If you’re looking for a warm season project or if your current vegetable garden has started to look like it’s ready to be reset, we have some great vegetable garden ideas. Now is the time for planning and you will soon be on your way to creating and maintaining the vegetable garden of your dreams. Homegrown vegetables are superior to any other and our dream is to make sure as many local gardeners as possible have the rewarding experience of growing food.
At this point in the year, with the official first of Spring just a week away, and temperatures rising:
1) Finish harvesting what remains of any cool season items. You might have lettuce, broccoli and more that are still doing well, but crops like these won’t keep going through the summer;
2) Consider the successes and failures of last season’s garden. Were you struggling with anything that you need to correct before replanting? Remember the lighting shifts with the seasons, and warm weather brings different environmental issues. Make any changes now or talk to us about troubleshooting.
3) Plan to grow what you know you will use. Vegetables and herbs are more prolific and healthier when they are harvested regularly. When planning, think about salads, and signature dishes, and breads you might make. If you like to cook or are trying to cook more, one vegetable gardening idea is to plan a recipe garden. Find several recipes in advance of growing anything so you stay motivated to the finish line. Then build your garden around fulfilling those recipes with a couple garden grown ingredients for each.
4) If you don’t have a vegetable garden currently, be sure that the spot you choose is a sunny one with good drainage. You might spend 15 minutes in your yard in the morning, afternoon, and evening, scoping out the best location. Vegetables need at least six to eight hours of sunlight daily. Be sure that the spot you choose is irrigated or easily accessible for watering. Otherwise, you don’t need a ton of space to start something delicious. You can grow vegetables and herbs in a square-foot style garden, a raised bed, a large, dedicated bed, or a collection of containers. Be sure to give all vegetables good, nutritious soil. Proper soil, water and airflow will make it so much easier to grow healthy vegetables. If you’re new to growing your own, our best vegetable garden idea is to start small. You can always add more containers of vegetables as you go.
5) Finally, stay flexible and remember the Pinder’s Garden Center mantra: plants are living things responding to an ever-changing environment. Your experience of vegetable gardening will be different from year-to-year. Your tomatoes may have given you a real headache last season, but the next variety you plant might do incredibly well and be your ticket to the most delicious salsa of your life.
We will have new vegetable garden starts growing in the field that will be ready to move into the Garden Center in about a month. Some of the best to grow in your warm season vegetable garden are beans, peas, melons, eggplant, potatoes, and squashes. We chose just a few from what’s coming to inspire you to move forward with whatever vegetable garden ideas you have!
Bush Beans. These are great for the warm season in a sunny spot. Beans from the garden are just delicious. They grow in small shrub form, not tall like pole beans. They are easy to care for, we recommend avoiding getting the leaves wet. It will be so exciting when you spot the first bean pod! You will want to harvest these beans while they are tender and enjoy them often.
Okra. The vegetable champion of our warm summers. Okra thrives in the heat. Okra has pretty hibiscus-like blooms and the pods are abundant once they get started. It is a thirsty plant so make sure you water it regularly. Also, be sure to harvest the pods while they are new, the taste is better and they’re easier to use when they are small. Okra can be fried, put in soups and gumbos, and there are tons of fun recipes available, especially if you like southern-style cooking. Be sure to wear gloves when you are harvesting as there are fine hairs on Okra pods.
