By Myra Marsocci of Shades of Green, Inc.
Step 1. Make a plan
Vegetable plants have a recommended spacing based on rows or square footage. For example, zucchini plants should be planted 3 feet apart in both length and width, whether started from seed or transplanted. It is easy to make a plan on graph paper with each block representing 1 square foot. That way you can lay out your garden and see how much square footage you will need to grow your desired vegetables. How much space you need will be determined by the amount you want to produce.
Step 2. Site your garden
Now that you know how much space you need, you need to find an area that can accommodate that amount of space. It's important to remember that your vegetables won’t lay flat, the way they look on your plan. They will grow up on fences or trellises and may block an important view. Your site should be in full sun or at minimum 8 hours of direct sunshine for most crops. Your soil should be at minimum 6” deep and preferably 10” or more. If you don’t have this soil depth because of rock, root, or other obstruction then you will need to “raise” the soil by adding soil and containing the sides with some kind of edging. These are referred to as raised beds. Raised beds can be completely above ground in pre-made planters.
Step 3. Prepare your site
This is the most important step to successful gardening. The soil is where your plants will access nutrients through water. Soil is a complex system of rock, organic matter, insects, roots and fungi that all work together and against your plants. A well prepared site will insure your plants have optimal nutrients to grow abundant, flavorful, nutrient dense fruit. Most sites in Westchester County will benefit from compost being added to the soil.
Another important factor for good nutrient uptake is a porous soil able to balance water and air through good drainage and good water holding capacity. Air space in the soil is just as important for healthy roots as water. As your vegetables grow they will need more and more nutrients and water, and more air spaces for their roots to fill. It is vital to create a “soft” deep soil that your hand can penetrate as if pushing through sand. Sandy soil also benefits from compost to slow down drainage and leaching of nutrients.
Many different types of compost and organic matter can be incorporated into your soils. The more you are familiar with what the compost is derived from, the better you will be able to choose what is best for your crops.
If you are growing in containers you have to try to mimic the properties of soil with soilless potting mix. The container acts as an impenetrable compaction layer that will hold an excessive amount of water like a tub. Soilless mixes are structured to compensate for the lack of drainage and may still benefit from compost. The containers will still need drainage holes to let out water from heavy rains or watering. Many mixes also have water holding particles to help reduce the amount of supplemental watering needed. This can get tricky in spring when the rains are heavy and the roots are small, because the mix will not favor air spaces for the roots to grow. Always remember: roots before shoots.
Your site may be prepared any time of the year that the ground is accessible and not frozen. It is also a good idea to wait to dig if your ground is muddy so as not to cause more compaction, i.e., less air space for roots. Please refer to the Container Gardening section of Planting Westchester for more information.
Step 4. Protect Against Animals
You are growing food and animals won’t be polite and admire your hard work from a distance when they can just as easily enjoy your crops when you aren’t looking. In Westchester, we gardeners have big competition from deer and woodchucks or groundhogs. We also have rabbits, voles and moles, squirrels, chipmunks and birds -- but usually they are a nuisance that can be put up with. Deer and groundhogs, on the other hand, will wipe out your entire crop in moments. The best way to prevent them from entering your garden is with walls 2 feet deep and 6 feet tall. This is often impractical, so fences are usually used, with an understanding that they will keep out the predators most of the time. Raised beds can be helpful in reducing the amount of wall that you need, since they are already partially walled off.
5. Protect Against Insects
There are many strategies employed to keep insects from devouring your plants, but the good news is that if you have a well prepared site in full sun with regular watering, your plants will be able to fend off many insects and fungal problems on their own without the need for pesticides. Some are particularly persistent, though, and there are some crops that we can’t easily grow in our area without chemicals. That's o.k. because there are many more that we can grow very easily.
6. Planting
Planting is one of the most fun parts of starting your vegetable garden and takes the least amount of time. You can plant with seeds or transplant seedlings from packs or pots. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, and you will have to decide which is best for you based on your site limitations and ability to start seed indoors. Some crops need a longer growing season to produce ripe fruits, so starting seed indoors or in a greenhouse is necessary. It is purely a personal preference to start from seed or transplant, but either way give your new plant at least 2 weeks of daily watering to encourage rooting.
7. Watering
Young plants and seedlings need to maintain adequate moisture to prevent any of their few new roots from drying up and not recovering. Overwatering can be an equally effective killer of young roots, but with a well-drained soil this is harder to accomplish. We need to think of plants as living creatures that need tending, especially young plants. Once plants are established they are very resilient to various extremes. Regular watering from a sprinkler, drip hose, or by hand will result in healthy productive plants.
8. Additional Plants
Part of your plan should include some plants that may not be consumed. These are pollinator plants, or plants that flowers are especially good at attracting bees, butterflies, and other pollinating insects and birds for pollination. Any plant grown for its fruit or seed needs to have their flowers pollinated, and the easiest way to do that is to call in the professionals, mainly bees. You shouldn’t worry about attracting wasps with flowers: most pollinating insects are much more interested in the flowers than they are in stinging you. But if the insects are undesirable inside your vegetable garden, you can site your pollinator area close to the garden but just outside the fence.
9. Equipment
Other really handy features in your vegetable garden may include:
- Compost bin: Many plant scraps and weeds will come out of your garden, so having a compost bin that can accommodate the debris is very helpful. The compost created is then available to go back into the garden in future years.
- Hose bib/faucet: Convenient access to water will make it much easier to keep your plants watered. Even if you have some form of automatic irrigation, it is good to have water at hand that you can use to water in initial plantings, wash produce, and wash your hands.
- Stakes, trellises, and support cages: Many vegetables are vines that need support to climb on. Others may just need something to support the weight of the fruit. There are many creative ways to accomplish this, from very formal obelisks, to repurposed branches for pea staking, to tomato cages -- and anything else your creative mind can conjure.
- Tool shed: Having a dry place nearby for tools, pots, and soil amendments is very helpful if not luxurious. And protecting your investment in these things makes having a tool shed a very good idea, if possible.
10. Maintenance
It’s important to plan for time to tend your vegetable garden. That way, your expectations will be in line with the work required. You should plan on a minimum of once a week to tend your garden. How much time each week will vary greatly throughout the season and with what type of crops you are growing. Once you get into 6 weeks past planting, you could expect to build upon the initial tasks of planting and watering and incorporate time for weeding, supporting, and insect scouting -- and soon you will be harvesting as well.
Being in the garden and working in it can be wonderful family time. Make sure that if you have children of an appropriate age, they are included in your plans for maintenance. Most children love to “own” a job, one for which they alone are responsible. They also love to watch the plants progress and to look for insects. And they LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to harvest by looking for vegetables that are “ready.” Just make sure this is supervised, so your children don’t get carried away and pull up entire plants or unripe produce.