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Raised Bed Vegetable Gardening for Beginners

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So you want to be the next Martha Stewart of gardening? Small steps, flower child. And big dreams, we are here to help!

Raised bed vegetable gardening is a century-old method and one you can rely on for an abundant harvest. Other benefits include improved drainage, more space, and better control over your gardening dreams.

Enough benefits, though. We’re here to help transform your garden with raised beds. To do that, follow the steps below, and before you know it, you’ll be reaping vegetables with a ton of benefits.

Essential Gardening Tools & Equipment You Need for Raised Bed Gardening

Here’s what you’ll need before we get started:

  1. Watering can
  2. Potting soil
  3. Small trowel
  4. Shovel
  5. Containers
  6. Digging fork
  7. Hoe
  8. Rototiller (only if you have a larger garden)

How to Start a Raised Vegetable Garden for Beginners?

Step 1: Planning

Landing a big success for your garden requires some planning before taking action. This includes choosing the right raised bed, appropriate site and soil, drainage, and overall design of your garden.

Choosing Your Site

A vegetable garden is as good as its location. Every gardener considers location as the most vital planning step in gardening.

Why you may ask? Here’s a not-so-secret tip: good soil.

Good soil is crucial to your harvest, and it’s a tried and true testament for every gardener. Your garden beds depend on good soil. Without it, you’re wasting time, money, and all the times you’ve had to arch your back, hoping it wouldn’t crack.

There is one advantage to a raised garden bed, though – it offers better drainage. Nevertheless, that doesn’t mean you can choose any location by being complacent about your raised garden bed method.

Not to worry, we’ll share a few tips on how to choose your site, such as:

  1. Make sure the soil isn’t hard-packed or waterlogged since this may lead to drainage problems.
  2. It’s preferable to choose the sunniest location for your garden. Most vegetables require at least 8 hours of sunlight every day.
  3. Stay away from areas where the soil is wet or low. Soggy soil does not go well with vegetables.
  4. Test your soil for any lead, and make sure to remove weeds or perennial weeds you find.
  5. If there are rocks that prevent water from running off, remove the rocks and any obstruction.
  6. A good rule of thumb for the right pH of the soil should be between 6.2 – 6.8.

Choosing Your Raised Bed

Standard raised garden beds are usually 2 to 4 feet wide and 6 inches in height. You can choose between making your own or buying one.

Between the two, purchasing raised garden beds are more convenient but can also be more costly depending on which you buy. Raised garden beds can be made of wood, recycled plastic, concrete, aluminum, stone, or even galvanized steel.

One thing to remember about raised beds is the depth. Raised beds with more depth will naturally mean more soil depth. Choosing a raised bed with 10 to 12 inches of depth is adequate.

In effect, a higher soil depth allows your roots to grow freely and holds more moisture; thus, watering your vegetables won’t be as frequent as a shallow raised bed.

One drawback to choosing a raised bed with more soil depth is cost. Since you’ll need to fill 10 to 12 inches of your bed, it also means you’ll need to purchase more soil.

If it’s your first time using a raised bed, it might be best to start with one raised bed to minimize costs early on. Speaking of, let’s touch more on this.

How Many Raised Beds Do You Need?

The number of raised beds depends on:

  1. Your budget
  2. The size of your garden
  3. How many vegetables you want to grow

Budget is a matter of personal preference, while the size of your garden is a factor you’ll have to measure appropriately.

For example, if your garden measures 500 feet, and you buy raised beds measuring 4ft x 20ft, you would be able to fit 6 raised beds in your garden.

If you buy raised beds measuring 4ft x 8ft, you would be able to fit 15 raised beds.

This is just a rough guide since other factors also come into play, such as the path width and flexibility of accessing each bed in your vegetable garden.

Don’t Forget Water Irrigation

A common mistake most gardeners make is water irrigation. Sunlight is important, especially for young plants.

However, water is a staple element to keeping your vegetables healthy and fresh. More importantly, water allows plants to perform three critical functions: photosynthesis, transpiration, and nutrient distribution.

There are many ways to irrigate your plants. Conventional sprinklers and an automatic sprinkler system are common options; however, these don’t provide water for your soil and plants efficiently.

The problem with conventional sprinklers for raised beds is the walls of the bed block water. Automatic sprinkler systems provide better water efficiency but only wet foliage.

As a result, damp foliage easily leads to fungi and bacteria. That’s something you want to avoid and keep in mind if you want to grow fresh vegetables in your garden.

So what is the best way to irrigate your plants? Either through drip irrigation or manually hosing your plants.

What Is Drip Irrigation and How Does It Work?

Drip irrigation is a tube-like system that directs water precisely where it needs to go.

It works by delivering uniform amounts of water above the soil or directly into the root or growing zone. In effect, drip irrigation prevents excess water from running off as well as evaporation and wind drift.

One thing to note about drip irrigation is it takes more work and effort to install than sprinkler systems. 7 essential components make up a drip irrigation system:

  1. Filter – Prevents any debris from clogging the tube.
  2. Valve – One of the essential components used to control the flow of water. Some valves come equipped with an automatic timer for better programming and control.
  3. Hence, the name regulator, a pressure regulator, regulates water pressure since most homes have a pressure that’s too high for a drip system. This constant low-pressure flow will contn=inue to operate even if the water supply pressure in your home fluctuates.
  4. Dripline – Also referred to as the distribution line, the dripline transports water from your valve to your plants. You can connect your dripline to the pressure regulator through a tubing adapter. Driplines also come in brown or black so they can blend in with the soil or mulch.
  5. Backflow Preventer – You wouldn’t want the water from your irrigation system to get sucked back into your drinking water supply. It’s unsanitary and dangerous for anyone’s health. That’s exactly the role of a backflow preventer. When your drip irrigation system is turned off, it prevents water from being sucked back in.
  6. Emitters – Emitters connect to your tubing to deliver water into the soil. Most plants will require at least one or two emitters.
  7. Flush valve – Prevents water from leaking out the end of your dripline. It’s encouraged to remove your flush valve every 6 months to a year to clean any debris, algae, or sediment inside the tubing. Once you’ve cleaned all the debris, you can re-apply the flush valve to your dripline.

Drip systems are better alternatives to sprinkler systems since they efficiently regulate water compared to sprinklers. Furthermore, drip systems are best for locations with a scarce water supply.

If you have a hard time finding a consistent, clean water supply for your plants, you may need drip irrigation for your garden.

You can also check out this video [R] to learn more about how to create your own drip irrigation system.

Manually Hosing Your Plants

You could manually hose your plants, but keep in mind you’ll have to stick to a strict routine. No excuses.

This shouldn’t be too hard, though. You could have a cup of coffee and hose your plants to start the day. It’s an ideal weekend starter for most gardeners.

The only problem – weekdays. If you have a heap of tasks and responsibilities to perform on weekdays and aren’t confident enough to manually hose your plants when needed, then perhaps you may need a drip irrigation system.

Don’t worry. We’ll touch more on this later and how to water your soil and plants effectively.

Step 2: Pre-Planting

The pre-planting stage is where we’ll choose the right soil to give your plants the proper aeration, moisture retention, and nutrients essential to its growth.

Sorting out vegetables and understanding the compatibility of each plant from another is also vital to a successful yield.

Choosing the Right Soil

Since you’re starting from scratch, we recommend following these proportions: 50% organic top soil and 50% compost. Compost can be anything from organic matter to even shrimp or chicken compost.

