, soil to do best.

OK, as you read this you may be ready to give up because there is all this interpretation to figure out watering needs. Here is the tool to help you – your finger! If you have seen or eaten an alfalfa sprout on a sandwich or a bean sprout in your Pad Thai, you know what a baby plant looks like. The alfalfa sprout comes from a small seed and its seedling is small and its first roots are short. Feel the soil and think of that sprout – is the soil moist (not sodden) to the depth of that root?

If you have a larger seed – maybe you planted cukes, or peas or beans, think of the bean sprout when you finger-test the soil. “Ack! Are you kidding”, you may be thinking, how can I possible make that kind of evaluation?” Sure it’s a bit of a skill but you’ll soon get the feel of it. So start with seed that is a guaranteed success – radishes are almost always a success and have a good size seed. Leaf lettuce also comes up relatively fast and is another veggie that gives quick gratification but has a smaller seed.

Broccoli, kale, and cauliflower are all related to the radish and have very similar, almost round, seeds. So even if you aren’t a fan of these veggies, they germinate easily and give you a quick sense of gardening happiness. Carrots, parsley, and basil early are challenging in your early gardening career because they are slow to germinate, and have less vigorous seedlings. If you are planting when summer is full on, cucumbers, zucchini or yellow summer squash, and any of the beans like the warm soils and will germinate well and give you a satisfying first garden.