9 Steps to Starting a Vegetable Garden

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There’s something totally satisfying about growing your own food.  Whether it is a clump of chives in the kitchen windowsill or a whole vegetable garden filled with good stuff, there’s a great sense of being self-sufficient when you grow your own.

Starting a vegetable garden can seem like a big job but there are really 9 key steps to follow to get the job done.  Want to walk through the process with me?

Why grow your own vegetables?

Because we are used to diving into the supermarket to grab vegetables, growing your own might seem like a lot of extra work.  And while it is more work, there are some solid reasons to consider doing it.  Here are 5 reasons:

1. More nutritious – because you get them straight from the garden, you get the most possible goodness from every one
2. You are more active – working on your veg garden is an excellent form of exercise and helps stay active
3. You get Vitamin D – plus being outside working on the garden means you are getting that crucial Vitamin D from sunlight
4. Saves money – it is always cheaper than buying from the supermarket because you don’t just grow one potato or one carrot
5. Better for the environment – move towards being a little more eco-friendly by cutting down on your share of those food transport costs.  Also, you are going to be growing without harmful chemicals or pesticides which is also good for the environment.

And as a note, it is fun!  There’s a great deal of satisfaction from growing your own foods and even if things go a bit wrong, you learn from it and try again.  

Ready to get started?

Step 1: Plan the garden

This is the crucial first step and one people often overlook.  You need to plan the garden and decide what plants you want to grow.  There’s a couple of big considerations here:

• What will grow in the garden based on location and how much sunlight it gets?
• What will you use once you’ve grown it?

So if your garden has a lot of sunshine, there’s a lot of things you can grow but some things do need shelter.  If you have more shelter than sunny areas, you need to choose plants that will be okay with this.

And you also want to grow stuff you eat!  There’s no point growing a crop of onions if you hate them, never eat them and they’ll go to waste.  Grow what works for your garden but also for your eating habits.

Step 2: Select the right seeds for your garden

Once you understand your garden and what you will eat, you’ll have a list of plants you can grow.  But that doesn’t mean you should rush out and grab seeds or plug plants for all of them.

The next step is to think about what you want to grow, what’s right for the amount of space you want to dedicated to growing vegetables and how much you can eat.  It is often best to start with two or three types of plants and see how you get on.  You can always diversify further later!

Ten examples of easy vegetables to start with are:

1. Tomatoes
2. Zucchini
3. Peppers
4. Cabbage
5. Green beans
6. Lettuce
7. Beets
8. Carrots
9. Kale or spinach
10. Radishes

Step 3: Prepare the soil

Armed with your list of 2-3 plants you want to start with, you are now ready to start some actual gardening.  But there’s a key step to take before you jump into the planting of seeds – preparing the soil.

You can grab a soil kit to test the soil or maybe you have an idea about what grows normally.  If you think your soil quality is a bit poor or just want to boost it, then compost is your friend.

Pick the right type of compost for the kinds of plants you plan to grow.  A normal multi-purpose compost will do a good job and you can also get organic vegetable compost.  Manure can work, but it needs to be well rotted, so compost is often an easier option.

You need to mix compost into the soil at least three weeks before you start planting seeds.

Step 4: Plant your seeds

Now you are ready to start planting some seeds!  Raised beds or containers are the best places to start your seeds because this gives them a barrier between the rest of the garden and those fragile little plants.

Every type of plant will give you instructions on how to best plant those seeds – how deep, how far apart and how long to leave them before transplanting them.  Keep a note of this on a garden planner so you remember what needs to be done and when.

Also, think about what to plant when.  There are vegetables you plant in March or April, some you plant almost any time and also cool-season planting crops.  Understand what your plant needs and when the best time to plant it is.

Step 5: Add signs to know what the seeds are

Even if you are only growing one type of seed, us some seed markers or small signs to show where the seeds are and what they are.  This is even more important if you are growing more than one crop as each plant will have its own requirements – and you need to know which of those little sprouts are which to do that!

Step 6: Water the seeds

Once you have planted the seeds, you need to water them.  Then how often you water them depends on the weather conditions and the plants.  Again, seed packets will tell you how often to water the plants and roughly how much water to give them.  Always consider the weather conditions – if it is has been raining a lot, you may not need to water at all.

Step 7: Look at companion planting

Little seeds are very vulnerable and you need to help them out.  One way to do this is with companion planting.  This is a clever technique that involves planting other plants that help draw pests away from your seeds.

Garlic, onions and chrysanthemums are three common companion plants to use.  But there’s a whole system for different plants.  Simply look up what recommended companion plants there are for what you are growing.

Step 8: Monitor growth and weed

Now’s the hard part – waiting!  You need to monitor the growth of your vegetable plants and pull out any weeds that appear around them.

The plant will come with instructions on when to replant them into the garden and any other attention they need.  Some crops are really simple and just grow until the crop is ready.  Others need a little attention during the process.

Step 9: Harvest your crops!

And that’s it – you are ready to harvest your first crop!  Make sure you follow the advice that came with the plant to tell you exactly how best to harvest.  Some plants are a one-and-done type while others can produce multiple crops if you harvest them correctly.  Some plants can even come back next year for another go!

Enjoying your vegetable garden

A vegetable garden is a fun way to grow your own crops, to make the most of even a small garden or containers and to have that little bit of sustainability.  You can also get the kids involved, use it as a de-stress activity and grab the benefits of outdoor time for your overall health.