The other day, my breakfast consisted of fried eggs with a dash of hot sauce, and freshly squeezed orange juice. The eggs were from a friend’s chicken, the oranges from her tree, and the hot sauce was homemade using Meyer lemons and hot peppers grown by my brother-in-law. Knowing that just about every item came from someone’s garden made it that much more special to me.
That’s one of the reasons I keep trying—despite repeated failure—to grow stuff to eat in my garden. Sure, it takes time and work and patience, but the payoff is worth it. Not only are you rewarded with produce that’s often superior in freshness and flavor but you also enjoy the sense of accomplishment that comes from pulling off a “garden to table” meal. If you share that sentiment, then this post is for you!
We’ve talked about growing herbs before, so now let’s talk about veggies. Tell us:
Do you have any tips for growing vegetables?
I’m not much of a gardener. Oh, I love plants—flowers, vegetables, herbs, fruit trees, shrubs, majestic oaks and diminutive crocuses, willowy bamboo, stubby succulents, ornamental grasses … I love them all. My father has the heart and the hands of a farmer, but with the way things have been going for me, I suspect it might skip a generation. I’m still trying though!
In an attempt to make me look good, my friend Lacey shared a few tips for me to pass on. She just planted 839 vegetable plants, so she knows her beez-neez. (And okay, I think it was more like 52, but in my book, that’s just like 839.) She’s been doing it for some years now, planting corn, peppers, snow peas, beans, cabbage, you name it. She starts all her vegetables from seed, and this is what she does:
1. Plant 2 to 3 seeds in a little peat pot. Water well and put in a sealable bag.
2. Seal bag and keep in a place where it won’t get too cold. Keep the bag sealed, almost like a mini greenhouse, and don’t open it or even water it until seeds begin to germinate.
3. When shoots are about 2 inches high, take the peat pot out of the bag and transfer to your vegetable garden or a larger container with soil.
It sounds easy enough that even I can’t mess it up. Seriously, how badly can I mess up instructions that mostly involve keeping a bag in one place and doing and touching nothing? I can’t wait to try her method out! Of course, it goes without saying that you should always check for any special instructions specific to the variety of vegetable you’re planting. The method above seems to work well for the Southern California climate; you may have to vary it depending on where you are.
How about you? Do you have any tips for growing vegetables? Favorite veggies you like to plant each year? Any particular challenges planting specific varieties? Any questions that other gardeners here may be able to answer? Come share below!
