A question many “green” gardeners have is when starting a vegetable garden, how do they know they’re caring for it correctly so it will grow? The truth is that you can’t know if or until something grows, but if you make sure you follow some simple steps, you can be confident that your garden will grow.

Many people choose to start a vegetable garden in order to help supplement food and save money, while others do it for the sport and the fun. Depending on your reason for starting a vegetable garden, the concern for the veggies growing properly may vary. However, even for sport and fun gardeners like their gardens to look pretty, and a pretty looking garden usually results in edible goods. Therefore, the following tips for starting a vegetable garden should work for any gardener no matter what their goals are.

Tip #1

Pay attention to the directions when caring for each kind of vegetable you decide to plant. It can tough to grow a garden full of different kinds of vegetables, but with prior knowledge and a little imagination, you’re bound to come up with solutions to probable problems before they even occur.

Tip #2

Know your climate. If you’re not sure the kind of weather your vegetables can handle, verify this information with a local flower or garden shop. Make sure you understand the hazards and benefits of your climate at different times of year, for different kinds of vegetables.

Tip #3

You should always be sure that when starting your vegetable garden, you use clean and new soil to plant the veggies. You should never use soil that’s been used before, especially if the soil was used in a garden that has previously failed.

Tip #4

Read books! Many different gardening books can give you a leg up when starting a vegetable garden. That is, if you read them before you begin. Many “guides” and “beginner information” books tend to be great resources when vegetable gardening for many years to come.

Tip #5

When starting a vegetable garden, remember that practice makes perfect. Don’t give up just because some vegetables die before you get it right, because it’s bound to happen. Just go back to your resources, find out what went wrong, and try again! Within a year of starting a new vegetable garden, you should be happy with what you’re producing and be ready to enlarge your garden!