Its time to start thinking what to grow this year

[MrsDangermouse]

I love growing my own veg and its about time to start planning what we'll grow this year. Last year I think we did ok considering the garden was only finished in June so we just grew whatever seedlings we could find in the garden centre. This year we have time to plan and choose exactly what we want to grow

We've also just been offered an allotment so this year we'll have 3 areas: the raised beds in the garden, the greenhouse and the allotment.

I think in the garden we're going to go for sweetcorn, peas, salads, spring onions, radishes, cucumbers. We'll have tomatoes in the greenhouse, along with some peppers and chillies we've managed to keep alive over the winter. Just need to think about the allotment now....its not a full size plot and we've never had one before so we're thinking to keep it simple to start with and stick with potatoes, beans, onions and maybe some cabbages.

What are your favourites to grow?

 

[kgord]

That is great. It sounds like a plan. The growing season here won't start until mid April, but since I am hoping to sell the home I am not going to try to put in a garden. It is just one of the things that doesn't seem practical to do at this point. I should make sure that I get the options that I need when looking for the home of my dreams, and it is going to be time consuming enough without having to worry about a garden.

 

[Rosyrain]

I am going to start my garden again this year and I plan to grow potatoes, carrots, onions, and sweet peppers to start out with. These are veggies that I know we will eat and they are easy enough to grow. It has been a couple of years since I have been able to grow anything.

 

[Corzhens]

We had sown cantaloupe seeds the other week and they have already sprouted in the backyard. That is my crop for this season that I hope would grow fast and bear fruit before the rains come in. My planting of the cantaloupe is to coincide with the harvest of the banana which started fruiting last month. Maybe in April we will be harvesting the banana and some cantaloupe that we can make into a native fruit salad. That is a special fruit salad that the children love.

 

[cupcakechef]

All I've really grown before are tomatoes, peppers (capsicum), and herbs. We have rosemary, sage, basil and thyme. I love summer for the fact that our tomatoes and basil go wild and I can eat Caprese salads to my hearts content!

One day I'd like to have the space to have a fully self sufficient fruit and veggie garden but right now it's just a dream!

 

[L_B]

That is the one thing I miss about owing my own home. We use to always have a huge garden and all the best vegetables but once my x and I separated I moved into an apartment complex. We have no where for a garden here. I do like to buy fresh produce at the local market though. They always have a great variety.

 

[Pat]

Last year I did not plant a garden due to a wild tree shading my garden space. I will have that very large weed removed so that I can garden this year, it is the only part of the backyard that gets enough direct sunlight, we have 5 large mature trees in the back shading the rest of the yard.

 

[winterybella]

Well my gardener is back and he's started on taking care of all the wild bush. I can't wait to get some things growing again. Sweet peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, maybe lettuce and kale are just a few of the things I hope to have grown. Kale would be a first time thing. The last carrots were awful so I am not necessarily looking to those. If I can deal with my fear of bugs I will try to have a more hands on approach.

 

[Momma9]

We have about 1/2 acre of garden. We grow most of our own produce and meat. I try to garden year round. I don't have a greenhouse, but use hoops to cover a greens bed in the winter and to get an early start in the spring/extend harvest in the fall. I start all of my own plants in my basement. Right now we have all the early spring crops in and harvested our first asparagus of the year yesterday! Greens, peas, beets, onions, carrots, potatoes, cabbage, brussel sprouts; I am sure I missed a few. We have garlic growing that was started in the fall. I have tomatoes and peppers and sweet potatoes started inside.

My favorite thing to grow is anything purple Purple (sometimes also called red or blue) veggies are almost always heirlooms with more vitamins than their boring green counterparts. They are easier to harvest since they stand out from the green leaves. I grow purple peas, 'green' beans, basil, tomatoes, okra, peppers, romaine lettuce, kale, brussel sprouts, cabbage, and zinnias, are some.

 

[epicuric]

We have about 1/2 acre of garden. We grow most of our own produce and meat. I try to garden year round. I don't have a greenhouse, but use hoops to cover a greens bed in the winter and to get an early start in the spring/extend harvest in the fall. I start all of my own plants in my basement. Right now we have all the early spring crops in and harvested our first asparagus of the year yesterday! Greens, peas, beets, onions, carrots, potatoes, cabbage, brussel sprouts; I am sure I missed a few. We have garlic growing that was started in the fall. I have tomatoes and peppers and sweet potatoes started inside.

My favorite thing to grow is anything purple Purple (sometimes also called red or blue) veggies are almost always heirlooms with more vitamins than their boring green counterparts. They are easier to harvest since they stand out from the green leaves. I grow purple peas, 'green' beans, basil, tomatoes, okra, peppers, romaine lettuce, kale, brussel sprouts, cabbage, and zinnias, are some.

Sounds fantastic Momma9. I think you must be 3-4 months ahead of us here in UK. What meat do you rear, and what do you do with zinnias? Over here I think of them as flowers, maybe I am wrong?

 

[Momma9]

@epicuric Yes, zinnias are just pretty flowers I like We raise beef and poultry. We have raised goats in the past, but do not have proper fencing for them here. I do not have a dairy cow at the moment, but have milked goats and cows and hope to find another dairy cow this summer. Right now the only poultry we have are turkeys and chickens, but have also had guineas, ducks, and geese. We had a fox clean us out of our free roaming poultry last year and are reluctant to take on quite as many fowl now

 

[MyExWasAChef]

Strawberries are great this time of year. I see a lot of vegetables up there but not so much on the sweet side. Tomatoes are great for sweet and savory dishes as well.

 

[Autumn_Hearthwitch]

I don't have a huge space but enough to plant something small for now. We're not sure how a garden is going to do where we are so we're only planting some tomatoes, peas, carrots and onions. If that goes well, we'll probably expand the garden next year. We also have a few herb pots for our deck and a patch of rhubarb as well. As for the herbs, I'm not 100% sure yet what to grow. We also started to grow apple trees from some seeds and hope to transplant those soon. I'd love to build a chicken coop but it would have to pretty much be Fort Knox with all the coyotes we have around and they're not something I want in my back yard.

 

[kgord]

If I do end up with some kind of a garden it will likely be something small and easy to take care of like an herb garden, and tomatoes never take up much time or space. I could do that I guess. However, I was really going to concentrate on planting some flowers to make the place look welcoming.

 

[epicuric]

If I do end up with some kind of a garden it will likely be something small and easy to take care of like an herb garden, and tomatoes never take up much time or space. I could do that I guess. However, I was really going to concentrate on planting some flowers to make the place look welcoming.

Have you every considered growing herbs and tomatoes in doors if you don't have a garden? Small herb pots can do really well on a window sill, and small bush tomatoes can be grown indoors in a sunny spot.