I’ve been growing a small garden for about 5 years and I love planning it and eating the vegetables that I grow. It is pretty easy to start out. Here are a few things on how to start a family garden at your house.
How to start a family garden
Decide where the garden should be located.
Pay attention to the sun before you decide where to place it. A lot of my neighbors planted a garden at the back of their yard and it just doesn’t grow as well because it’s shaded by big trees. I
put mine in a different spot so it gets the sun all morning but is shaded in the late afternoon, during the hottest part of the day. My garden is also inside a fence so rabbits and other animals can’t get into it
How big do you want your garden to be?
I would love for my garden to be bigger, but it’s just not possible in my yard without the kids destroying it. It’s a pretty small area, 10’X4′; however, it still provides enough for a relatively constant flow of fresh vegetable and herbs. Another consideration, how much work you want to put into? Remember that the bigger the garden, the more daily maintenance it will entail.
Build your garden.
Once you make the decision on where to put the garden, you will need to build it. My husband went to the hardware store and bought 3 pieces of wood (He got 2″x8″ boards.) and screwed them together. Since one side is against my house, we didn’t add the 4th side. He dug out a little trench to lay it down in because we wanted it to be secure in the ground.
Decide what to grow.
There are two ways to start planting, from seeds or small plants bought from a nursery. All seed packets have directions listed on the back of them. Some say to start indoors, while others you start outside.
I have started the plants inside in the past, but now I choose to just buy small, starter plants at the nursery like tomatoes and peppers. Other plants I still start from seeds like carrots, watermelon, squash, cucumber, and green beans. I know some people that buy all of theirs at the nursery and replant.
Good luck and hope you have a bountiful harvest this year.
You should read this on what you need to plant!
What to plant for beginning gardeners
