Having a vegetable garden at your home can be very
rewarding. You get food that is fresh and tasty and you know exactly what was
or was not sprayed on it during the growing season. Additionally, you get the extra exercise,
stress relief, and sense of accomplishment that goes along with gardening. To insure your success, you need to plan
before the first seed is planted. Here
are some tips for starting your own backyard garden.
·
Your garden spot should receive at least 6 hours
of direct sunlight per day.
·
Put the garden near the house so that the water
hose will reach it. You are more likely
to go work in the garden if it is nearby.
·
Take a soil sample and do a soil test. The kits are available at the UT Extension
office in Somerville. The cost is $7,
and it tells you exactly how much lime and fertilizer your soil needs.
·
Put lime on as soon as possible, because it
takes a while for it to work.
·
Add any manures you plan to use before planting. However, don’t top dress with manure, because
of food safety issues and the bacteria that may be splashed up when watering.
·
Decide which vegetables you want to grow. This time of year, you should only plant warm
season vegetables such as okra, tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers. The time for broccoli and spinach is over.
·
If you are starting a new bed, spray an
herbicide to get rid of the vegetation that is currently on the site. After it dies, you can till the soil for the
bed. You should work the top 6-7 inches, but not when the ground is too
wet.
·
Plant your seeds or plants, but don’t overdo
it! Many beginning gardeners
underestimate how much yield they will get and end up with okra by the
boatload.
·
If you are unsure about how much seed is needed
or what yields will be like or what will and won’t grow this time of year, come
by the Extension office and pick up our “Guide to Warm Season Vegetables.” It has a chart that tells you which plants to
plant, when to plant, how many seed per 100’ row to use, how to space the plants,
and how many days until the first harvest. It is free, as is all of our
educational materials on gardening. UT Extension offers its programs to all
eligible persons regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age,
religion, disability or veteran status and is an Equal Opportunity employer.
