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Don't Wait Too Long To Plan This Year's Garden!
1. What maintenance needs to be done? The winter weather may have damaged your fencing, compost bin, shed, walkways, etc. Inspect everything as soon as you're able, research and budget for the repair (or upgrade) and get it done as soon as possible. 2. What are you planting where? Remember to practice good principles of crop rotation this year: don't plant a garden bed with the same crop inside of 5 years (if that's impossible, make it 3). Pests of a particular plant can live in the soil over the winter and if you plant tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, melons, squash, etc in the same bed as last year, you'll make it easy for those pests to destroy your plants (possibly for a second time). Rotating your crops denies those pests their favorite food and place to live and they'll either move on or be eaten by a predator. Also consider planting Marigolds, Sunflowers, Borage, Cornflower, Fennel, Mint, and other beneficial plants near your vegetables and fruit. These are loved by the "good" insects which feed on the nasty bugs that infect your garden. You can plant these beneficial plants among your crops and surround your garden with them. Besides providing food and shelter for beneficial bugs, they'll also add lots of beautiful color. This is an organic practice that's centuries old and is very reliable for keeping your garden's pest population in balance so you don't have to resort to the nuclear option - pesticides. 3. Plan a raised garden bed Ideally, you should prepare a new raised garden bed in the Fall and let compost go to work in it over the winter and early spring. But if you're like me and frequently run out of time during the season, you can definitely do this early in the season. The key to a successful garden plot is the track of the sunlight. Look at the orientation of your landscape and spend a day tracking the curve of the sun over your property. Dig your new bed on an East - West axis so it will receive light from sunrise to sunset. If that's not practical, then make sure your bed has a southern exposure, which should serve you well. 4. Order seeds now Once you've decided on what you're going to plant, you should start some of those plants indoors so you can get a jump on the season. Purchase seed from reliable companies and try some new varieties. It's good to introduce types of plants or breeds you haven't planted before to create biodiversity. 5. Start a garden journal Since I started a garden journal, it's been an indispensable resource of ideas, successes and failed experiments. Most of us can't remember from year to year where we bought the seed that turned into the greatest tomato we ever tasted, or how much compost tea we poured on our plants, or what the weather was really like. Re-reading last year's garden journal before you start plotting this year's garden will be immensely helpful in not repeating mistakes and helping to duplicate success. Good luck and get growing! Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com Todd Heft is a self-taught organic gardener who lives in Northeast Pennsylvania (Lehigh Valley). He is happiest when he has dirt under his fingernails, mud on his boots and an aching back. Read more of his articles at Big Blog Of Gardening: www.bigblogofgardening.com |
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