Do you have a garden?

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This is the first year I ever had a garden, and I'm sort of excited about it. I've been living here for 3 years, and finally got around to digging out an area and getting it ready for planting. I still need to get my seeds started, but bought some others that are started and already a couple inches high. Right now I have yellow squash, zuchini, banana peppers, habenero peppers, cucumbers, and watermelons, that are already started. I also have seeds for corn, beets, carrots, lettuce, and a couple others. I probably won't even eat half of the stuff that I grow, but it'll be cool to see how they turn out.

Anyone else find satisfaction in doing outdoor stuff like this? What do you grow? Anyone want to divulge their "top secret" tips to us newbies?

My tips are water your garden twice a week and give it a really good soaking for a couple of hours. If you water you garden everyday it is really bad for the plants because they will go mouldy.

Also weed it after you have watered it because it is easier because the ground is wet.

Here's what I'm growing in my garden.

^That's funny because I had four of those(very small) out on my porch last night, and a damn rabbit ate two of them. The other 2 are under strict surveillance.



And thats alot for the tips. I didn't know how often to water them, and probably would've done it every day if you hadn't told me. Awesome.


EDIT: By the way, I'm jealous, those plants look very nice.

I have quite a big garden, since I sort of live quite isolated from everyone else. ^^

Though I have a bit of trouble of knowing where the garden ends and the forest begins...

I have my garden fenced off because of rabbits. Just like a meter or so high, wooden posts with chicken wire, simple and easy.
I think the best advice was given, you can tend to over water when first learning, and it can ruin your garden.
I also, each year, rotate where I plant stuff. Farmers do it because each crop will absorb different nutrients, so if you have corn in one field, the next year you would want to plant soy because the previous years corn will have sucked more of the nutrients it wants dry, they go on a 3-4 year rotation. I'm pretty sure it doesnt do much when talking about a 4m x 8m garden, but I do it anyways.

Also, an amusing thing you'll learn is zucchini and cucumbers will grow out of the cracks of sidewalks. Hopefully you planted very minimal seeds for those =P. Cause you'll have dozens of them a week.

Tomatoes are also easy to grow. Give them a shot. Thats the one thing that is a must each year when I start my garden. You will never get a tomato from a store that tastes as good as freshly grown. They are like 2 different foods, such a better taste from your own garden.

I've never tried corn, was always told you need to grow a lot of corn together to really make it work, something about cross-pollination. Just a half dozen plants wont work, so i've been told. But they are also like tomatoes, they need to be super fresh. Farmers will say you should have a pot of water boiling before you even pick the corn off the stalk.

Spices are also pretty easy. I like to grow mint for the smell.

Spiders are good. Dont kill em if you see them in your garden. They wont eat the plants but will devour the other bugs that do.

Thats the good beginner stuff I can think of I guess =P

*taking notes*

my garden...

Cool thing you start one, JB. It's likable stuff, hands in the soil, seeing thing grow slowly and surely also eating you own grown food.

Um, yeah, I have a garden too and although no pro.... I do like gardening a lot. I like it to be a cultivated bush bush where I let nature do her thing but it mustn't get too bewildered. At present it is a bit but hey....

My garden hasn't got that much plants for consumption in it (some plants giving fruit, like berries, also some herbs) but there's a little prune tree, where I hope to get some fruits from this year. (last year it did nothing)


There's a fig tree also that needs to be pruned badly (end of the season)


Another random picture with the bird bath or drinking place.


Um, tips? Maybe work from low to high. The smallest plants in front and the higher ones more in the back. I don't know if it's possible but a little pergola is awesome also.... with grapes or plants/ flowers that climb.

I don't know....

My town is considering a "community garden", in which citizens can grow whatever vegetables they want--in a city park setting.

^If they did that in my town, I think I'd end up hogging all the space for myself. Cool idea though.



Nice gardens people. I also picked up some good tips, which is cool because I know i would've made those mistakes that were mentioned.


I thought there would be more people that were into growing stuff. I should've added flowers to the OP, but I wasn't thinking.

I know there's more "green thumbs" out there, so where are you hiding?

You guys have really nice gardens! D:
I have a potato.

Oh another thing on watering. Make sure when the seeds are germinating that the ground is moist, so you may want to water them more than twice a week when they are just starting out, otherwise they could dry out and die.

Beautiful, aspi-rant! I would love to lay down around your lilacs. Pretty.

I have a garden myself, I have about 12 different plants growing right now.. such as velvet queen sunflowers, scarlet runners, baby pumpkins, st. john's fire... but most aren't too big yet or are just coming up.

dad is growing piles of cat crap,some sort of apple tree,and roses.
am bought the roses-three bushes [mini type, pink,yellow and red] and these are planted in a line over Sams and Blackies' grave.
the rest of it is grass and a lavender plant had got for fluffybums' grave.

No, no garden for me.
Every time I try to take care of a plant, I end up killing it.
I don't have a green thumb of life, nope, just black thumbs of death. Haaaaa.

Hi Jawbrodt,

I have been gardening for just a few years. Some things I have done well with, others not so good. If I had questions I usually went to books or online to get answers.

Last year I had good results with tomatoes, green grapes, and blackberries. Last October I made a short video to show some friends what had grown on the side of the house:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWF8is5MiUM[/youtube]


As you can see in the video, I didn't have a lot, but but what I did have came out ok. I learned through some trial and error that the section of yard I used was good to grow in since it got afternoon shade. The temperature here can see 100+ all through July and August. That put a lot of stress on other plants I had and until I figured that out, I had poor yields.

Now I am doing much better. This year I built a raised bed using bricks for the walls. I hope to have less weeding to do and better soil drainage from it. So far, so good. The cucumbers are coming up nicely.

Oh, one thing that I have tried that helped keep the pest away was spraying the plants with soap suds (dish washing liquid) and water from a hand held sprayer. It won't hurt the plants, but the dish washing soap irritates the bugs and they leave the plants alone. To me that is much safer to use than a pesticide.

The person you want to talk to on here is Zonder. Now, he can grow a garden!

Hope you have a great garden Jawbrodt.