It’s almost garden planting season in most parts of the country. There are some things to consider to have a well producing garden; knowing your growing zone/frost dates, soil, space, sunlight, water and plant choice.
Growing zone/frost dates - Making sure plants you are choosing are suitable for your growing zone is a base point of making your garden grow well. If you choose things that are not suitable for your zone you will be fighting to keep them alive and have to do a lot of extra things to keep the plants alive (it’s not impossible, but requires much more work and a lot more equipment and infrastructure).
Knowing your frost dates is important because if you plant too early there is a much higher risk of losing plants to spring frostings. And if you plant too late the plants won’t have enough time to grow to maturity and produce for you.
We have a blog about growing zones and frost dates here.
Soil - Having good soil is obviously important to having a good yield. If you’re starting with fresh unworked ground you will probably need to add some amendments to the soil. You can have your local ag extension office send out soil samples to tell you what specifically your soil needs. Or a simple quick way to get the garden started is to source some good local compost. Local nurseries, garden centers or landscaping yards usually sell compost by truck loads and will deliver. If you are using raised beds or containers you will need to source some good compost to fill and grow in. Using bagged potting soil for flowers is not recommended as there are chemicals and things in them that are not intended for plants for consumption.
Space - How much room do you have to grow? Do you have a large in ground garden, a patio container garden, a few raised beds? Knowing the amount of growing space will allow you to best plan your garden. Some plants like broccoli take up a small area, while things like watermelon need room to grow.
There are ways to help add growing space. Like adding vertical space for vining plants to grow. Add containers to your landscaping to utilize other areas and add some variation to your flowerbeds. Things like strawberries and tomatoes can be grown in hanging containers.
Sunlight - How much sunlight does your garden area get; full, partial, shaded. There are foods that you can grow in all amounts of sun, but be sure to match your plants to the sunlight that they will be receiving where you plant them. Also take into consideration which direction the sun comes from. You don’t want to put tall plants like corn where it will be blocking out all of the light for shorter plants next to it.
Water - To make sure you are watering correctly you need to know how much water your plants need, and how well your soil/containers drain. Watering is recommended in the early morning and/or later in the evenings, not in the heat of the day. To ensure the plants can actually take in the water, get the water as close to the ground as possible. Water will dry on the leaves and never make it to the roots, wet leaves can also mildew and harm the plants.
Plant Choice - Seed packets are the easiest way to find growing information for the plants you are wanting to grow. Seed packets include growing zone, sunlight needs, watering, days to maturity (when they are full grown and produce), plant spacing, when to plant, planting instructions. So even if you are wanting to buy started plants from a nursery, if you need some information on what you are wanting to grow you can check seed packets in a store or online and gather that info.
Here is a 2024 Garden Planning Guide to help with your garden. Let us know your favorite garden tip below!