Gardening Basics and Realities
by Greg Cryns
Have you ever tasted a tomato harvested from your own garden? Or a
melon? How about an ear of corn? If you had you would always want to
duplicate the experience, though it would be
impossible to do so. The vegetables produced in your backyard or
container garden will always be much fresher and have a greater quality
of nutrients than the vegetables you buy in your supermarket.
Working the home garden is undeniably good hard work. It is work with
a purpose and with many tangible benefits. The exercise you get working
your garden may be all you need to stay trim and fit for your entire
life.
Gardens range in size from a single potted plant, to small plantings
around the doorway or patio, in mini-gardens (20 to 200 sq. feet), to
large family gardens (750 square feet or more). The type of that you
grow will depend upon the space available, the kind and quality of
vegetables you want to spend working in the garden. Make your garden
large enough so that it will produce what is needed but will not become
a burden.
Planning your garden can be an enjoyable task by the warmth of a fire
on cold winter evenings. A well-planned garden is easier to plant and
care for and it will probably be more productive than one that is not
well planned.
Use fully the garden reference books and magazines, seed catalogs as
you select your vegetables and make your plan. Plan ahead. The larger
the garden the more apt you are to put off what it needs. Keep in mind
that the realities of summer with its dry heat will soon be upon you.
You are less likely to want to get out there and do the necessary
weeding and watering when the temperatures rise above 90 degrees. Who is
going to mind the garden when you go on vacation?
