Gardening isn’t rocket science. Thank goodness it isn’t, or many generations of humans would have gone hungry. However, through many centuries of trial and error, farmers and gardeners have worked out the best conditions for growing various vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers. We have learned how a variety of conditions will affect plant growth, such as soil type, length of days, average and seasonal temperatures, and the amount of rainfall in an area.

Gardeners have invented ways to extend their growing seasons, amend the soil, and thanks to modern technology, are even able to combat mid-winter production slumps. It is now possible to grow plants without soil, using a nutrient bath system. You don’t need to know all those things, however, to have a lovely backyard or container garden that can provide fresh vegetables and even some fruit for your household. As one gardener to another, we will examine the essential elements of successful plant growth. We will then look at ten easy-to-grow vegetables. These vegetables tolerate a variety of conditions, are not especially picky about their growing conditions, and can boost your confidence in your ability to become an accomplished gardener.

With that said, I’m going to share a dirty little secret that most gardeners don’t like to discuss: even the best gardener/farmer has the occasional crop failure. The trick is to not give up. Examine all the things that happened with your garden and see what can be done to do better next time. That process might just make you a super plant scientist – which would put you in great company.

Plant scientists, more properly called botanists, include such well-known names as Gregor Mendel and George Washington Carver. Their biographies make great reading for those months when your local climate doesn’t encourage plant growth.

Why all the hubbub about gardening if it isn’t difficult and it has been done for a long time? It is because “garden fresh” isn’t just an advertising buzzword. Vegetables and fruits all taste better and have more nutrients when they are only minutes from the parent plant – and you just cannot get fresher vegetables than those that go directly from your garden to your table with only the minimal necessary preparation in between locations. If you’ve even once eaten a fresh tomato or radish taken directly from the garden and washed off at the outside hydrant, then popped right into your mouth, you know exactly what I am talking about. If that excites your salivary glands, then read on, because you can grow your very own taste treats using these basic directions. But the benefits of gardening go beyond that. There is no better exercise than the bending, stooping, pulling, raking and digging that goes along with most garden ventures. Gardening is an
invitation and an excuse to be outside in the sunshine. Some authorities even believe that contact with garden soil helps boost our immune systems. With so much to recommend it, let’s get to gardening!

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The Phases of Gardening: Soil preparation, Planting, Tending and Harvesting

Soil preparation is almost always the first step in gardening. The exceptions to this might be hydroponics or water gardening, or straw bale gardening, but those are subjects for a different tutorial.

If you think of your seeds or seedlings as plant babies, the soil is their food. For them to grow properly, the soil in which they are placed must provide the right nutrients. If you are creating a container garden, this step will be an easy one: you can simply purchase the type of soil recommended for your seeds. Read the labels on your seed packet, then go on over to the potting soil aisle in your department store or garden store, and purchase the matching soil type.

Select an area, if gardening outside, that receives at least six hours of sunlight per day. In some areas, this will be easy; in others, you might have to clear some ground or even plant your garden in two or three different patches to gain enough space that has the ideal sunlight requirement. You can begin soil preparation at almost any time of the year. In fact, if you are going to be hand digging or using one of the alternative gardening methods such as double-digging, lasagna gardening or straw bale gardening, you can begin by layering a weed-killing mulch on your plot in early fall or winter.

Weed Killing Mulch: Place a layer of biodegradable fibers, such as cardboard, or newspaper on the area you have selected for your garden. Do not use colored paper, especially glossy magazine pages, as the chemicals are often toxic. Cover that layer with leaves or straw, then add a cover of garden ground cloth to keep it all in place

Double-Digging Method: In the spring, if you have been able to lay down a weed killing mulch, pull it back from your planned garden area as soon as the ground can be worked. This is when it is no longer frozen and when it is moist but not muddy.

Lasagna Method:

There are other soil preparation methods, but these two require few tools and minimal labor. For first-time gardeners who do not have a lot of time to invest, these can be important considerations.

Important: Do not skimp on soil preparation. It is the foundation of your garden’s health.

Planting

This step depends, in great part, upon your local climate and your seed selection. For simplicity’s sake, directions here will be given for a temperate zone. Read your seed packets carefully, and check your local weather service for average seasonal changes. However, keep in mind that weather can change from year to year.

Ten Easy-to-Grow Vegetables:

Care Through the Season

Watering

Weeding

Refreshing Mulch

Mulch comes in a variety of types. Its purpose varies, right along with the type. It might be primarily to keep down weeds, but it could also be to hold in moisture or to add nutrients. Inorganic mulches, such as black plastic, are excellent for keeping down weeds, helping the earth get a head start on getting warm in the early spring, and even for preventing some types of pests. However, it will not add nutrients, and it can overheat the earth during the summer. Organic mulch, such as leaves, young weeds or grass (before they produce seeds) and clean straw can also prevent weeds. In addition, they shade the roots of heat-sensitive plants and they add nutrients. On the downside, mulch is a happy home for many kinds of bugs and worms – some of which are beneficial to plants, and some that are not.

Regardless of the type of mulch, by midsummer it is often looking tired and thin. This is a good time to add some well-rotted compost and another layer of seed-free weeds, grass or straw. The compost gently releases nutrients that your plants can use, and the added layer of mulch helps keep the roots of the plants cool and protected.

Preventing Pests

The best pest prevention is a combination of healthy, well-nourished plants and good garden maintenance. With that said, there are many bugs out there in the world, and many of them just love your vegetables. Too many of them can take a healthy plant from beautiful and green to sad and wilted in a matter of hours. A decade or so ago, a gardener might have reached for the latest chemical solution to these intruders. But we gardeners have learned the sad truth about many of these substances, which boils down to a simple statement: what is bad for mean bugs can be bad for beneficial bugs, for fish, for wildlife, for pets, for children and for adult humans. Therefore, they should be approached with caution. That doesn’t mean that gardeners are defenseless against these six-legged unwanted intruders, however. Here are a few ways to combat buggy invasions:

Harvesting

Of course, the part of gardening that everyone loves is bringing in those beautiful vegetables. With that said, there is a right way and a wrong way to harvest just about anything. The first rule is to treat your plants gently, and nip off the harvested parts cleanly. You could pinch the stem between fingernails or you could dedicate a pair of shears just to harvesting. For some plants, you might even want a sharp knife.

Getting Ready for Next Year

This is either the last step or the first one, depending on how you are looking at it – of your vegetable garden activity. After the last crops are harvested, your job as a gardener is not done. There is a lot of pick up and clean up to be taken care of before you can look out the window toward your dormant garden while you enjoy a cup of something warm and wonderful while dreaming over next year’s seed catalogs.

Gardening is a process rooted in history. There are many methods, but they all – in the end – must deliver the same requirements to the plant: nutrients, light and water. From these things, plants make delicious food stuffs that humans and animals can eat and enjoy. Fresh produce is more nutritious than produce that has had to travel many miles from field to plate. Growing your own also contributes to preserving the environment because your dinner will not require the use of fossil fuels to reach your table. Caring for your garden encourages exercise, as well as time in the sunshine and fresh air. According to one study, getting your hands dirty in good, clean garden soil improves your immune system.