Planning a Garden

What's Right for You?

The first thing to consider is the size of your garden. The natural inclination is that to have an impact on the budget is has to be big. My parents had a huge, acre wide garden with regimentally straight rows of vegetables. It was a pretty garden, but there was a lot of wasted space. Today most gardeners plant in beds rather than rows. That way the compost, water, and mulch is aimed at the plants rather than wasted on the walkways. It also makes it easier to weed and to harvest your crop.

When I first moved to South Carolina I had a huge garden with the regimental rows. (It was what I grew up with and what I knew.) After a few years of fighting the weeds and the grass, I changed tactics. I had two raised beds six feet long and three feet wide. My two little gardens produced just as much as my big garden with a whole lot less work.

The last couple of years I traveled extensively in the summer so my garden consisted of a few tomato plants tucked in with my flowers, and a container garden on the patio. Time is a factor. Consider the space you have available and the time you have to tend it. The biggest mistake first time gardeners make is planting too big a garden.

A big garden you don't have time to tend becomes more work than pleasure. A smaller, more manageable garden will produce more in the end.

Determine what's best for you. That may be three large flower pots on the patio, herbs growing on a window sill, or vegetables and herbs tucked into your flowerbeds. This year my garden will be a combination of all three. I have a long flowerbed that runs the length of my back yard. Rather than dig a separate vegetable garden, I'm adding a foot to the width of the bed already in existence. That will give me an extra seventy-five square feet of gardening space.

I also have a small flower bed with a hanging trellis in the center. I will be hanging six tomato plants and growing several in pots around the base. My brother experimented with growing tomatoes upside down last summer and had good results. I'm willing to give it a try, but I'm still planting some the traditional way.

Many people, myself included, like to spotlight their flowers, but tuck the vegetable garden in the back, out of sight. That's fine as long as the back is sunny with easy access to water. Easy access to water is essential. Make sure the hose reaches. Hauling buckets of water is not fun.

The packet of seeds may hold fifty seeds, but why would anyone want fifty zucchini plants? The two things you need to consider when planning your garden is what grows well in the area and what you like to eat. My mother always planted lots of turnips and then grumbled when they spoiled before we got around to eating them. The only one in the family that liked turnips was my mother.

My husband is Italian. He likes to make pasta with red sauce and uses a heavy hand with the spices. I plan my garden around the tomatoes. Canning tomatoes every summer has made a huge impact on our budget. The years I haven't canned tomatoes we felt it.

I love green beans so there will be a fair number of them. The surplus will be frozen for later use, and I'll have at least one zucchini plant. My mother will plant a whole row of zucchini and then end up giving most of it away. I don't see the point. The Basil, Thyme, and Parsley should thrive in the pots on the patio.

Start Smart Thyme - Common - 300mg

Start Smart Parsley - Plain or Single - 1.25g

Start Smart Marjoram - Sweet - 300mg

Start Smart Basil - Sweet - 725mg

Give gardening a try. Tuck a couple of zucchini plants in with you zinnias and marigolds, or hang a tomato plant instead of a begonia. Digging in the dirt is both relaxing and productive. Who knows? Pick up a spade and you may be embarking on a life-long hobby.