Alternatively, this proportion might suit you better if you’re growing a variety of plants in your vegetable garden and want it to last longer:

  • 1/3 Vermiculite
  • 1/3 compost (Chicken, Steer, Shrimp, etc.)
  • 1/3 Peat Moss

The Vermiculite adds aeration and drainage to your soil & plants, while the peat moss is mostly for water retention.

You could blend the Vermiculite with Perlite to make it a better blend; however, this might be expensive if you’re still new to raised bed gardening.

Saving on Soil Costs

With the soil recipe we mentioned above, this may be a costly soil mix, especially if you have a ton of raised beds to fill. Let alone if you have 30-inch raised beds, for instance, you may want a soil mix that doesn’t break the bank.

So here’s an essential tip about gardening in raised beds: Most root systems of annual vegetables you want to grow will go as deep as 12ft to 18ft, at most.

With a 30-inch raised bed then, you’ll be filling your bed with soil that won’t do as much benefit for your vegetables or your yield. As a result, you’d be spending double the expense for half the amount of soil you won’t need.

To save on soil costs, you’ll most likely have to fill only 40 to 50% of your raised bed with the recipe we mentioned above (1/3 Vermiculite, 1/3 compost, & 1/3 peat moss), or you can also go for 25% compost, 50% top soil, and 25% organic matter.

Now that you have 40 or 50% of your soil mix recipe ready for your raised beds, what do you do with the 50 to 60% of empty space?

Two words: Organic matter. You don’t have to buy organic matter or create an optimal recipe. You can use “passive” or anything organic laying around your home, such as:

  • Logs
  • Sticks
  • Leaves
  • Straw
  • Bush or tree trimmings
  • Grass clippings
  • Vegetable trimmings
  • Any animal manure

Using any of these to fill 50 to 60% of your raised bed and 40 to 50% of your soil mix recipe on top should help you save on costs while still using top-quality soil for the plants and vegetables you want to grow.

Finally, you can add mulch as a top dressing soil to add a protective layer and protect your soil structure from weather elements, such as rain.

Sorting Your Vegetables

As excited as we are for you to begin your raised bed gardening journey, understanding the ideal plants to grow along with each plant’s compatibility will help you plan what to plant in your raised bed.

Here is a list of vegetables ideal for raised beds:

  • Garlic
  • Carrots
  • Radish
  • Lettuce
  • Onions
  • Tomato
  • Potato
  • Parsnip
  • Beetroot
  • Cauliflower
  • Swede
  • Spring Onion

Any of these vegetables would be excellent to start with whether you have one or two raised beds. It doesn’t matter if you have a small garden or a larger space. What matters is being able to start.

Now, if you have a fairly large raised bed and own two or three beds, you might want to look into companion planting.

This allows you to plant different varieties of vegetables beside one another while optimizing the soil, provide better plant health, and regulate the shade and wind.

Understanding Plant Compatibility

Plant compatibility allows you to plant different plants beside each other, such as carrots & beans, onions & cabbage, squash & corn, potatoes & garlic, and so forth.

Taken further, tomato plants planted with basil or mint improve the flavor and growth of tomatoes. Planting parsley and marigolds with asparagus will protect your crops from asparagus beetles.

For the full list of plant compatibility, this chart should give you more options to try. [R]

Like any other companionship, it’s also possible for plants to have enemies or incompatibility, which harms your soil and yield over time.

Some plants worth mentioning include:

  • Tomato plants and corn, dill, or potatoes do not go well together.
  • Strawberries and tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, or eggplants are incompatible.
  • Beans don’t go well with onions or garlic.
  • Squash and potatoes are not a good combination.

It’s essential to take note of plant compatibility and incompatibility before the planting stage. Preferably, you’ll want to list down all the vegetables you want to plant in your raised bed before actually buying the seeds or young plants.

Step 3: Planting Your Vegetables

When planting your crops, take note of the appropriate spacing for each plant, along with the spaces between each row of plants.

Without appropriate spacing, this can affect your crops’ growth and root system, thus leading to a lower yield or poor harvest.

Plant Spacing

The significance of plant spacing cannot be understated. Proper plant spacing prevents each plant from competing with one another for nutrients and water.

Every plant has a specific plant spacing requirement for a healthy yield of crops. We won’t list all the requirements for each plant, but we’ll name a few for more common plants you would want to grow in your garden:

  • Carrots require at least one to two inches of space between each plant and 12 to 18 inches per row.
  • Peppers require 14 to 18 inches of space apart and 18 to 24 inches per row.
  • Baby leaf spinach requires 0.5 to 1 inch of space and 12 to 18 inches per row.
  • Tomatoes need 24 to 36 inches of space and 48 to 60 inches per row.
  • Kale requires 12 to 18 inches of space and 24 inches per row.

With so many plant varieties, you can check the full list of plant spacing requirements here [R].

Don’t forget to ensure an acceptable path width or space for you to walk between each row of plants without destroying the roots or the crops in itself.

The Right Time to Plant

Timing is everything to an abundant crop harvest. Depending on the plant you want to grow, it’s crucial to segregate warm-seasonal crops from cold-seasonal crops.

Factors such as soil temperature and frost dates determine the right growing season for every plant in your garden, along with the proper time to harvest or sow each one.

To give you a general guide, the right time to plant warm-season crops is during summer, late spring, and early autumn. On the other hand, cold-season crops are ideal during early spring or late summer, or autumn.

The best time to plant warm-season plants is during the last frost of winter so that you can harvest them before the first frost of the next cold season. Cold-season plants should be planted starting at the end of the warm season for the best results.

Warm-seasonal Plants

If you live in a tropical region, the following plants are perfect for this type of weather:

  • Tomatoes
  • Sweet Corn
  • Squash
  • Lima beans
  • Pumpkins
  • Okra
  • Eggplant
  • Watermelon
  • Sweet potato
  • Muskmelons
  • Cucumber

Take note: The minimum soil temperature for warm-seasonal plants is 10 oC while the optimal temperature would be 16 oC. With air and soil temperatures between 18 to 30 oC, you should expect a healthy growth and harvest.

Sweet corn and tomatoes are considered tender crops you should plant at least 2 weeks after the last frost.

The remaining crops mentioned in the list above are categorized as very tender, which should be planted 3 weeks after the last freeze or frost.

If you want to grow your greens off-season in your garden, you can do so with cloches, cold frames, or row covers to shield your produce from the cold weather.

Cold-seasonal Plants

Cold-seasonal plants grow best in temperatures between 21 to 24 o C and require a minimum temperature of 5 to 10o C.

Cold-seasonal types are classified into either hardy or half-hardy plants. Hardy greens or produce should be planted 2 to 4 weeks before the last freeze in spring, while half-hardy greens should be planted on the day of the last freeze in spring.

Examples of hardy produce include:

  • Cabbage
  • Garlic
  • Parsley
  • Onions
  • Asparagus
  • Spinach
  • Turnips
  • Kale
  • Peas
  • Rhubarbs
  • Horseradish
  • Broccoli
  • Radish

As for half-hardy produce, some worth mentioning are:

  • Carrots
  • Lettuce
  • Potatoes
  • Cauliflower
  • Endives
  • Chinese Cabbage
  • Chard
  • Beets
  • Parsnips
  • Celery

Be sure to take note of these before planting them in your raised bed. This will allow you to produce a healthy yield and make the most out of each crop you harvest.

