As Spring is here, there’s no better time to start thinking about creating your very own vegetable garden. However, many gardeners across the country might be wondering exactly how to make a vegetable garden from scratch. Here at Earth Cycle, we understand that it can sometimes be difficult to get started, and of course, we’re here to help.
Whether you’re a gardening novice or you’re a planting professional, there are lots of things to consider when planning to start your own vegetable garden. However, to stop you from frantically searching “how to make a veggie patch” or “how to make plants grow fast”, here are a few tips to keep in mind before you start digging left, right and centre!
1) Start Your Garden In A Stable Area
We know it sounds obvious but knowing where to create your bed could avoid potential harm to your plants further down the line. Avoiding open spaces with lots of wind, as well as areas with lots of activity where your plants could get knocked or badly damaged could save you lots of money (and heartbreak!) in the future.
Keeping clear of spaces that have the potential to flood is also something to consider. Watering your plants is a must, but flooding them might be just a little too much!
2) Check To Make Sure Your Soil Is Moist
Although you need to avoid flooding your plants, your soil must be both moist and in good condition for your plants to reach their full potential. However, if you’ve come face to face with poorly drained soil in the past, you’ll know that water pools aren’t particularly beneficial unless you’re working with raised beds.
Raised beds improve your drainage system, which is a plus! Rotted roots occur when you’ve got soil that’s too wet. It might be best to bear this in mind when starting your vegetable garden in order to get the very best out of your environment.
3) Sunshine Is Key
One important thing you can do for your plants is to make sure they get enough sunlight throughout the day. Most vegetables need around about 6 hours of sunlight every day in order to thrive. Make sure you keep your vegetables and plants in a place that gets a fair amount of sunshine, and you’ll quickly discover that a lot of your work has already been done for you and the sunlight may even make your plant grow faster.
Knowing the basic do’s and don’ts of starting your vegetable garden is one thing, but beginning your gardening adventure is an entirely different matter altogether. Whether you want to know how to make a vegetable garden, how to choose what to plant, or even how to build a raised vegetable garden, discover everything you need to know and more below!
Top Tips For Deciding How To Choose What To Plant
1) Be Realistic
It goes without saying, but if you’re creating a family vegetable patch and nobody in your household likes carrots: don’t feel obligated to grow carrots! Just because a website or book told you that now is the perfect time to plant doesn’t mean you should plant carrots if no one will eat them. Of course, you could always give them away to your friends and neighbours.
2) Consider The Season
No matter the time of year, there’s always going to be a vegetable or two that thrives when others might not. Although crops aren’t as loud or energetic as children, they can often be just as high maintenance!
If you don’t take care of them, they’re not going to succeed as much as you might like them to, and if you decide to take a trip during their preferred growing season, ensure you’ve got someone who can tend to them in your absence. Of course, we mean your vegetables, not your children!
3) See What’s Available
Whatever you want to grow is usually ready to buy in seed form from most garden centres in the UK, but a good way to tell what’s in season/what’s going to grow the best is by checking out your local supermarket. By seeing what products they have available, you can see what vegetables and herbs are likely to succeed when planted in your own back garden.
How To Construct A Vegetable Garden/ Raised Vegetable Garden
To construct a vegetable garden, all you’ll need is two relatively long scaffolding planks, some tools, soil (if you’re confused about which soil to get, we recommend you read our beginner’s guide to topsoil to get more familiar), and any organic matter you might have to hand.
In total, building raised beds in your vegetable garden and starting your raised bed gardening journey should only take about fifteen minutes, and it’ll be sturdy enough to last quite a while. For full descriptions and instructions on how to assemble your vegetable garden, there are plenty of online sources you can refer to.
How To Make A Vegetable Garden Conclusion
It’s important to remember that wherever you are in the world, you can learn how to make a vegetable garden and do so with ease. If you’re a little tight for space, there’s plenty of other ways you can grow vegetables, like in pots or smaller raised boxes. French beans are incredibly versatile, as they can be planted in a bed and can even be planted to climb up a corner post.
There’s never been a better time to start growing your own vegetables, as being self-sustainable is one giant step towards becoming more eco-friendly. For more information about any of our products, or if you just want to know a little bit more about what we do at Earth Cycle, feel free to contact our friendly and helpful team today.
