Tips for first time vegetable gardeners

Thinking of starting a vegetable garden? Growing your own vegetables is rewarding in many ways.

Here are some ideas to help you be successful. First, start smaIl.  You're better off to begin with a small plot because it's easier to manage and you're more likely to stick with it. Second, grow what you'll eat. If you don't like tomatoes, don't grow them.

Grow what you're likely to pick, prepare and eat. Third, get into the habit of visiting your vegetable garden at least once a day. Make it a priority.

One way to help you remember your garden needs attention every day is to plant your garden  where you can see it when you look out the window.

Don't be discouraged if you have really poor soil. Build a raised bed. Soil is everything when it comes to growing good, healthy vegetables and a raised bed makes it easy to add the right soil.

Containers are also a good choice for beginning gardeners. Container vegetable gardening allows you to grow your own produce almost anywhere. You can start small and learn as you grow. Two advantages of growing in containers. It's easy to get the right soil mix and you can move containers to the ideal spot for the best growing conditions. Finally, keep a journal. Today's smartphones make it easy to snap a picture of your garden's progress. You can look at the pictures and recall what worked and which things need to be changed. This will help you plan next year's garden.

What can I plant in early spring?

Last week’s snow has melted away and it’s time to get back to gardening outside. The good news is that there is a lot of moisture in this last snowfall, something we really needed. So when the ground clears and dries up in the garden, which vegetables can we plant from late March into April? We can plant many cool weather vegetable seeds directly in the ground.

Beets, broccoli, cabbage, kale, lettuce, peas, spinach, turnips like the cooler spring temperatures and can be planted from seed now.

You can also plant broccoli, cabbage, kale and spinach from starts now, just be sure you harden them off before you plant them.

Onions and garlic can also be planted now. Onions are planted from seed, sets and plants. 

Garlic is planted from individual cloves. Potatoes should be planted later in April. Egg-sized seed potatoes can be planted whole. Larger seed potatoes can be cut in half or quartered and then planted.

Make sure you have at least one set of "eyes" on each piece you plant. Always select certified seed potatoes. Supermarket potatoes are treated to prevent them from sprouting. This is the time to plant perennial vegetables, including rhubarb and asparagus.

Rhubarb and asparagus are available as bare-root crowns.  Don't harvest rhubarb or asparagus during their first season. This will allow the plant to establish. Rhubarb and asparagus can produce for 10 years or more, so pick a spot in the garden where they won't be disturbed for many seasons.

Before planting your seeds, starts or crowns, amend your soil with compost, peat moss and/or coconut coir. Take the bags home, dump into a pile, mix it all together and  add to your vegetable garden.

Add some fertilizer to your soil while you're planting. Put some in the bottom of each row or planting hole, so the roots of your new plants can grow into it.

While you're at it, plant some pansies and violas for color.