Taking the step to create a vegetable garden at home can be a rewarding and fulfilling adventure for the whole family. Aside from giving you a great hobby and learning some new practical skills, if you decide to to start growing your own fruit and veggies, you will have a reward of eating safe, fresh produce right from your own garden. *This post contains affiliate links and/or sponsored content.

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Much like with anything else in life, you need to make sure you have laid good foundations to facilitate the healthy growth of your new crops and ensure you give them the best possible chance when it comes to harvesting what you have grown. It is a useful idea to do some research before buying plants for your garden and to spend time thinking about how much time you have to dedicate to gardening. Don’t forget to check that the plants you choose match the climate in your garden.

Location is key

Ideally, you need to find a sunny spot in your garden that gives you at least six full hours of sunshine a day. Forget using that dark corner of the garden that no one uses due to lack of sunlight. To help your new veggies grow, you need to bathe them in daylight as much as possible. Make sure to plant taller crops in a way that doesn’t block the sunlight for those lower to the ground when they start to grow so you can give all your new fruits and \vegetables the full amount of the sun your garden allows.

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Fruit and vegetable plants require protection from the elements. However, deciding how much to give them is challenging since they also need more sunlight and water than most flowers.

Clear Your Space

If you are planning to change the layout of your yard, then you may have quite a lot of preparation work to do before you can start creating the garden of your dreams. For some jobs, you may want to call in a professional to help. For example, if you have trees that need to be trimmed or removed, it is safer to let a tree service handle these tasks on your behalf. Having too much debris can lead to pests that can be detrimental to your veggie garden. Whether they are small or big, they are destructive as they’ll decimate your fruits and vegetables in no time. For the little bugs, it’s best to plant companions that naturally ward off insects, such as garlic shrubs, as there’s no reason to use chemicals. Howtogetridofchipmunk.com points out that bigger animals like chipmunks require robust methods due to their ability to dig. Therefore, installing a fence that’s around one to two meters deep and high should prevent raccoons and squirrels from a midnight snack.

Create the right soil

Martha Stewart

The best type of soil to grow your fruits and vegetables will include as much natural matter as possible. You want a mix that will bind together when you press it but fall apart when it is disturbed. Include leaves, shredded or aged bark and compost to find the right mix for you. When you do, you can be confident the soil will be able to retain water without being saturated. You will also want to test your soil PH.

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You may want to consider adding in raised beds if the ground in your garden isn’t suitable for growing fruits and vegetables. Mulch from somewhere like Calloway’s Nursery is your best friend. It will help to slow the regrowth of weeds and retain moisture in the soil too.

Equipment

If you need to create the space in your garden, you may need some tools to help you get started.  A regular lawnmower will help you to prepare any grassy areas. Then you will need some basic items such as a shovel, various spades, trowels, pots. Of course you can’t forget your watering can!

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Water

Did you know you can overwater your plants? Most plants in the vegetable garden only need around an inch of water a day, and this includes rainfall. The best way to water your new vegetable garden is to spray it by using soaker lines and drip hoses. This will keep a slow but steady supply of water to avoid excess moisture building up and ruining your plants.

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Try not to overwater. Standing water flows into the grass, yet it takes a while to drain out of the soil. Once this happens, the roots will struggle to breathe and extract the nutrients from the ground as they’ll have very little space to maneuver. A healthy sign is when flowers grow in the area as they absorb the necessary food and water. Still, if you want to be sure, bhg.com recommends digging a hole, filling it with fluid, and measuring how much is left for thirty minutes.

Have patience!

For some, it takes a lot of practice and many plants before they see a good crop come through. Other people simply have ‘green fingers’. Be patient with your produce and remember, the more you practise and learn about the best ways to create a sustainable vegetable garden at home, the better results you will get.

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Best of luck on your gardening adventures!

Amber