If you are a beginner to the world of gardening, then growing your own fruit and vegetables is one of the best places to cut your teeth. Or, perhaps, green your fingers. Not only will it teach you how to look after seasonal plants, but it will also give you the best results – a lovely meal, grown, prepared and cooked by yourself. All you need is a few tools, a lot of hard work, and a little bit of luck to get started. This beginner’s guide will talk you through some of the basics.
Plot Out Your Garden
Before you begin, you should think about splitting up your garden. Different plants like different environments, so it is important to get a feel for what your garden has to offer. Are there shaded corners that see little sun? If so, avoid fruit plants – they much prefer to be out in as much sun as possible. However, you can think about growing potatoes, turnips or swedes in the darker sections. They are far hardier plants and will give you a good yield during most UK weather conditions. Once you have split up your garden into dark and sunny areas, you can start to plan out what you want to plant.
Soil Quality
The quality of your soil can depend on an enormous range of factors. There are plenty of services available to you if you want to grab a sample and send it off for testing, and it is advisable that you do so. Some soil just won’t allow much growth at all – especially for more delicate plants. It will be a shame to waste a heap of cash on seeds, plants and tools if you aren’t going to get a yield. However, most soil should be OK for most things, and can be improved by a good compost. If you are worried that your soil is poor quality, then don’t panic. You can still grow a good amount of fruit and veg in pots and trays.
Selecting Plants
Now you have a good idea of what you can grow; you should find it easier to narrow down your selection. It’s best to go for the easier fruit and veg first, just to get you into the swing of things. A little herb garden is the perfect starting place, and you could try strawberries and tomatoes to see how you manage with fruits. There’s a vast range of fruit seeds over at http://www.pomonafruits.co.uk/. As we’ve already mentioned, potatoes are a hardy plant and are also easy to grow. You can also rely on salad leaves and spring onions to boost your confidence when you are just starting out.
Tools
Before you get planting, make sure you have enough tools to make things easier for you. There are some basics – a good trowel and a watering can are a must, for example – but you should also check instructions for each plant. Some may require a special tool to plant or grow, so be aware of what you need to avoid any disappointment.
That’s about it for our beginner’s guide. Happy planting, and be sure to check out some more gardening tips and advice on our blog.