This article discusses the importance of planning when creating your first vegetable garden. Many people decide that they want to create their own vegetable garden and jump straight in with both feet. However rather than just planting a load of seeds in a random manner, you will have a lot more success if you take some time deciding where specific vegetable plants are going to go.

You need to look at the allotted space that you have in your garden and make decisions accordingly. Your vegetable garden as a whole should have plenty of natural sunlight. Your vegetables do not necessarily need to be exposed to sunlight all day long, but they certainly should not be completely covered by shade otherwise they will struggle to grow.

A lot of people put their vegetable garden at the far end of their garden so it is out of sight because vegetables are obviously not great to look at compared to flowers. However on a practical level, you should consider putting them nearer your house so you can keep a good eye on them. I know from experience that it is all too easy to neglect your vegetables if they are out of sight at the far end of your garden.

If you want your vegetables right outside your window but are afraid they might be a little bit unsightly, then you could always plant a few flowers amongst them. Indeed this can sometimes help your vegetables grow because certain flowers will help to repel various pests and insects.

Wherever you grow your vegetables, it is vitally important that you protect your crops from rabbits because there's nothing they like more than eating leafy vegetables. So you should seriously consider putting a fence up that will keep them at bay, and this will keep other animals away as well such as foxes, stray dogs and other unwelcome visitors.

Once you have decided on your plot, you then need to think about what you are going to grow. Most people who decide they want to grow their own vegetables choose to grow a variety of different things. So you should think about what vegetables you and your family most like to eat.

Then you need to think about when each of these will be ready to eat. If they are all going to be ready to eat in August and September, then you will have nothing for the rest of the year, which is a real shame. So you should include some vegetables that you can eat at various times of the year, as this will be a lot more satisfying, and indeed a lot more practical.

During the year you should always look after your garden and take care of any pests that you might find. One way of doing this is by rotating your crops, but you can also use sprays as a last resort.

Anyway the point is that if you do want to grow your own vegetables, you should always plan exactly what you are going to grow and where they are going to go in your garden. These are big decisions so they shouldn't be glossed over. If you do some thorough planning beforehand, then there is no reason why you cannot have bumper crops all year round.