Starting a vegetable garden

[johnjf]

Hi, I'm a beginner to gardening. I wanted to know if I can just go outside, dig up the dirt and plant what ever vegetable seeds I want to grow? or do I need to lay down some kind of soil and do what ever else is necessary?

Thanks

[B_BQ]

Hi John and welcome:

Veggies are very forgiving and will grow under the most adverse conditions!

However, the better the soil, and better prepared soil, you have, the better the produce.

Get your bed dug over, taking out any large rocks. You might want to add some compost and weed free manure. I use sheep manure, but use it sparingly and make sure it is weed-free otherwise you'll be cursing someone when you see all the weeds growing!

Decide what you want to grow and read the packages. Don't get too ambitious the first time around and go with the easy stuff, like carrots, beans, peas, lettuce, etc. and keep a diary of what does what.

Lots of great and knowledgeable people on this forum and I'm sure others more experienced than I am will jump in.

~BBQ

[Bestgardenarbor]

There is usually a lot of information given on the seed packets - so give it a good read. Most vegetables prefer a sunny position although light shade for part of the day is acceptable. Vegetables are actually some of the easiest plants to grow. Have fun

[johnjf]

Thanks for the help, I've already set out some seeds and I've started some inside using some jiffy pots. Hopefully everything turns out good, can't wait to see my veggies grow

[hydroponicsnutrients]

Growing plants seems very easy but when you get into that you will find it very difficult but once you know the proper way then you wont find that difficult. Always checkout the soil. It should be always wet and need lot of nutrients and fertilizers. You can try for the hobbyist grower bundle http://advancednutrients.com/hydroponics/products/bigger_yields_flowering_system_hobbyist/bigger_yields_flowering_system_hobbyist_product_information.php as it is the perfect starting place for new growers.

[Allison Jolene]

The place we bought this winter just had a small garden, and I want to slowly expand, so I covered a spot on the lawn with plastic to first kill the grass. It's already mid may so I don't think I make it into a garden this year, I'll have lots of time to get it ready. Good luck with your veggies!

[Eeyore]

You could try lasagna gardening. It works very well and you don;t have to worry about covering the grass with plastic.

[Heidi S]

I am currently expanding two flower beds in my yard with the lasagna technique. I just set them up this last weekend, so I have decided to just plant in containers seated on top of the layers for now, and will plant up the perennials I am gathering for them in the ground in September.

I have basically done this technique to create each of my planting areas, as my yard was all grass when we bought it. My veggie beds were done 9 years ago after getting rid of 4 giant poplars on the east side and the ground was exhausted . By sitting my cedar boxes on top and layering into them, I had functional veggie boxes for the next spring. We ensured the poplar roots were dead before we attempted this though.

So just go for it - you will definitely learn some things about gardening in general, and your yard in particular as you explore your options.