Organic Gardening for Beginners
Tools That You Will Need:
There are a few basic tools that
everyone needs to have in order to keep a healthy garden. These include a
pointed shovel, fork, garden rake, cultivator, garden hoe, trowel, and a
pair of shears or garden snips. (The fork is not absolutely necessary
and can be replaced with the shovel or the rake in most cases.) Good
tools can be purchased at a local hardware store for around five to ten
dollars apiece. Expect to spend anywhere from twenty five to thirty
dollars for a complete set of necessary tools. Some optional tools
include a wheelbarrow, push mower, flathead shovel or spade, flower
pots, and a compost tumbler. For organic gardening, you will need a
compost pile or composter.
Caring for Your Garden Tools:
Unless they are cared for properly, tools will not last through even
one season. Tool care is simple and easy to follow. First, and most
importantly, NEVER leave tools outside after using them. Sun and
moisture will cause the wood to warp, crack, and loosen. When the wood
dries out too much and becomes loose, the head of the tool will not stay
on and the tool becomes useless and will have to be thrown away. Keep
all tools inside a shed or garage to protect them from the elements.
Secondly, keep your tools clean and dry when you are not using them.
Dirt and water will cause them to rust. If you have tools that require
sharpening, buy a sharpener and keep it in storage where you keep your
tools.
When to Begin:
Gardens are usually begun
in spring, but some gardens can be begun in the fall. Begin planning
your garden during the winter. Seeds should be started indoors around
six weeks before the last spring frost. Find a warm place to start your
seeds where they can get plenty of sunlight after germination. In our
home, we have a small atrium attached to the house. A garden shed with
windows that is protected from freezing will also work. If you do not
have an area that is warm with plenty of light, you can grow them in a
garage with a grow light which can be purchased at a local hardware
store. Seed packets should state when you need to begin your seeds and
how you should go about doing so.
Will You Need a Greenhouse?
Greenhouses are useful, but not necessary. Also called hothouses,
these structures help keep plants warm out-of-doors before the planting
season begins. Sunlight comes into the greenhouse through the walls and
ceiling and remains inside the greenhouse as heat. You can build your
own greenhouse with a few simple tools and supplies. Instructions for
building a large passive greenhouse can be built here.
For a simpler greenhouse, purchase some heavy chicken wire and plastic
sheeting. Bend the wire over your plants in a a half-circle over your
plants so that it creates a dome. You can then lay the plastic sheeting
over your wire for protection. tie the plastic to the wire with string
and bring it around and down to close off the ends. Secure the
greenhouse to the ground with stakes. You can pull the stakes up and
lift the cover for watering, or you can run a soaker hose through the
covered garden and turn it off and on when watering is needed.
Choosing Your Crops:
The most important thing about choosing which crops you will grow is
location. Obviously, if you live in Alaska, you won't be able to have a
full harvest of watermelons. First, decide all of the plants you would
like to grow and make a list. When choosing your seeds, make a note of
the weather conditions each plant prefers. If it does not coincide with
your region, you will have to cross it off of your list. Some plants
have different varieties that grow in different types of weather, so
check out each type before you choose. Some plants need lots of water
and should not be grown in dry areas. Other plants require cool weather
and should not be grown where the summers are too hot for them to grow.
As you look up the climatic conditions for each variety, make a note to
the side of each strain you can grow in your garden.
If this is
your first garden, you should be careful not to grow any plants which
require too much care and are not good for beginners. Asparagus is one
such plant. Asparagus takes three years to mature and become
established. This is an example of a plant that is best left to the
experienced gardener. Some good plants for the first-time gardener
include pumpkins, watermelon, carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, onions,
cucumber, potatoes, okra, beans, peas, corn, leeks, broccoli,
cauliflower, celery, squash, turnips, beets, and radishes. There are
also a variety of other plants that are suitable for a first-time
garden. Herbs are almost always easy to grow and are very good for
first-time gardeners.
Where to Plant?
Location is
one of the most important factors in having a successful garden. You
must choose a place that gets full sun at least 2/3 of the day and has
good drainage. For anyone not familiar with gardening, good drainage
means that it is on a hill or on flat level ground. Don't plant in a
ditch or at the bottom of a hill or anywhere water drains or will
collect. Too much water can drown a plant. If you are planting next to a
house, you will need to plant away from the edge of the roof or install
a rain gutter over the area where the roof slants down over the garden.
Rainwater pouring off of a roof will damage plants and cause excessive
runoff which will wash away your topsoil, exposing roots and killing
your garden plants (and I can say this from personal experience).
Try to grow your garden as far from any trees as possible. Trees will
compete with garden plants for water and can sometimes create too much
shade, not to mention covering the garden in leaves in autumn. Plant the
garden near the house so that it will be accessible to water and easy
to take care of. Gardening should not mean taking a trip out across the
pasture. Think about crucial elements when planting. Is it too near the
composter? Insects that feed on compost would also love to feed on your
garden plants. Is it near the garage? That might make it easier when
toting tools and supplies back and forth.
Planning the Garden:
The beginning gardener should know how much room a garden takes up.