It also helps to have a USDA zone map guide as a reference to help keep the growing season of each plant optimal. You can use this zone map to learn more about the growing zone in your area. [R]

Step 4: Maintenance

Once you’ve completed steps 1 to 3 and created a lush garden in front of you for the world to see, the last step left to a raised bed Eden of leafy greens & produce is proper maintenance.

Proper maintenance of your plants results in a healthy harvest.

Even if you’ve done everything right, from choosing the right location down to mapping the appropriate growing zones for each vegetable, leaving your crops to fend for themselves isn’t exactly green thumb material.

Neither does it create that lush garden you pictured during your daydreaming episodes.

That being said, here are a few good practices to follow if you want to achieve a lush, bountiful garden:

  1. Choose the right plant for the right place. As we mentioned earlier, cold-season and warm-season are vital notes to take down. You can’t grow potatoes in a tropical climate no matter how much positivity you give it.
  2. Refrain from changing the environment, sunlight, or watering of your produce. As much as change adds resiliency for us humans, plants aren’t the most adaptable to change. Their sensitivity means a big no-no to change the lighting or height of the plant. Spontaneous changes affect its growth.
  3. Be sure to weed your plants every week or so. If you don’t remove weeds as soon as possible, each plant will start to compete for nutrients and water.
  4. Trim any dead ends you find. This means you’ll have to monitor your product as much as possible if you want those greens to keep growing. Any spotted marks or brown color you notice is considered a dead-end you should remove.
  5. Certain plants have specific feeding requirements or fertilizer needed to keep them healthy. Fertilizers not only provide nutrients for your product but also provide pest control benefits.
  6. Pest control is a serious issue for all gardeners, and the right fertilizer can help keep pests away.
  7. Last but not least, don’t overwater your plants. Too much can be harmful to your plant’s health and growth. How do you know when you’re over-watering your plants? We’ll touch more on this in the later sections.

With all the steps covered to growing plants in raised beds, let’s dive into the benefits of using a raised bed along with garden essentials to help you along the way!

The Benefits of Raised Bed Gardening

Raised beds offer several advantages, especially for first-time gardeners. If you have poor soil, raised beds are an excellent solution.

For many, poor soil is a serious problem because it drains away the nutrients needed for your plants.

Other problems, such as poor drainage, low yield, and even weed control, are issues you can prevent and minimize by using a bed.

Let’s go over a few benefits in detail.

Improved Yield

One of the main benefits of planting in a flat bed is that the temperature rises more quickly than compacted dirt. Additionally, soil in a bed increases air and water movement, allowing roots to collect nutrients easily.

If you have trouble with space in your garden, then choosing a flat bed provides more space for you to work with. A traditional garden layout will use relatively more space or half of your garden space.

Compared to using a bed, enclosed beds can cut the overall space needed for your garden by half or even more! In effect, you’ll be able to grow more produce in your garden and expect a higher yield.

Minimized Pest or Weed Control

Sure, a large garden comes with its fair of benefits, but maintaining your garden from snails, birds, rodents, and other pests can be challenging.

A raised vegetable bed results in a more densely planted structure. As a result, weeds have minimal room to grow, and even if they do, it’s easier to pull them out than in a large-scale garden.

You can also use metal screens, row covers, or even netting to easily protect each bed from any birds or rodents.

The compact size of a flat bed provides convenience compared to a traditional garden, allowing you to install and remove any protective layer above your produce easily.

Enhanced Soil Quality

We admit, investing in a flat bed wasn’t at the top of our list when we started growing our own produce. To our amazement, a flat bed improves the soil quality for two reasons: better control and less exposure.

When we say better control, we mean choosing the ideal soil mixture from the start. Choosing the right soil blend gives you much more control than relying on plain old garden soil.

Of course, this is not to say that a traditional garden doesn’t have great soil quality. It’s simply easier to control the soil quality you want for your plants, especially if you’re looking to grow some with stricter conditions & limitations.

A flat bed layout also has less foot traffic than a traditional garden. When soil is constantly stepped on, it becomes compacted and, over time, decreases the quality.

Better Drainage

Depending on your location, it can be a struggle to find good soil. Your site may be poor and have less than the ideal conditions for growing plants effectively.

If the native soil in your area drains too slow or too fast, investing in a bed can save you from all this trouble and continuous trial and error.

Remember what we said about poor soil? This can get in the way of your yield and plant’s health, which we all know we don’t want.

Convenient

When you’ve been tending a garden for as long as a little over a year, you may start to notice your back starting to ache or your knee feeling sore.

Enclosed beds offer a convenient way of protecting your plants and your back. Anyone with physical limitations can benefit from an enclosed bed.

The reason being, there’s a wide variety of beds you can choose from. The standard is typically two feet high and three or four feet wide. However, some can go higher than two feet and wider than four feet.

It’s possible to have a four-foot-wide bed that’s as tall as 3 feet. A two feet high & three-foot-wide bed is adequate if you plan to garden from a wheelchair.

Depending on the dimensions you may need, enclosed beds have more convenience and are much easier to use than traditional gardens.

What Are the Easiest & Hardest Vegetables to Grow in Raised Beds?

It’s true that rich soil can affect your overall produce and yield. Other factors, such as soil pH, soil moisture, air circulation, adequate sunlight, etc., are vital parts of any garden system.

Needless to say, you can also choose the plant the easiest vegetable plants and be made aware of the hardest to help you diversify your crop yield.

Since this is your first time planting with an enclosed bed, we felt this section might help you during the planning stage.

The Easiest

You can plant vegetables that don’t require a lot of effort or work on your part while saving money by choosing the right vegetable options.

Here are a few of the easiest to harvest in your garden:

Lettuce

Whether you’re looking to grow Romaine or leaf lettuce for a mixed green salad, lettuce is one of the easiest options you can start with.

The best part is, lettuce is cold-resistant, so you won’t have a hard time growing these during winter or early spring and fall.

The total harvest time should fall between 65 to 80 days, and as a bonus tip, planting lettuce with garlic or chives will help keep any pests away.

Carrots

Using loose, good dirt mixed with soil and compost should give you a healthy yield of carrots. Essentially, root vegetable plants are easy to harvest, with carrots being the easiest among all of them.

You could even do companion planting with lettuce! The perfect time to harvest carrots would be during the summer, spring, or fall, with a total harvest time of 60 to 80 days.

While carrots can be a challenge in a traditional garden layout, an enclosed bed allows you to choose the ideal soil blend and achieve purity to make it easier to grow carrots.

Tomatoes

Why tomatoes? Apart from their health benefits, tomatoes are also the most sought during summer. There’s nothing better than pairing fresh tomatoes with your mixed green salad and light balsamic dressing.

While tomatoes are easy to harvest, their ideal season is early summer. It’s also preferable to plant tomatoes indoors first for 4 to 6 weeks before full sun exposure.

Summer Squash

Unlike tomatoes, summer squash prefers direct sunlight and depends on sunlight for the majority of the day. With a harvest time of 48 to 65 days, you can easily add this to your list of garden options!

Other easy options you can grow in raised beds include cucumbers, bell peppers, radishes, beans, spinach, peas, and kale.

