How to Grow Garden

There is no greater pleasure than growing your own delicious vegetables and fruits. Imagine the thrill of going straight from the garden to your kitchen with a freshly picked harvest of tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, squash and juicy ripe melons. Contrary to popular belief, growing a vegetable garden is not hard to do, so follow the steps below to get started.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Rototiller
• Large bucket or container
• 20 to 30 lbs. of rotted manure or compost
• Rake
• Garden hoe
• Vegetable seeds
• Seed markers
• Permanent marker
• Sprinkler system or watering can
• Mulch

1. Choose a sunny spot for your garden. The majority of vegetable plants need at least six hours of sunlight every day in order to thrive and produce. Speak with a gardening expert to find out what plants grow well in your area.

2. Use the rototiller to loosen the soil to a depth of 2 to 3 inches. Remove any rocks, debris and existing weeds and discard.

3. Fill a large bucket or container with the rotted manure or compost. Spread the organic matter evenly over the freshly tilled soil, and rake into the top 2 inches of the soil. Go over with a rake until smooth.

4. Use the garden hoe to layout the rows of your garden. The rows should run east to west for maximum sun exposure. Using the permanent marker, write the name of the seeds you are planting on the seed marker and place it in the ground at the beginning of the row you are seeding. Plant the seed at the depth recommended on the back of the seed packages. Lightly cover with soil, patting down gently. Repeat this process for each row you plant.

5. Keep the seeds moist at all times. The easiest way to accomplish this is by using a sprinkler system to keep the garden moist. You can also use a watering can for the first watering in order to give the freshly planted seeds a healthy soaking.

6. Plan to weed your new garden about two weeks after planting. When your garden is free of weeds, apply a thin layer of mulch around the tender plants. You can use either hay or pine straw. Applying mulch will keep new weeds from appearing as well as help to retain the soil’s moisture.

Tips & Warnings

• Plant less of the faster growing vegetables such as zucchini.
• Do not attempt to plant your vegetable seeds when the soil is too wet.
• Allowing the weeds to grow will rob your vegetable plants of the nutrients they need to thrive and produce.