Creating A Vegetable Garden

Having been questioned about the process to create a vegetable garden, I have compiled several methods that I would find easy to build, and easy to harvest great vegetables.
 


This type of bed is called the ‘intensive French Mound’.  The rows are built up with layers of garden soil, and compost.  Many gardeners prefer to ‘double-dig’ this with the thinking that loose soil below will enhance the crops and develop deeper roots.  I would find this process very hard work, and therefore, the ‘easy’ choice, at least for me, would not be the intensive French mounds.

Adding organic matter such as compost or packaged garden mixes is essential in creating soil that is high in nutrients, and allows water to get to the roots of the plants.  Several garden soil mixes I like are Posy -Power(C), and Paygro.(C) These products provide composted materials, composted manures, and peat to give the plants a great start. (I receive no compensation for mentioning these products.  I just like them.)

These raised beds can be raked higher than the paths between the rows, or, as seen here, borders of lumber can be used to keep soil in place.  The ‘intensive’ planting is by either planting across the row, of by zig-zaging the plants closely together.  This cross row plantings is easy to reach from either side for weeding and harvesting.

Easy reach pathways reduce compaction of the soil. By stepping on the planting beds, air and water are pushed out of the soil, greatly reducing nutrients and oxygen from the plants roots and cause compaction. 


This garden has ‘wide rows’.  A gardening method that simply scatters seed across the whole row without making lines or worrying about spacing of the seeds.  This close scatter seed for lettuce or spinach, works as a living mulch, and keeps soil cool – a requirement for lettuce and spinach.  Weeds are kept to a minimum too, as the plants block out light that weeds need.


Wide rows can also be planted with bedding plants in a single, double or even a triple row across the span of the row. By putting plants in rows about 4” – 5” apart, again, more food can be grown in a minimal of space.

New Ideas Garden Blog featured this neat, compact garden style with paved pathways, and all of the beds are accessible from all sides for easy maintenance.

Peas, beans, melons, squash, zucchini, and cucumbers will all benefit from trellis climbing.  The vines will be off the ground,and not sprawling all over the garden. Light will be available, and harvesting will be easier. Air flow around the plants will lessen diseases.  These trellis can be purchased assembled, or created by using reclaim wood, sticks, or even, PVC piping tied together. 
Vertical gardens take advantage of upward growing of many vine vegetables, and allows the main beds to grow other varieties

 
Grid gardens also referred to as ‘square-foot gardening’ sets a pattern of squares for different crops.  Some squares can be plants in the center, one plant, while other sections can be planted at the four corners, rows of three or four, or one row of four right down the center of the square.
 
Larger vegetables require more space, like Broccoli, Cabbage, and Eggplant.  Only one plant per square for these vegetable. 




Raised beds can be as deep, or as shallow as needed.

Use untreated wood for these raised versions of gardens. Treated wood is processed with chemicals, and can leach into the food crops. Cedar and redwood have natural  resistance to insects and hold up well in the garden. Pine and fir can be used, but may need to be replaced after several years.

Raised beds can be as decorative as needed.

Vertical mesh fencing adds height for upward growing.

Other styles of vertical gardening are being promoted in the home farmden. Take a wall, with many of these systems, and move the garden upward.

Gutter are installed on wall for shallow leafy vegetables.

Cell tray is planted and mounted on Wall. 

Garden that extends upward on deck or courtyard.

This was is very creative in planting window boxes, trailing vines, and getting sunlight to the plants.  Watering is simplified by grouping these containers together.

Creative ingenuity or necessity have devised ways to extend our vegetable gardens to meet our space features, and provide food for the family. Expressing ourselves with food growing has a way of nurturing our bodies and souls. 

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Garden Journal–Take Note

Gardening and farming are dependent on insects to pollinate plants.  Plants need moisture.  And sunlight affects the plants growth. This symbiotic relationship between plants, nature, and pollinators is critical to the ecosystems that exist. But, according to the BBC news, “the past 100 years or so, many plants that have just used day-length have become locally extinct. Yet plants that have used temperature to control when they flower have increased their range considerably and now seem much more common.  That makes a lot of sense because those plants will be able to out-compete other species in a climate change scenario”

So, with climate change, no matter how subtle, observations in the garden are more important than ever.  Phenology, the study of recurring biological phenomena and their relationship to the weather.  If day length is a trigger for a plant to bloom, or if temperature is the trigger, these distinctions may help us plant more on the plant’s schedule than by the calendar. 

I am going to keep a Journal.  Garden journals document when a bug first appeared or when the fruit tree blossoms erupted.  The date, temperature, and rain accumulations for the year will be noted. 

 
Keeping track of the garden will be easy with pictures, and notes.  Plant tags for new plantings, and dates that fertilizers were added will be documented.


Before and after photos will remind me of past projects, and the continued care for that area.  Is it sunny, shady, wet, dry, and what changes have occurred in this area.
One method I have for keeping track of my garden is this plot map.  This has my property dimensions, and by using tracing paper, I can draw garden beds in.

I then indicated on the site map , dots and circles to indicated plants and shrubs, and trees.  Fences that border some of these areas is also marked.

As I have been a blogger for several years now, I noticed in my writing that on ‘such a date’, I mentioned Japanese Beetles. And I commented that this date was pretty early in the season.  Well, imagine my surprise, when the previous year’s blog was referenced, the Japanese Beetles were actually mentioned almost 2 weeks earlier.  So my observations from here on, need to be accurate. The Journal is going to be my date by date observations.  Temperature by highs and lows for the day, and daylight amounts with sunrise and sunset will be recorded.   
My erroneous reporting , while an embarrassment, is not the incentive to keeping a journal.  Noting insects dates will help prepare for an early intervention.  For example,  Japanese beetles send in a few guys to set up occupancy of the garden.  By knowing the date they arrived last year, I can be on the lookout, pick off the few, and the ‘pheromones’ will not be luring in the rest of the ‘clan’.


The same observations of powdery mildew can give a heads-up to applying a preventative spray. 

Insects emerge when certain plants bloom.  This relationship can greatly assist the gardener and farmer to be aware of the cycles, and take appropriate actions. The plants and insects emerge in the same order each year, and is not connected to the weather that occurred in the winter or spring.  So the blooms of plants can accurately predict the insects that will be on the scene.  Imagine if the plant, say a fruit tree bloomed, but the bees and other pollinators were not around?  Nature takes these relationships very seriously, and isn't it wonderful she does?

Likewise, insects use these patterns to mate and bear young based on what the young will need to eat to survive.  


My journaling is already behind a bit, since many bulbs have already broken ground, and I did not note the date.  But I will move ahead, and get my camera ready to capture events as they unfold in my garden.

A feature I am looking forward to is planning outdoor events in the garden.  By checking the dates of what was blooming last year, I can select a party date that will give more to the party decorations and I'll be able to show off the garden at optimal times throughout the season.

Do you keep a Garden Journal?  What information do you keep?