The Hardest

Cauliflower

Cauliflower is tricky to grow. Considering its long harvest period and temperature conditions, this can be hard for many first-timers to get right.

Cauliflowers don’t grow well if it’s too hot or too cold, meaning there’s a sweet spot you’ll have to maintain continuously—ideal temperatures for growing cauliflower range between 18 to 26.5o C.

Also, cauliflower is vulnerable to cabbage worms, requiring even more maintenance on your part.

Sweet Potato

Potatoes are a crowd favorite, and it’s easy to see why. This versatile plant can complement a wide range of recipes in the kitchen, both healthy and deadly.

For example, French fries are an excellent example of why potatoes have risen to become a crowd pleaser and a palette savor.

Sad to say, they’re relatively hard to grow. Due to its long harvest period, potatoes require at least 100 days of hot weather, making it harder for people living in colder climates.

However, with enclosed beds, you could use row covers to protect your potatoes from the cold and are much easier to manage than

Artichoke

We’re not avid fans of artichoke; however, some would disagree. The main concern with growing artichokes is its climate conditions and maintenance from pests.

Artichokes prefer moderate conditions – not too hot nor cold. As for pests, you’ll want to watch out for aphidssince these insects can spread viruses into your produce.

In the end, it doesn’t just boil down to choosing the easiest or avoiding the hardest.

Before planting, any gardener understands that studying the essential food requirements and conditions for their produce is vital to growing any plant. Speaking of, the next section will discuss essentials to always keep in mind.

Gardening Essentials You Need to Remember

How to Water Your Plants the Right Way

There are plenty of watering strategies you can use to improve the quality and health of your yield. However, for first-timers, always learn the fundamentals.

Watering your plants the right way is as crucial as how humans need sleep. Without any of that H20, not even the best climate conditions will help.

One thing to remember about growing plants in humid or drier conditions is losing moisture faster, so you’ll need to water your plants and soil frequently.

An excellent way to test if your soil has enough moisture or needs more water is to stick your finger and check if the soil is moist at least 2 to 3 inches below the surface.

We also recommend watering your plants with a watering sprinkler or can. Dumping all the water damages your plants. If you want to learn more watering strategies, you can do so here. [R]

How to Choose the Best Soil

This would’ve been a different case if you weren’t using enclosed beds. A traditional garden might require more factors to consider, such as soil pH or measuring the amount of clay soil or sandy soil you have.

Sandy soil can be great for most plants, but too much is also detrimental. Luckily, enclosed beds allow you to have more control of your soil blend.

Most would recommend a 50/50 mix of top soil and compost; however, we’ve found an even better mixture if you want to keep your soil healthy for an extended period of time.

As mentioned earlier in the previous sections, choosing the best soil for enclosed beds is as follows:

  • 1/3 Vermiculite
  • 1/3 compost (Chicken, Steer, Shrimp, etc.)
  • 1/3 Peat Moss

Since Vermiculite holds on to a lot of water, you can balance this out by including Perlite since it holds on to less water. This blend gives you a balanced aeration for your plants and soil.

Alternatively, you can go for an organic raised bed gardening mix. Take note that an organic mix is a healthier option you should consider using.

It’s worth noting that non-organic products contain synthetic chemicals and pesticides that are harmful to your health, the environment, and pets.

Non-organic potting soil mixes will have fewer minerals and nutrients, and overall, a potting soil mix with less organic natural matter.

On the other hand, organic mixes provide more moisture retention, more nutrients, improved water accessibility for your plants, fewer pesticides or chemicals, and a better-tasting yield.

Keep Yourself Informed of Growing Season

Growing season tells you the average time the temperature stays above the freezing point annually day and night. Generally speaking, it also indicates how long your plants will grow in a given year.

You can’t grow summer plants during the winter, and you also can’t grow cold-seasonal plants during the summer. You also have to keep track of the harvest time, which can vary per plant. [R]

To learn more about growing seasons, using a planting calendar can help you identify the right time to plant.

Should You Buy Small Plants or Seeds?

Most first-timers face the confusion of buying seeds or starter plants. Between the two, seeds are more affordable and simpler to grow.

We recommend buying starter plants if:

  • You want to harvest a plant with a short growing season.
  • It’s harder to grow using a seed.

Stop Right There, Gardener

Even with all the steps and fundamentals covered, there are a few tips we’d like to share and common mistakes you’ll want to avoid early on.

These are the finishing touches to ensure a healthy and productive yield.

4 Gardening Tips to Keep in Mind

Tip #1

Use the USDA hardiness zone to help you define what you’re allowed to grow and when you can grow certain plants.

Knowing when your frost dates start and end is critical to identifying when you can grow your spring, summer, or winter plants.

Tip #2

A good standard to go by when buying beds is a bed that’s more than 12 inches tall.

Taller beds provide better flexibility if you decide to grow deep-rooted plants like radishes or carrots. Additionally, taller beds are one way to improve workability so that you don’t have to arch your back all the time.

Tip #3

Go for succession planting if you plan to grow in bulk. If you grew 100 carrots all at once, keeping these in your inventory or selling these could become a problem.

Succession planting allows you to efficiently control your crop yield while still achieving your desired results. To learn more, this guide can help you. [R]

Tip #4

If you want more yield out of certain plants that have a longer growing season, you can use the cut and come again method. This works great for head lettuce.

This method aims to help you have successful harvests rather than harvest from scratch after your plants mature.

5 Common Mistakes to Avoid

  1. Rushing when choosing your garden site. Tomatoes and peppers love the sun and prefer a warmer soil temperature, but if you choose a garden site with a lot of shade, you won’t be able to grow these. Choosing the wrong location is a common mistake most first-timers make. Consider the amount of light to figure out the best location.
  2. Buying crappy soil. One of the worst mistakes you could make when starting out is investing in bad soil, which leads to poorer nutrition, lower yield, and subpar quality.
  3. Refusing to add mulch. Adding mulch is an underestimated step for most first-timers. Think of mulch as a protective layer that protects your soil from harmful elements, such as UV rays, and overall, protects your soil life. The best options for mulch would be straw and anything that doesn’t decrease your soil’s nitrogen content.
  4. Not allocating the proper path width. When allocating the space needed for your garden, be sure to allocate adequate space for pathways too. How else will you be able to manage your garden if you can’t reach most of your beds? It might help to draw a layout along with the placement of your beds before planting.
  5. Not using labels. Labeling may only play a small role, but it can help you organize if you have a large harvest or if you’re forgetful. This is even more beneficial in the early stages since you won’t be able to tell which variety sits on a certain bed. For this reason, we recommend labeling your beds as soon as you fill your bed with soil and finish planting.

Final Words

We hope this article was able to help you in learning how to start a raised bed garden. Before you go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on your garden practices! Feel free to share them below!

A Guide to Greenhouse Vegetable Gardening for Beginners

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Growing vegetables in your greenhouse is a great way to have fresh produce all year round. It is also a calming and a fantastic way to pass the time. Do not let this task intimidate you because we are here to help.

In this guide, we will walk you through the basics of greenhouse gardening for beginners!

Step-by-Step Guide on Greenhouse Gardening for Beginners

STEP # 1: Choosing the Site for Your Greenhouse

Choose the Nearest Location

Consider following a basic rule of thumb: choose thenearest site to your house or garden. This will encourage you to use your garden regularly and will allow you to show off your greenhouse to your guests.

