It's true to say that people who live in the city where pollution is great because of traffic, have a busy lifestyle and more than likely live in a property that has confined space for a garden, so it seems inconceivable that a vegetable garden would survive. Whether you live in a house or an apartment the fact is, you don't need a large area, you can grow vegetables in tubs, growing bags or small raised beds. Therefore you can actually grow vegetables if you live right in the centre of a busy city, town or country if you get the basics of planting vegetables right.
One of the first things you need to get right is soil preparation. This is vitally important if you are a new comer to gardening whether you plan to use the back garden to grow vegetables or plant in boxes or tubes. Soil preparation plays an important role as to whether the vegetables will survive or not.
There are different types of soil, sandy, clay, chalky, loamy. Sandy soil is loose in texture and helps the roots of the plants to breathe because it lets the air pass through easily and won't hold together if you form it into a ball. Clay soil if formed into a ball will hold its form without crumbling or falling into pieces and once wet it becomes a sticky mess. Chalky soil drains very freely and therefore puddles drain away quicker. Loamy soil is dark in colour and when formed into a ball will hold its shape.
All types of soil can be improved and can benefit from digging in lots of well-rotted organic matter. Clay soil can also benefit from digging in horticultural sand.
When preparing the soil for your vegetable garden, dig up the soil and break up the lumps. Remove rocks, stones, weed roots. If you have clay subsoil try not to bring that up to the surface when digging. Remember that you don't want soil that traps the water inside too much that the roots of your vegetable will choke and rot. One good way to test whether the composition of the soil is good is by taking a handful and forming a ball with it. The soil should hold its shape; if it doesn't there may be too much sand in the mixture. If the soil holds its shape but does not crumble easily when you press it between your fingers, then the mixture may have too much clay in it, this then needs to have a dressing of horticultural sand mixed in. Whatever the soil type you have to work with, it will always benefit from a good generous dressing of organic matter, whether it is rotted manure, garden compost or peat, they all add nutrients to the soil which your vegetables will thrive on.
Once you have completed cultivating the area for your vegetable garden, you then have to make a decision as to what kind of vegetable you want to grow. Take into account that some vegetables don't grow well when they are planted too close to certain types of other vegetables. Potatoes for instance shouldn't be planted too close to squash or tomatoes because their growth will be inhibited. They can be planted in the same garden but don't plant them beside each other.
Having decided on the kind of vegetables you want to plant if the area is large, you may want to consider using a water irrigation system. This is where a tube or tubes with many holes along its length is placed between the rows of vegetables and connected to a water supply. When the water supply is turned on, water seeps through the holes and around the plants. This is a good system to install especially for summertime watering.
Deep or raised beds is a very popular way of growing vegetables where you only have a small area. These can be constructed by arranging planks in a square or oblong shape with a minimum size of 1.2 metres wide so that you can work without stepping onto the soil and 3 metres long. Growing your vegetables this way means that the soil never gets compressed because you work from paths either side. The depth of the bed should be a minimum 40cm. This should be filled with a mixture of top soil and compost providing a good composition so that the roots of the vegetables can penetrate a long way down.
Whether you have a large area or raised beds to grow your vegetables, it is a good idea to plan where you plant the different vegetables. A good way to do this is to divide a piece of paper into the number of sections that your vegetable area allows. For instance if you divide the area into three, in one area you can grow root vegetables, e.G. Potatoes, carrots, beetroot, the second area brassicas vegetables, this include cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli, the third area for salad crops e.G. Lettuce, peas, onions and beans. One point to take into account is that some crops take longer to mature than others. Brussels sprouts take a full season to grow, while others like the lettuce mature in 3-4 months.
Crop rotation is another thing that should be taken into account. This means that each year you move everything on to the next space so that you don't grow the same type of vegetable in the same area two years running. Crop rotation means that the each type of crop get the right soil preparation, each benefits from whatever nutrients the previous crop left in the soil and most importantly that there is less risk of plants picking up root diseases from a previous crop.
Autumn, winter or early spring is when you prepare the ground with spring being the main sowing seeds and planting time. In summer as you get to the end of the early crops, clear the ground and plant another crop to fill up the gap. Mid to end of summer you will be preparing the ground for the last sowing of seeds and plants. The seed sowing programme and instructions are always provided on the back of the seed container. One important point is to gather your crops little and often. You don't have to wait for the complete row to mature, if you wait, you will see the fruits of your hard labour go rotten in front of you.
Growing your own vegetables is very rewarding but it can be labour intensive but the rewards are greater than the effort that you put in throughout the growing year. Eating vegetables that you have grown, tended to throughout its growth, is far healthier than the ones purchased from the grocery store. You know what nutrients you have put into the soil to produce the produce, you don't know with the purchased product. You can go to your vegetable garden and pull the produce, prepare a meal with fresh produce, you don't know when it was pulled and how long it's been stored with the purchased product. There is no need to store your produce because you can go and pull it fresh which is far healthier for you and your family.
Remember, you don't need a large area to grow vegetables, you can grow them in tubs, growing bags or small raised beds. Therefore you can actually grow vegetables if you live right in the centre of a busy city, town or countryside.
Grow your own vegetables, eat more healthier!
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