How Not to Plant a Garden

Spring is my, and many people’s, favorite time of year. Nothing makes me happier than an increase in temperature, breezes, flowers, and chirping birds. Whenever this time of year comes, I’m always itching to get out and plant something. We had a rough winter here in Mississippi and were repaid with a heavenly spring. Basically, we’ve had spring-like weather since late February/early March with few cold snaps.

I was able to get my vegetable garden in early, and with my over-the-top plan, I wanted to make sure I did everything possible to keep out that pesky grass! Please take note, that what seemed like brilliance to my husband and me was actually a disater in the making. Here’s what we did:

Garden Plans #2: Drawing a Garden Plan

Looking through seed catalogues may be the fun part, but organizing a garden is definitely  more important. Otherwise, you end up like I did last year–way too many seed packets and no idea where to put them as I stared out at my huge brown spot. After doing a few sketches, I began to see some ways to group my plants, and I think I had mild success with keeping them in their respective areas when planting.

What I discovered last year: I had too many packets of each variety but not enough varieties to fill up the garden spot. What I ended up with: 30+ tomato plants, 20+ squash and zucchini plants, etc. The deer beat me to the tomatoes every morning (as they beat me to everything last year!). Enter fence. They didn’t like the prickly squash plants and left them alone. Result? My husband and I ate so much squash we haven’t touched the stuff since last July when the stink bugs invaded (we were happy to see them go). We picked on average 5-10 squash a day. It was a bit much. And, yes, we’re nice, so we gave lots away as well.

This year, I’ve decided to diversify. A lot. I have drawn up what will be my final plan. Well, mostly final. I haven’t put it on graph paper, so my areas are approximate, and I expect that some may be too large for what I have in them (e.g., the carrot, beet, radish square). Basically I’m saying that I may have to make some adjustments, but this is what I’m going to base my purchases on.

Here is my highly designed, ultra straight-lines, patent-pending garden plan for 2011:

Have you ever seen something this professional? Didn't think so.

What you need to know to justify the above monstrosity:

• I have a pretty big garden for a home garden (25×50 feet).
• I have a really big garden for someone as new to gardening as I am (same size).
• I’m trying to minimize the amount of visible dirt.
• Visible dirt was my enemy last year because I battled spontaneous grass sprouting all season long.
• My garden is entirely too large to hand weed for sprouting grass.
• My garden is also too large to hoe sprouts by hand.

What you need to know to understand the above monstrosity:

• I have divided it into four semi-equal sections of 12 feet each.
• I have devoted the top portion to perennials (I realize 12 feet of asparagus may be a bit too much).
• I have reserved the outer portions for summer crops and some perennial flowers.
• I have reserved the middle for early crops and then fall crops.
• I will grow cucumbers and beans on the fence.
• I have interspersed flowers and herbs with the vegetables for two reasons: 1)Why waste space? and 2)They invite nice bugs and repel mean ones.

A word on bugs: Overall, I like them. They fascinate me. Last year a cicada (maybe more?) burrowed a quite large home in my garden among the many grass sprouts and my eggplant. He didn’t bother me, so I didn’t bother him. I quite enjoyed watching him fly into the hole and go deep underground. I was impressed with his ability to build a mound from underneath the soil simply by pushing it up (unlike ants who build it from on top. So easy.). Nice bugs.

I was also mesmerized by these never-before-seen-by-me bugs that were always flying around my tomatillos. Then the fruit started rotting on the vine and the whole plants turned yellow and died. I am not a fan of these bugs. I will plant nasturtium and marigold near my tomatillos this year and see if it helps. Mean bugs.

I will plant a few things from seedlings (tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant for sure) but most from seed. I also plan to sow most seeds in the ground. I just simply do not have the time, space, or motivation to start all seeds indoors and then crawl around on my hands and knees for hours planting each tiny little seedling. No thanks.

So this is what I’ve got. My next task is to make it official. I know, you’re thinking, “But that is the absolute most official landscape drawing I’ve ever seen!” I know. Just wait until you see the one I hand draw on graph paper.

What about you? What are you planning for your garden? Or what advice do you have for me about anything I’ve got planned for mine?

Garden Plans #1: Which Seeds to Buy?

January is the perfect time to order seeds and begin to plot out garden plans, and it’s so beautiful outside today here in Mississippi that I have no objections to doing just that.

I’ve been thinking and talking about what vegetables to plant for several weeks now, but I haven’t really written anything down or drawn any potential plans. I have looked through my Seeds of Change annual catalog, the Seed Savers Exchange Web site, and various other magazines and Web sites, and I have come up with a few ideas of heirlooms or rare varieties to order, and I know I’ll grow some standards, but I need a good list.  My main garden is 25′ x 50′, so I have quite a lot of ground to cover (hardy har). I haven’t decided how I’m going to lay out my garden this year, but here is what I’m considering so far:

Perennial Area: strawberries (already there), asparagus,and artichoke

Heirloom Area: Cherokee Purple and Zapotec tomatoes, rattlesnake beans, Boston pickling cucumbers, and Tennesse Red Valencia peanuts

Main Crop Area: crookneck squash, green zucchini, white scallopini squash, grape, roma, and slicing tomatoes, okra, eggplant, slicing cucumbers, tomatillos, cabbage, turnips, bell peppers, and other sweet and spicy peppers

Fall/spring area: broccoli,  Brussels sprouts, lettuce, chard, bok choy, beets, radishes, and carrots

I’m also considering interplanting flowers and herbs in the vegetables to deter unwanted pests, invite pollinators, and look pretty. Though I haven’t yet decided which ones.

What about you? What are you planning for your garden this year? And what suggestions of other vegetables, herbs, and flowers do you have for me?

I just might need a few of these quirky caterpillar plants too!

Photo credited to owner. Click on photo for source.