Access to Water and Electricity

Also, consider appropriate access to water and electricity. Remember that the main advantage of a greenhouse is how you can extend your growing season. To do this, you need to simulate certain environmental conditions, like heat and light.

If you plan to plant many vegetables, it will also be much easier to have immediate and regular water access and not have to lug buckets to and from your house.

Proper Leveling and Sunlight

You need a combination of a level area with the maximum exposure to the sun during the day.

If you can, find a place where the greenhouse will get at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day during the winter. However, if your area does not have this, consider getting grow lights to simulate sunlight.

If you live in hot areas, deciduous trees can provide much-needed shade in the summer while also allowing proper sunlight during the winter because they lose their leaves during fall. 

Avoid areas near coniferous trees or other things that will cast a shadow during the long winter months. 

Adequate Drainage

While a greenhouse can be placed almost anywhere, you must ensure there is adequate drainage.

Ideally, you should lay a cloth over the area you intend to use for your greenhouse. Then, cover the cloth with 3 inches of 1/4-inch gravel. 

This not only keeps the weeds out but also ensures you will always have adequate drainage.

STEP #2: Building the Frame of Your Greenhouse

The frame is the skeleton of your greenhouse. This is the first thing you build on the site you have selected.

The type of greenhouse you choose will depend on different factors. Below are some of the types you can consider.

Types of Greenhouses

Figuring out the right type of greenhouse to build on your property is the first crucial step. You need to consider how much growing space you will need because a greenhouse is a long-term investment. It has to be big enough for years to come.

You also want to maximize the light and headroom in your greenhouse, especially if you’re going to grow hanging plants.

Attached Greenhouse

Attached or lean-to greenhouses are great if you do not want to build all four walls for your greenhouse.

It also uses a sturdy, weight-bearing wall (your home or garage) so the other three sides can be made lighter.

They are often less expensive than other greenhouse models available and are excellent for growing herbs, seedlings, and some vegetables.

We highly recommend this if you have limited space for your greenhouse or cannot afford to start with a standalone structure.

The downside to this is that the amount of sunlight that can go into your greenhouse is limited by installing the three sides.

Freestanding Greenhouse

A freestanding greenhouse is a structure that can stand on its own. This gives you a lot of freedom to decide where you want to place the greenhouse on your property.

Some critical requirements for a standalone greenhouse are:

  1. The ground must be level.
  2. The area must receive plenty of sunlight.

While this type may be more expensive initially, they provide a lower cost per plant in the long run because you can grow a lot more in them.

In most areas, it also allows you to start the growing season much earlier and extend the season by bringing the plants at the first sign of frost.

The other advantage is it can be a sanctuary away from your house. You can get out and enter your oasis to focus on your plants.

You can also install a separate heating system if you live in a particularly cold area during winter.

STEP# 3: Putting Your Greenhouse Glazing Material

Now that you have your frame, it is time to fill up the walls.

Glazing refers to the covering around the frame of your greenhouse. It allows sunlight and warmth in, while keeping out the rest of the elements. The most traditional glazing material is glass. However, it is also the most expensive.

A more inexpensive alternative is plastic sheeting. This material’s disadvantage is that it degrades quickly, especially if you frequently experience strong winds or rain in your area.

A good middle groundis polycarbonate material. It is more affordable than glass, lightweight, and retains heat better than either glass or plastic.

Moreover, it can be used on flat or bent surfaces, is very durable, and transmits light very well.

STEP #4: Installing Environmental Controlling Mechanisms

As we have said, the main advantage of a greenhouse is extending your growing season.

You can also simulate the best conditions for your plants to thrive and grow. However, to do this, your greenhouse must be equipped with ways to control the environment inside.

#1: Proper Heating

This is particularly important if you live in a cold climate or a dry environment where humidity is very low.

Your greenhouse needs insulation to keep your plants warm. Even though it may be sunny inside your greenhouse during the day, temperatures can drastically drop at night.

Calculate How Much Heat Loss There is

To heat your greenhouse efficiently, you must match the equipment you will install to the types of crops you produce. Calculate the greenhouse’s heat loss, then choose a system with the right type and capacity to suit this need.

Install Thermostats and Controls

There are various types of thermostats and environmental controllers that you can find for commercial greenhouses. They range from very simple to sophisticated systems. Regardless, there are some fundamental factors that you need to consider.

Place Sensing Devices At Plant Level 

Your sensing device measures the temperature around the sensors.

Since you are trying to maintain the ideal temperature for your plants, it only makes sense that the sensing device must be at the plant level.

While thermostats at eye level are easier to read, they do not provide the accurate and necessary data for optimum environmental control.

Ensure the Appropriate Number of Sensors

Depending on how big your greenhouse is, you may need more than one thermostat or sensor.

Temperatures and environmental conditions can often vary significantly, even within small distances. So it is crucial to make sure you have the correct number to ensure proper greenhouse gardening conditions.

Do Not Place Them Under the Sun

This is quite obvious, but it needs to be said anyway. Placing your thermostat under direct sunlight will result in inaccurate temperature readings.

Mount your sensors so that they face north or in a protected location. Sometimes, it is also better to use a small fan to pull air over the sensor to get accurate readings.

PRO TIP

You can place rocks or barrels of water inside your greenhouse to capture heat from the sun and help keep your plants warm during cooler evenings.

However, rely on this as these items will also lose heat throughout the night at uncontrollable rates.

Consider evaporative cooling systems, too. This helps regulate temperatures and add moisture back inside the greenhouse to help humidity levels, which is essential if you live in a dry climate.

#2: Proper Shading

If you live in warmer climates or the sun directly hits your greenhouse, you need shading to keep your plants from getting burned.

This helps reduce the amount of sunlight. While we have talked about building your greenhouse near deciduous trees as a form of shading, you can also use polypropylene shade cloth, roll-up screens of wood or aluminum, vinyl plastic shading paint-on materials.

Depending on your location, you may need permanent shading solutions, like paint-on materials, or adjustable ones, like roll-up screens.

The former is hot all year round, and the latter is when you have drastic changes in temperature from really hot to cold throughout the year.

#3: Ventilation

During summers, or even during cold weather, plants can get too hot. Depending on the heating system you have chosen, you also need ventilation to let out gas or oil fumes. ‘

In effect, you need adequate greenhouse gardening ventilation, which can be either manual or electric.

Manual vents can be cranked by hand, but this requires monitoring temperatures closely to see when you need to adjust them.

There are also electric and temperature-sensitive hydraulic vents that automatically close and open on their own when certain temperature conditions are met.

It is also good to install an oscillating fan inside your greenhouse to keep the air moving. This will also help prevent many diseases from spreading among your plants.

#4: Lighting

As we have briefly mentioned earlier, installing grow lights and other lighting systems will help simulate summer or late spring conditions, even in the middle of winter.

The factors you should consider when choosing the proper lighting for you are:

  • The type and variety of plants you are growing
  • The season
  • How much daylight you have
  • How much sunlight you need

Plants react differently to the intensity and span of light. As your plants develop and increase the number of leaves it has, it will require more light.

Note that numerous human-made light sources with many color blends may not be enough for your plants’ photosynthetic requirements.

LED grow lights and fluorescent lamp strips are high output lighting systems crucial to photosynthesis and proper plant germination.

They are also incredibly useful because they can cover a larger surface area and output.

Fluorescent lighting is typically used in greenhouse growing if you want a weak natural light.

