Gardening can seem like a daunting task, but it can refer to a myriad of situations. A gardener can be someone that has 3 grow bags on a balcony of the apartment on the 5th level, overlooking a city block. Or a gardener can be someone who has 2.5 acres and dedicates a portion of that land to growing enough food to feed their family year-round. Whatever you situation may be, you can be a gardener. It doesn’t take much to garden.
My first garden started with a seed tray that sat in our bathroom window because that was the place that received the most sunlight and we didn’t have any grow lights. That seedling tray was also filled with carrot seeds; little did I know at the time that carrots rarely survive transplant (moving from a seed tray to their permanent growing spot in a bed or raise row) and should always be started in ground, where you intend to grow them out. My second attempt at starting a garden got demolished by a hungry set of checks that I let out to explore the yard... Needless to say, I have learned A LOT over the last 8 years of my gardening journey. Hopefully you can gain some knowledge, or at least comfort, from my countless mistakes.
Like I said, a garden doesn’t have to be an expansive operation spanning several acres. But every garden should start with a garden plan, and that’s what we will walk through in the part of my gardening series.
So, how do we make a garden plan?
1. Determine what you want to grow
The most important thing to determine is what will you grow! To help figure this out, first ask yourself a few questions:
- What do you eat? You are more likely to care for the plant and be successful if it is a fruit/vegetable you or your family already eat on a regular basis. Trust me, growing zucchini does make my husband magically like zucchini, even though it’s one of my favorite vegetables (I still through in 1-2 zucchini plants each season just for myself). So list out the fruits and veggies you eat on a regular, or semi-regular basis. If you can’t think of any, potatoes are a great place to start. Homemade French fries anyone?
- What zone are you in? This is something most new gardeners forget to consider, or may not even know about. The US is broken into what is known as Plant Hardiness Zones. These zones range from 1a to 13b and are broken up by extreme minimum temperatures experienced in that geographical location. For example, here in the interior of Alaska I am in Zone 2a with an extreme minimum temp of -45F. Most plants don’t survive our winters…. So, I restart my garden from seed every year. I also lean into cold hardy plants because our summers rarely get above 70F. And our growing season is restricted to June – Aug, no fall garden and definitely nothing that takes longer that 12 weeks to mature.
For a person who live in Southern California, where I grew up and first started gardening, you would be in a Zone 10 – Zone 12 range. These zones are much more suited for heat loving plants, such as peppers and citrus trees. These areas can also support multiple growing seasons, so after your summer harvest you may also plant some cold tolerant plants for a fall harvest.
Knowing your zone helps determine 1. If, and what, plants you can overwinter (keep in the garden for next season) 2. What plants will thrive during your gardening seasons and 3. If you’re area is suited for multiple gardening seasons (spring crop, summer crop and/or fall crops).
To find you Plant Hardiness Zone, check out this USDA map
- How much sun will your gardening area get? Plants need sunlight to grow, but not every plant can handle a full day of sun. Leafy greens, such as kale, spinach and lettuce varietals, are shade loving plants. They want a few hours of sunlight, but thrive when hidden in the corners of the garden out of the direct sun for the majority of the day. Tomatoes and peppers are just the opposite, the more sun the better; and make sure they are getting a full day’s worth of sun. These sun loving plants will not thrive with only 3-4 hours of daylight shining directly on them.
To determine how much sunlight you will get simply watch the sun pattern in the area you are considering. A few times a day (morning, afternoon, evening) walk into that are and note where the sunlight touches and what is in the shade.
- How much space do you have? Each plant has a minimum amount of space it needs to grow. Carrots are great for small compact spaces, as the carrot only needs 2-4” between plants. As long as the soil is deep enough, you can grow some great carrots in a small area. In contrast to that are vining plants like spaghetti squash or tomatoes. These plants either need a lot of ground space to sprawl out, or should be trellised vertically in a way to support the plant and all its fruit. Tomatoes can be grown in a container, but make sure there’s enough room for supporting structures.
2. Outline your space and possible layouts
Now that you have an idea of what you are wanting to grow and the area available to do so, start outlining possible layouts. I like to do this using some graph paper, and if you’re satisfied by small color coordinating squares like I am, try my Garden Layout Worksheet. Measure out your space and simply start playing with different layouts. Are you going to use containers? Raised beds? In ground rows? Draw it out and find a configuration that works well for you!
3. Determine plant placement, type and quantity
You know what you want to plant, you know what your layout will look like, now add the two together! This is where you decide what plants should go where. You’ll need to revisit our spacing question though to determine exactly how much space a plant will need. If you plan on planting a 12’ row of tomatoes, and each tomato plant needs a minimum of 1.5’ when trellised, you know that you can put up to 8 tomato plants in this row.
Create a list of the plants you will need to fill out your garden space. There you have it! You have planned your garden for the coming season. Now is the fun part, seedlings! If you plan to start your own seedlings, instead of getting them from a greenhouse, check back in next week for the next part of our garden planning series: Seedling Care 101.