The cost of living is high, and an at-home garden might help you cut back on the pennies. Enjoying fresh veggies and fruit straight from your garden is one of the most rewarding feelings. If you’ve never tasted garden-fresh food, you will be amazed by the sweet, juicy flavours and vibrant textures your green-thumb nurtured. There’s absolutely nothing quite like fresh veggies, especially if you grow them yourself—which you can!
It may seem daunting at first, but gardening is a very rewarding hobby. In this article, we’ll highlight the basics of vegetable gardening and planning.
Pick the right location
Find a sunny spot, some vegetables (particularly the leafy ones) can endure a bit of shade. If the area does not remain wet and or doesn’t drain well, plant vegetables in a raised bed or elevated row to avoid poor drainage. Damp roots can become rotten roots if the soil is wet. If your soil is rough, till it up and get rid of the rocks because they will hinder root development and weaken your plants.
Start small
Planting considerably more than anyone could ever consume or want is one of the most common mistakes that novices make. Plan your garden carefully unless you want zucchinis to move into your pantry. Only plant what you and your family will consume at first, and start small.
Decide what to grow
Choose vegetables and fruits that you know your family loves to eat. Do not try and over do it with too many options, you don’t want any of your harvest going off.
Purchase basic gardening tools
When you begin your garden, you will need to at the very least get a reliable shovel and a set of gloves. A potting soil scoop to easily fill pots and planters, a standard kitchen knife to make accurate cuts when harvesting vegetables, a battery-powered or rechargeable cordless drill to create drainage holes when converting found objects into planters, a hori hori knife useful for dividing clumps of roots and other coarse garden tasks. You’ll need hand pruners to cut stems and branches, and other additional tools of the trade that may be useful along the way.
Written by Ncumisa Lerato Kunana.
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