STEP #5: Accessorize Your Greenhouse

Now that you have the essential elements for your green house gardening, you can install various accessories. For example, you may need shelving or storage areas for your equipment and tools. You can also install a tool rack, a potting bench, and more.

If humidity is a constant problem in your area, adding a mist system will introduce more humidity inside your greenhouse. If you intend to also relax in your greenhouse, perhaps some seating will be good.

Depending on your budget, you can make your greenhouse as beautiful or as functional as you want.

Make sure to consider what your plants need and the amount of space you have. Just remember that it is better to spend more on a suitable environmental control system than on decorations.

STEP #6: Planting in Your Greenhouse

What Should I Plant in My Greenhouse?

The great news is that one can plant anything and everything in your new greenhouse.

However, if you want to grow vegetables that are best suited for your set-up, here are a few plants you may want to grow in a greenhouse.

  1. Peas
  2. Radishes
  3. Garlic
  4. Leafy Greens
  5. Strawberries
  6. Onions
  7. Tomatoes
  8. Sunflowers
  9. Mushrooms
  10. Potatoes

All you need to remember is that the conditions in your greenhouse and the controls you have for the environment must suit the type of plants and vegetables you are gardening.

For beginners, start with one or two vegetables.

STEP #7: Watering Your Plants

Improper watering is the most significant contributor to the failure of greenhouse gardening. Most water their plants and vegetables according to a set schedule.

When watering your vegetables, beginners have to remember several variables you need to consider.

The temperature, growth stage, and humidity will affect your plants. Beginners should use a moisture meter to know when you need to water.

STEP #8: Protecting Your Plants from Pests

Pests are very dangerous in greenhouses because of the enclosed environment and cost of growing even just one plant.

Install insect screens on the air intakes and check all plants for insects and pests before bringing them inside the garden.

Clean all your tools regularly and bring good bugs that eat the harmful insects inside. You can also spray insect repellants and sprays.

Conclusion

Greenhouse gardening is one hobby that is certainly worth it. With all these tips for beginners, you are well-equipped to start your very own project.

A Guide to Indoor Vegetable Gardening for Beginners

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If you’ve ever been curious about growing your food but never found the money, space, courage, or time to commit to an all-out garden, then indoor gardening is for you.

It is easy enough to start and maintain that all beginners will be hard-pressed not to enjoy it.

Here, we will tell you all that you need to know and consider before starting your very own indoor garden!

Why Try Indoor Gardening?

I remember having accidentally bought an onion with green shoots still on top of it.

To our surprise, it continued growing in the pantry. It was so effortless that we just had to consider indoor gardening. So why should YOU try it?

You Can Grow Vegetables Indoors Year Round!

If you live somewhere with four seasons or freezing winter months, gardening is one thing that can be difficult to maintain.

Moreover, you have to note so many dates and factors that it is more difficult to grow vegetables outdoors.

While others start seeds indoors and merely transplant them outdoors in late spring, this will not work if your outdoor behavior is not cooperative. It would be a waste of all that time and effort you spent on taking care of those seeds.

Moreover, if you live in areas where storms or typhoons are also common, you know how strong those winds can get. Mother Nature has not always been kind to our plants.

The great thing with indoor gardening is that now is all that matters! Regardless of the weather or time of year, you can grow indoor plants and vegetables all year round!

You Do Not Need A Lot of Space

Most of us live in urban areas where outdoor space is a luxury. And even then, our balconies or yards have minimal places where we can grow vegetables.

Indoor gardening is great for those living in apartments or condominiums and does not have soil space available.

Step #1: Set Up Your Indoor Garden

Lights

The type of lights you use primarily depends on what you plan to grow indoors.

If you have south-facing windows, it would be great to place your plants on a window sill there. This allows them to get maximum natural light exposure.

You may need low- medium or high lights if you do not have these windows or plan to grow certain plants.

Traditional fluorescent shop lights or cool spectrum grow lights work for seed starting and quick-growing.

They also work for cool-tolerant crops. This is because they enjoy moderate light and warmth of about 60°F/15°C. You can place them at a sunny south-facing windowsill or under shop lights 12 to 16 inches away.

As for herbs, some may do fine with shop lights while others require higher heat and light.

Warm spectrum grow lights are suited for specific herbs and fruiting plants.

These plants require full light and warmer temperatures to bear fruit. To do this, you need to place them directly below grow lights, about 6 to 12 inches above their tops.

Pro Tip!

Opt for LED lights when you can, as this will help you save money in the long-run.

Despite the higher upfront cost, they last longer and use less electricity than other lights. Plus, they don’t heat up, so you will not accidentally burn yourself or your plants.

Growing Medium: To Soil or Not to Soil?

Your growing medium is an indoor gardening term that is the equivalent of the soil for outdoor gardening. Your medium is the material in which you will plant your indoor vegetable.

Non-Soil Growing Medium

Most of the growing mediums for indoor gardening are “soilless” mediums. This means they use something other than actual soil. 

The reason for this is because soilless mediums have more nutrients that will help your plants thrive.

Some of the best are expanded clay, peat moss, coco coir, gravel, and perlite vermiculite.

The only disadvantage is that these alternative growing mediums are less forgiving than traditional soil.

This means you need to pay closer attention and take better care of your indoor garden to make sure your plants grow successfully.

Soil

Others, for this very reason, choose to use soil instead. They are easier to manage and maintain but may not give your plants enough nutrients.

However, it still contains nutrients, organic matter, water, air, and even living organisms like bacteria or fungi. On the other hand, Dirt is “dead” matter that has nothing to offer your plants.

If you plan to use soil, choose organic potting soil and not just those from your garden because it can bring pests and other plant diseases into your home or indoor vegetable garden.

Store excess unused potting in an opaque container and the tub in a stable, dry area like your garage or basement.

Avoid getting the soil wet and do not keep it in a place where common garden pests can get to it or where it is easily infected with bacteria.

Check your stored soil every few months to make sure it is still in good shape and has not started to spontaneously grow anything.

You can use the potting soil you bought for years to come, but the nutrient content will diminish because microbes will eat it. If you are using older stock, you can add fertilizer to ensure it has enough nutrients for your plants.

Pro Tip!

You can begin with a basic seed starting mix for starting plants from seed and then transfer the seedlings into an organic potting mix made for vegetables when they have sprouted a few leaves already.

Make sure you use a sterile potting mix and not garden soil or leftover soil from other plants. This will help you avoid transmitting or transferring pests or diseases.

If you start with plants from a garden nursery, you will need an organic potting mix to fill in space when they go into bigger pots when you get home.

Containers

Your indoor vegetable plants will need containers that are big enough to give them room for root growth.

They also need drainage holes to let excess water out and keep your plants from sitting in drenched soil. Without them, your plants may rot or die.

The appropriate size of the container will depend on the plants you are growing. You can even recycle plastic containers and drill drainage on the bottom, as long as it has the appropriate size you need.

Keep each plant in its container, so it is easy to move things around, depending on your plants’ needs.

Pro Tip!

Group your plants by light needs and mature plant sizes. This will let you find the best position for your grow lights and make it easier to maximize your space.

Check the information on the seed packets or plant tags, or ask the plant nursery sellers for this information.

For leafy greens, consider using plastic window boxes that are approximately 8 to 10 inches deep. This size suits just about everything.

