Day 26: How to Start a Vegetable Garden

Welcome! I hope all of your gardens have prospered well since my last article.

I have been busy with my Garden Journal this week. Each day, I provide an update on my blog of something that's happening in my garden or something I learned about gardening.

It seems there is always something new to see and learn.

Here are a few of the topics you may have missed: how to thin your carrots, new flowers on my zucchini and potatoes, why my iceberg lettuce isn't producing a head, and tips on keeping rabbits and deer out of your garden.

If you missed any of these topics, check out my blog. A link to my website is in my SA Profile.

Pollination

By now, your plants should be growing bigger and stronger and many of them are producing flowers. However, if your flowers are not pollinated, your plants will not produce fruit.

This can be a major problem for gardeners, so today I want to discuss the good bugs that you WANT in your garden to assist you with pollination.

Honeybees

The honeybee has received a lot of press lately. There are many "save the honeybee" campaigns out there as the increased use of pesticides has affected the delicate ecosystem of the honeybee and we are seeing entire colonies being wiped out.

Honeybees (and other types of bees) are a major contributor to pollination of our farms. Many farms "rent" honeybees for a few weeks to pollinate their crop. According to Pollinator Partnership, bees alone pollinated an estimated $15 billion of US food crops per year including nuts, berries, fruits and vegetables.

A demise of these very useful bees would have disastrous effects on our crops.

Beetles, Flies, and Ants

While beetles can cause some damage to your leaves, they are also useful pollinators. So, think twice before removing them from your garden.

Flies are generally harmless but will carry pollen from one plant to another in their travels.

Ants can be useful in your garden in two ways. They clean your plant leaves and remove unwanted eggs from other bugs. They also pollinate your flowers as they move from plant to plant. Having a large quantity in your garden, however, may indicate the presence of aphids so keep an eye on these bugs.

Butterflies and Hummingbirds

Some of the most beautiful pollinators are butterflies and hummingbirds. Plant flowers that attract these types of visitors near the vegetables you wish to have pollinated and let them help you with your garden!

Attracting Pollinators

June 18-24 is National Pollinator Week. There are lots of fantastic tips on attracting pollinators to your garden and what you can do to help protect your native species of pollinators on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services website.

I, for one, plan to plant some flowers around my vegetable garden to attract more pollinators to my plants.

Top on my list to purchase is marigolds. While they are not one of my favorite flowers from a beauty standpoint, marigolds are the perfect garden companion. Not only do they deter pests, but attract pollinators too!

30 Day Challenge

My 30 Day Challenge is coming to an end. 4 more articles, yet so much more information to discuss about how to start a vegetable garden.

If you have anything you'd like me to include in my final articles, please leave a comment below.

As always, feel free to share this article.