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Growing Your Own Vegetables: A Beginner’s Guide

Growing Your Own Vegetables A Beginner’s Guide | Southern Botanical | Dallas Residential Landscaping Services Company

Growing your own vegetables is both rewarding and fun. If you have never tasted garden-fresh produce, you’ll be delighted by its vibrant textures and the sweet, juicy flavors! Truly, there is nothing like fresh vegetables picked from your own backyard.

Southern Botanical, your Dallas residential landscaping services company, would like to share some of the basics of vegetable gardening, which includes choosing the easiest vegetables to grow, picking the right location, and determining the right size of your garden.

Choosing the right area

This is key. You do not want to grow sub-par veggies on your first try! Here are some tips.

  • Pick a sunny location. The majority of veggies need at least six hours of direct sunlight every day. However, there are some vegetables that can tolerate some shade.
  • Plant in a well-drained, moist soil. Plant your vegetables in a raised bed if you have poorly drained soil. If your soil is rocky, till it and remove the rocks.
  • Choose a stable environment. Do not choose a location that floods easily and receives a lot of foot traffic. Avoid planting in an area that has the potential to receive strong winds; this may knock over your young plants.

Determining the right size of your garden

Start small. Do not plant too much too soon – this is one of the biggest mistakes a beginner gardener can make. It’s better to be proud of a tiny garden than end up frustrated with a large one! Only grow what you will eat, and plant your garden with care.

Below are some tips for a good-sized garden for a family of four.

  • Let your garden stretch from north to south, where they will benefit from getting the most sunlight. It can be 11 rows wide, with each row 10 ft. long. If you think that your garden is too big, you can make the rows shorter, or plant less than 11 rows.
  • Ensure that your garden has paths that will let you harvest and weed. Be sure that you can easily reach the center of the bed or row.

Picking your vegetables

Here are some suggestions for easy, productive plants for beginner gardeners. To find out what plants grow best in your area, you can go to this resource from Texas A&M Agrilife Research. 

  • Peppers
  • Tomatoes
  • Zucchini squash
  • Cabbage
  • Lettuce
  • Carrots
  • Beets
  • Radishes
  • Chard

Some tips on choosing vegetables:

  • Pick vegetables that your family typically eats. Don’t like brussels sprouts? Don’t plant them!
  • Think about the vegetables available at your local store. Maybe you would want to grow peppers and tomatoes because carrots and cabbages are widely available.
  • Use seeds that are high-quality. Purchasing from the nursery seedsmen is always a great idea.

Finally, check planting dates. Ripening cycles and growing conditions vary, depending on the season and the plant, so be careful not to plant all your seeds at the same time. Check the seed packets for planting dates. Before creating a gardening schedule, it’s best to check the ideal growing conditions for each vegetable.

Growing your own vegetables is a wonderful way to enjoy fresh produce, while saving money and getting up close and personal with nature. Enjoy your harvest!

Sources:

“How to Plant a Vegetable Garden, Nationwide, https://blog.nationwide.com/tips-for-planting-garden/

“What You Need to Know to Start Your First Vegetable Garden,” BHG, https://www.bhg.com/gardening/vegetable/vegetables/planning-your-first-vegetable-garden/

“Vegetable Resources,” Texas A&M Agrilife Extension, https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/vegetable/