Humidity and Water

Certain times of the year have lower humidity. This will also depend on the climate of your area.

When we turn up the heat or fireplace in our homes during the winter months, the atmosphere may also have less humidity than what is best for your plants.

However, because indoor gardening is more forgiving for environmental conditions and fluctuations, this is an easy problem to solve.

Use a spray bottle to mist each of your plants every day. You can also get automated misters if you want.

To keep the potting mix moist, you can use a household watering can with a long, narrow neck to quickly and directly pour water into the right areas.

If your tap water quality is questionable, you may need to boil and cool it first or use filtered water.

Air Circulation

Good air circulation helps prevent pests, mold, fungus growth, and other problems. It can also help with pollination.

Inadequate airflow and water are two of the most significant contributing factors to plant mold and diseases. Air circulation allows moisture to evaporate quickly to prevent mold growth.

To check whether you have enough airflow, monitor how quickly the soil dries up. If it is taking longer to dry than expected, then you should experiment with better airflow.

You can keep an oscillating electric fan by your indoor vegetable garden to keep the air circulating.

You can get one that runs on a digital timer, so you can set how many hours each day you want it on. You can adjust the ceiling fan on or the window open once in a while if warm enough.

Even though it is a garden indoors, it is best to keep the plants near a window to take advantage of natural light and the light breeze that usually occurs during the day.

During warmer months, you can also take the plants outside for a few hours during the day.

Temperature

Just like humans, plants are vulnerable to temperature variations. Any sudden temperature change can harm your growing vegetables or, worse, kill your indoor vegetable garden altogether.

Generally, the optimum temperature for growing vegetables is between 70°F -75°F. However, it would be best practice to check the particular needs of the plants you intend to grow and the temperature of the area where you plan to grow them.

We advise you to buy a thermometer with minimum and maximum range alerts that will help you monitor whether your plants are under the best conditions for their growth.

If you have central heating and air conditioning for your house, it should be easy to adjust the temperature conditions.

Do note that the placement of your indoor garden and its proximity to natural light sources, appliances, or air and vents will affect the temperature of the area around them. So do not just rely on temperatures based on your centralized system.

These temperature ranges are the best growing conditions. If your room or growing area does not exactly meet them, you can still grow your plants. However, they may take longer.

Fertilizer

Plants require nutrients to provide various functions, such as aiding photosynthesis or building a robust root system.

Fertilizer offers a concentration of nutrients to replenish the original nutrient content of your soil.

Fertilizer can come in packages, recycled coffee, or some warm poop from you or your pet.

Think of it as food for your plants. Different plants require different levels of nitrogen, phosphorous, and potassium (NPK) to live.

These are the essential nutrients your plants need to thrive. Check the NPK ratios to determine if it is the right fertilizer for the particular plants you are growing in your indoor vegetable garden.

Buy organic fertilizer, as these are made to improve your soil as time passes, unlike synthetic fertilizers, which can slowly diminish your soil’s quality.

Indoor Gardening Tools

Full-size gardening tools will not work for indoor gardening. You need smaller versions because of the size of your plants and containers. Consider buying a set, so you have everything you need.

Another extra tool you should consider is a soil moisture tester. This lets you determine how to adjust your plant’s environment and when to water.

Step #2: Plant Your Chosen Vegetables

What Can I Plant in an Indoor Garden?

If you are just starting out, we recommend you start with easy vegetables.

For slow-growing foods like tomatoes, they need to flower and fruit. This means they require more space and optimum conditions over a more extended period before you can harvest them.

Here are some more specific details:

Cool-Tolerant Vegetables and Leafy Greens

Leafy salad greens that can tolerate cool environments well, like spinach, kale, or arugula, grow quickly (four to six weeks)and do so in tight areas. They are reliable and easy to take care of.

  • Light Requirement: 12 hours a day
  • Temperature Requirement: 60°F/15°C

Examples:

  • Carrots (small and sweet)
  • Arugula
  • Beets (greens, tiny roots)
  • Brocolli (stalks, greens only)
  • Brussels sprouts (stalks, greens only)
  • Kale
  • Leafy greens (but not head lettuce)
  • Mache (corn salad)
  • Microgreens (edible seedlings)
  • Mustard greens
  • Peas
  • Radish
  • Sorel
  • Spinach
  • Swiss chard
  • Watercress

Herbs

It is advisable to grow any edible vegetable or herb like those cool-tolerant leafy salad greens during any part of your greens’ growth cycle.

Herbs prefer life outdoors, and most need a lot of sun. However, with good grow lights and patience, you can grow certain types indoors.

  • Light Requirement: 12 – 16 hours a day
  • Temperature Requirement: 70°F/20°C

Examples:

  • Basil (grow roots in water for a while)
  • Oregano
  • Peppermint
  • Rosemary
  • Sage
  • Spearmint
  • Thyme

Warmth-Loving Vegetables

Remember that the bigger the fruit, the longer it will take to grow it, especially indoors.

These are recommended for advanced/patient growers and are fun to grow. However, it will be challenging to grow them in any substantial quantity.

  • Light Requirement: Full sun (high light 14 – 20 hours a day)
  • Temperature Requirement: 70°F/20°C

Examples:

  • Tomato
  • Strawberry
  • Peppers
  • Cucumber
  • Citrus trees/Dwarf varieties (start with a grafted tree)

Step #3: Maintain Your Indoor Garden

Check your plants daily to ensure everything is working, and there are no signs of stress or pests. You may also need to move your container closer to or farther away from the lights, depending on how they are doing.

Certain food plants such as tomatoes may need help with pollination.

You can do this by using your fingertip to dab each flower and distribute the pollen once it is visible on the flowers. The following are details you need to pay extra attention to.

Water Your Indoor Plants

Overwatering is one of the most common causes of death for indoor plants. It is not about the frequency of the watering or about sticking to a watering schedule.

When to Water

You need to pay attention to the leaves. If the leaves are beginning to turn yellow, your plants need less water and more nutrients. If it is brown and crunchy, then it needs more water.

If there are no leaves or they are not growing, they need more water and sunlight. Get started with more water first. If this does not work, then they need more light, too.

Next, pay attention to the soil. If it feels too wet on top or when you stick your finger in it, do not keep watering the plant. The water needs to drain so that it does not accumulate, become stagnant, and breed mold.

Overwatering can also put your vegetables at risk of drowning. Remember that the roots also need air.

This is why having drainage holes is critical to your containers. Drainage can save your plants as it can account for your mistakes when it comes to watering.

If you do not have proper drainage, err on the side of caution. Be conservative in how much you water your plants and pay attention to how long it takes the soil to dry.

If the growing medium stays wet all week, that is a warning that you need to figure out a better solution to improve airflow and that you need to water less.

You would want your soil to dry for vegetables or microgreens sooner than a few days, as they are more prone to developing mold in a shorter amount of time.

How to Water

Some plants thrive more with bottom watering. This is when moisture wicks through the soil.

Other plants are more suited for pouring water directly on top of the growing medium. This is highly dependent on the variety of your vegetables.

Research on what watering technique works to maximize the growth of your vegetables indoors. When in doubt, opt for bottom watering as the biggest roots of your vegetables should reach this.

Apply Fertilizer As Needed

Water your plants before adding dry fertilizers. This will allow your indoor plants to absorb the nutrients. Then, follow the instructions on the fertilizer package on how often you should use it.