While planning the size of the garden, you will need to assume that you
can plant about 1 1/2 plants per square foot. Carrots and smaller root
crops can be planted three per square foot. Spreading plants such as
squash, watermelon, pumpkin, and cucumber need an extra square foot or
two for growth. If you plan on growing climbing plants such as beans or
peas, you will need a wall to grow them against. A trellis can be built
if there is no wall. An eight by eight foot garden can grow anywhere
from sixty to seventy plants which is quite a lot. While planting, be
careful not to plant plants too far apart or too close together. Taller
plants should be planted in the back where they will not block sunlight
from the rest of the garden. Medium plants go in the middle and short
plants in the front, etc.
Heirloom Seeds:
It is
important to purchase heirloom quality seeds when buying seeds for your
garden. Heirloom quality means that the seeds are not hybrids, have not
been chemically treated, and have not been genetically engineered in any
way. Heirloom seeds are seeds from plants that have been grown for
hundreds of years and are chosen because they are healthy, grow best,
and taste the best. Unlike manufactured seeds, heirloom seeds are not
produced to make more fruits than the plant can sustain without chemical
fertilizers, and have not been irradiated to make them sterile so you
can't grow the seeds that will be produced by the plants you will be
growing. Heirloom seeds produce healthy plants that provide lots of
vitamins and minerals and are the best tasting. Always opt for heirloom
quality seeds when purchasing or you may have to buy new seeds every
season.
Info on Companion Planting:
Companion
planting means planting different varieties of plants together in order
to protect them from pests. There are different ways you can use
companion planting. First, it is important to mix the crops together in
the garden. Try not to plant more than four or five of one type
together. Plants that are grown all together spread disease and pests
easily. Many inflictions tend to favor a particular plant and will have a
hard time spreading to the other plants if there are other types of
vegetation between them. In nature, plants are mixed together, making it
more difficult for insects to find the plants they prefer. Another type
of companion planting uses plants to deter insects. Marigolds, garlic,
and mints are perfect for keeping plants out of the garden. Plant these
plants around the perimeter and throughout the garden. I plant lots of
them around plants that are particularly prone to insects. Marigolds are
the best and are very easy to grow. Wormwood keeps away pests well, but
is very poisonous and should not be grown around children or household
pets.
A third type of companion planting is done by planting
together plants which complement each other. Complementing plants deter
insects from each other and also add nutrients to the soil that the
other needs.
Below is a list of companion plants:
Cabbage - Plant mint and nastrium to keep away cabbage moth and improve soil.
Corn - Lamb's Quarters.
Fruit Trees - Plant Nastrium to keep away pests.
Radish - Plant Nastrium.
Raspberries - Plant Garlic to keep it in good health and keep away pests.
Roses - Plant Garlic to keep it in good health and keep away pests.
Tomato - Plant Basil, Mint, and Dill to keep away various pests.
The fourth type of companion planting is using plants as a trap. The
bait plant is planted near other plants to lure insects. These plants
can be pulled up and the insects destroyed. Lamb's Quarters and Nastrium
are good plants to use as lure plants as they attracts aphids.
Digging Up Your Garden:
By now you should already have chosen where you want to plant your
garden. To get the soil started, you will need a shovel. Mark off the
boundaries of the garden with a garden hose or with stakes with string
tied between them. Using the shovel, dig down as deep as it will go and
then pull the shovel handle back to pull the soil up. Move the shovel
over and dig another spot. Keep doing this until all of the soil in the
garden has been dug up. It should be a bit clumpy. Don't worry about
removing any grass.
Next, you will need the rake or the
cultivator. I rake up the soil the best I can so that it is broken up
into smaller pieces. If you have a tiller, this will work even better. I
prefer to do all of the work by hand. Remove any rocks you find. Rocks
will ruin the growth of your root crops such as carrots, onions,
potatoes, leeks, and radishes. If you have lots of very large rocks,
they can be used to line the edges of the garden. If you are having
trouble tilling because the soil is too hard, use a shovel to break up
the large pieces at first. Areas with clay soil, like where we live,
tend to be harder to till. You may want to try digging two to three days
after it rains as the soil will be softer. Do not dig up muddy soil.
This prevents the soil from aerating and is bad for both plants and
earthworms.
Preparing the Soil:
Garden soil must
be rich in nutrients. You will need compost and manure when treating
your garden. I buy about 4 bags of compost and two bags of cow manure
for every 64 square feet (8x8 feet) of garden. Bags of compost and
manure cost between one and two dollars each at the garden store. If you
make your own compost, you will not need to buy compost. If you keep
animals, chicken, goat, and horse manure can be used instead of cow
manure. Chicken manure can burn plants, so only use about four cups of
chicken manure for each 64 square feet. Do not use manure from
meat-eating animals such as cats, dogs, and humans. If you have very
sandy soil, you may need an extra bag or two of compost. Spread these
out evenly over the soil and rake them in with your garden rake and your
hoe. A tiller can also be used. Do not water the garden until you have
planted your seedlings.
The garden will need some kind of edging
to keep the outside plants from creeping over the borders. Edging will
save you a lot of time in the long run, so it is best to get it put in
early. You can make a fancy border out of logs, bricks or stone. If you
need a cheap alternative, however, garden stores and hardware stores
sell metal edging for about a dollar per twenty feet.
