The winter time is a great time to get your thoughts and plans about what you want to do for a garden that coming spring. It’s at that point in time that I make some decisions as to what I actually want to grow and why. I start by making a list of vegetables after looking through a seed catalog. Generally, this list is quite long. One year I remember listing a certain variety of squash only to remember later that I actually don’t like squash all that much. So, after you make your list, give it the ‘taste test’. Mark off any veggies that no one in the family is likely to eat. Next, I do the ‘savings test’. I figure, if I can purchase a particular vegetable cheaply during the growing season at the local market, I might want to consider not going to the trouble of growing it. An exception to this rule would be the fact that my garden is an organic garden. That is to say, I never use any harmful pesticides for fertilizers when growing my bounty. In the past, I’ve skipped growing iceberg types of lettuce in favor of the more expensive (and nutritious) romaine’s and Bibb varieties. (That may not stay true as a head of lettuce at the market where I shop was selling for close to two dollars a head). Finally, I like to give each item on my list the ‘happiness test’. This would include any plants that are either hard to grow or that do not do well in my locale. Cantaloupe fits into this category for me as they take up a lot of space, are routinely attacked by squirrels and have given me mixed results in terms of taste. Ergo, I buy mine at the store.Same goes for broccoli, Brussels sprouts and celery!
So, at the end of all this, I have whittled my list of candidate plants down to a relative handful. In general, I will end up with just a few varieties of romaine lettuce, bell peppers, beans, potatoes and other such items as strike my fancy that year. Next, I make a diagram of all the growing areas in my garden and indicate what will grow where. When doing this, I try and avoid planting the same crop in the same location from one year t the next. This is just a good practice so as to avoid allowing a disease that is unique to that plant from getting a foothold. For this part of the plan, I like to refer to books that show how I can grow the most vegetables from the smallest space. I learned this from people like Mel Bartholomew who published a book years ago call ‘Square Foot Gardening’. His method often employs small raised beds where the amount of weeding is kept to a minimum. After a while you will get a feeling for how much produce (and therefore space) you’ll need to feed yourself and other in your family. I’ve found that in good earth an through using intensive techniques, you can easily achieve anywhere from a half pound to a pound of edible produce per square foot. Some have boasted much larger figures than this, but I suspect that they use expensive apparatus to attain it.
My next move, in early spring, is to make sure that the beds are ready to receive transplants when they are ready to go in. Starting in March here in southwest Missouri, I work the soil, but only after it has dried out and can be turned without ending up with concrete. A cheap plastic tarp can come in handy when it rains if you cover your beds early on. Note that none of my beds are larger than four feet by eight feet. This size is easy to construct with lumber and everything is easy to reach from any side. In addition, during the early part of the growing season, I use a material called ‘reemay’ that does a great job protecting young seedlings from damage by insects and other pests.
While I’m doing all this, I like to keep a sort of diary. In it, I list what veggies are going where. How much they cost, the weather and what my end results were. I even go so far as to weigh my produce as it is harvested during the season. Information, like this, is valuable during successive seasons in helping me to plan. Overall cost is a big issue for me and many others. Over a five year period of time, much of the initial cost of tools, seeds and beds is spread out pretty well. At that point I can really begin to see some savings over the store bought produce. Also, I know that my food is pesticide free.
There! I’m now ready. I’ve got a plan, have some tools and lots of hope in my heart. Next stop, the garden center where I hope to score some good seeds at cheap prices. This is also a good time to hook up with a friend who has similar interest. That way you can both share the cost of seeds and tools. Then, later in the season, you can also trade produce!
My next topic will cover Step Two: Seed germination and growing techniques.
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