Growing Seeds
Planting seeds is a fairly straightforward process that does not require much specialist equipment or plotting. As long as you plan and use a few key ingredients you can successfully grow an edible garden.
Choosing your seeds
There is an abundance of different seeds that are available with different colors, shapes, sizes, and instructions. Getting your seeds to germinate and start to grow is easy and there is no need to spend money on special equipment. You can follow a few tips for successful seed growing. The key to good results is to plan your planting to achieve specific results.
Making sure your soil is ready
Before you choose what to grow carefully consider what soil you have available. Half of the success of your garden will be based on the condition of your soil. There are three main types of soil- sandy, clay-like, and sandy loam. Sandy soil is loose soil that is easy to dig and allows for quick drainage after heavy rains. Clay soils are made up of fine particles that hold together tightly with large spaces for air and drainage. Sandy loam contains some sand, but large clumps frequently cause difficulties for plants.
To improve sandy soil, you need to add chemical fertilizers, mulch, or compost. Go for fertile soil types such as well-rotted farmyard manure, garden compost, or leaf mold.
Tilling the soil
The plow is not the best tool for plowing your garden. Using a spade is far better and is more gentle. It will also enable you to keep a firm grip on the soil and work against the wind. For smaller gardens, a hand fork is more suitable.
Planting
The sooner you can get plants in the ground the better. There is little advantage in sowing seeds in rough weather, so treat your seedlings to a sheltered environment. It is often suggested to keep seedlings in a cold frame, but make sure you understand the process. This will protect your seedlings from the rain and will provide a good bed of loose soil.
Transplanting
Transplanting is a vital part of vegetable gardening. There are many different methods of carrying out transplanting depending on the plant concerned, the stage of growth, and the type of soil.
The best method of transplanting is Sentius’ double bed method. By following the one-third rule, you will achieve plants that are similar in size to the original plant and have developed to a similar size.
Other methods of transplanting are harder to achieve, but give the gardener a little better chance of maintaining vigor. involves digging up the entire plant, including roots, making a root cut, and scooping out the contents of the hole. jing, or crawling, is ideal for this method.
Rhizome transplanting is useful for removing large amounts of root structure in a single operation. If you decide to rhizome transplant your plants, make sure you inv as much soil as possible and then follow the one-third rule.
Cut back on feeding and mulching
The amount of feeding and mulching will depend on your soil type. Loamy soil needs less feeding and less or no mulch. Sandy soil requires more feeding and more mulch. You can variate between heavy and light system feeding, but lightweight system feeding is best.
GETTING STARTED
Consider whether you want to grow your vegetables in rows or raised beds. Growing vegetables in raised beds are more versatile as you can arrange the beds to reachable doors.
Weeds are a headache when growing vegetables, but they can be particularly problematic when you are planning a vegetable garden. You will have less to do than in a row garden and your harvest will be larger.
Patience is required when growing vegetables, but the rewards are well worth it. There are so many wonderful vegetables to choose from, so be sure to prepare your soil properly before you are ready to sow. Consider the space available before you start sowing. Some vegetables need a long growing season to produce and some may be harvested after a few weeks.
Prepare the soil by digging in well-rotted compost or manure. Well-rotted compost will ensure your vegetables have access to all the nutrients they need when they are ready to grow. You can avoid the need for rich compost by adding a layer of manure when you dig in to prepare the soil. This will not only enable the plants to grow well but hold their leaves and fruit in the growing season.
Some vegetables are quite fussy about their soil requirements. For example, tomatoes cannot stand a very poor, alkaline soil, but they do like a good dose of compost and manure. In this case, the best option is to grow the vegetables in a commercial potting compost.
The plants should be watered regularly to ensure that they do not dry out.