Suppose your packaged fertilizer is not specific to indoor gardening. In that case, we recommend that you use only 1/4 to 1/2 of the recommended dosage, as you have a smaller amount of soil to fertilize.

As to liquid fertilizers, you can dilute them to a houseplant’s strength. This can replace regular watering. Check the label for the proper dilution ratio.

Flush Your Plants

Flushing refers to the process of heavy watering to remove excess fertilizer from the soil.

This is because while the fertilizer’s nutrients are absorbed by your vegetable indoors, other fertilizer components will just sit in the soil. This can adversely affect your plants.

If you have drainage holes in your containers, consider heavily watering your vegetables indoors, then let them thoroughly drain out.

It would help if you did this on a monthly basis to flush out the extra fertilizer components and keep your soil healthy.

Step #4: Harvesting Time!

If your chosen plant’s edible portion is the stem or leaves, you can harvest them any time. Some leafy greens are cut and then will grow again, so you can use the outer leaves and leave the inner ones to continue to grow.

Herbs are also harvested as needed by removing small amounts for cooking and leaving the rest of the plant in your garden to continue growing.

As to fruits, look up the days to maturity to know when to expect harvest time. Depending on the lighting and other conditions, this may take longer than what the seed packets say.

Conclusion

With this guide, it is easy for one to get started with gardening your favorite vegetable indoor. While there is a lot to consider to ensure your vegetables grow indoors, it is not as complicated as other types. of gardening.

There is a lot you can grow indoors if you just spend the time, love, and patience on your indoor plants!

Hidden Secrets of the Paw Paw Fruit

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It’s a surprise if you’ve never heard of the pawpaw fruit before. You won’t see pawpaws in grocery stores because they’re hard to keep and transport.

However, the pawpaw is making a comeback for foodies, health nuts, and Earth lovers alike.

Read on to find out about pawpaws and see how you can get your hands on this great, truly American, power fruit.

What Is a Pawpaw Fruit?

Pawpaws, or Asimina triloba, is the largest native fruit in America. The pawpaw is a temperate fruit that grows along North America.

A pawpaw looks like the child of a mango and a banana. You could even mistake it for a papaya because of its size.

In fact, the pawpaw may have gotten its name from the Spanish word for papaya because of its size and color.

It’s easier to tell the difference between pawpaws and other fruits by opening one up. Inside, you’ll find fruit flesh with a soft custard-like texture and long, almond-shaped seeds.

What Does Pawpaw Taste Like?

Most people will tell you that pawpaws taste like a mix of mangoes and bananas, but it’s much more complex than that.

The Texture

The pawpaw fruit is part of the custard apple family, so it tastes like cherimoya from Peru or a soursop (guanábana) from Mexico. Those might be familiar tastes to you.

But if you’ve never had those tropical fruits yet, imagine this: it greets your tongue with a custardy-smooth texture, creamy and delightful.

In some varieties, the texture is reminiscent of avocadoes or an overripe banana. In others, the flesh is a bit firmer, a cross between a mango and a banana.

The Taste

One lick of the flesh and you’re hit with a delightful mixture one can only describe as tropical.

Pawpaws taste like a medley of mango sweetness and banana richness, with a zing of citrus, culminating in a subtle, bitter aftertaste.

But it’s a good bitter, like the kind in aged wine or a good beer, and more subtle, almost floral-like.

It’s hard to describe the journey your taste buds will take with a ripe pawpaw. We recommend you try it yourself.

Where Did Pawpaw Trees Come From?

Closer Than You Think.

Europeans introduced plenty of fruits to America. Like apples and cherries, some of these fruits are so common that we think they’ve always been here. But here’s a fun fact for you: the Europeans imported these fruits when they sailed to America.

Here’s another fun fact: the unfamiliar pawpaw is native to North America. It grows best in the temperate climates of Eastern and Midwestern United States.

They’re most commonly found in Eastern America, from the Great Lakes region to New York, then to the Midwest, and going south until Florida. If you’re in Canada, you can find pawpaws in Ontario.

An Estranged Family

It’s a mystery how this member of the custard apple family found its way so far up North. Some scholars say that the pawpaw emerged in eastern America when the planet was much warmer and adapted to colder climates ever since.

The pawpaw fruit has a pretty long history. Native Americans regularly ate this fruit, and early settlers gave pawpaws a shot and loved it.

Even the Founding Fathers enjoyed pawpaw fruits. George Washington had pawpaws for dessert. Thomas Jefferson planted them in Monticello. How’s that for history?

How America Forgot The Pawpaw

Even if the pawpaw is a native fruit, it’s not very popular. The difficulty of transporting pawpaws and its short shelf life explains why pawpaws are hard to take off commercially.

The pawpaw tree is actually quite easy to cultivate, but the fruit has a pretty short shelf life. At room temperature, pawpaw fruit only lasts 2 to 3 days, or about 3 weeks when refrigerated.

So this explains why the pawpaw didn’t gain the massive popularity that it should. Researchers at Kentucky State University are soon trying to change that.

Making The Pawpaw Great Again

Available In Grocery Chains? Soon Enough.

Researchers from Kentucky State University are trying to make pawpaws commercially available. Their goal is to find the best pawpaw cultivars and identify the best management techniques.

The Kentucky State University program listed criteria for the fresh fruit, like flesh color, fruit size, seed size, fruit shape, and flesh taste. If a pawpaw variety does well, then the KSU will include them in its breeding program.

While the program has shown promise so far, it’s hard to tell when you could get the prized pawpaw in the big-chain grocery store.

It’s still not commercially grown because while researchers are breeding for consistency, it’s still hard to control its shelf life.

In short, the pawpaw is a supply chain nightmare. So where can you find pawpaw fruits?

Where to Find Pawpaw Fruits

In Farmer’s Markets

Because of the pawpaw’s sensitivities and shelf life, your best bet is to get them locally through farmer’s markets.

The bigger question is when to get your hands on the pawpaw. Because pawpaws are so sensitive, it takes only two to three days from picking before it turns to mush.

If you’re lucky, your farmer’s market or local grocery stores could have pawpaws available for two to three weeks. It depends on how many pawpaws your local farmers grew and harvested.

The pawpaw harvest season is usually at around September, right at the beginning of fall.

Your local newspaper might make announcements about pawpaw season. Some places even have annual events, like the Ohio Pawpaw Festival, so we suggest you watch out for those.

Foraging For Pawpaw

If you grow near a mountainous area in the Midwest where pawpaws are abundant, you’re in luck! You could forage for wild pawpaws when fall hits.

If you forage for pawpaw fruits, we suggest you check out forests with a lighter shade, as that’s the ideal environment for pawpaw trees to grow.

Grow Your Own Pawpaw

If you want a steady supply of pawpaw, we suggest you try to grow and cultivate your own. You might learn a thing or two along the way.

From Seeds

While you can try growing and germinating your own trees from pawpaw seeds, we don’t recommend this method. It takes too long for the seeds to germinate and could be erratic.

However, if you want to give it a shot, the Iowa State University suggests you could try placing the seeds in a cool, moist environment of sand and peat moss for 80-100 days. Afterward, you could plant the seeds in a pot.

From Saplings

Instead, we suggest you choose saplings from your local nursery. This way, you could choose how to propagate these trees. There are four cultivars of pawpaw available in the United States.

For best results, we recommend getting two different varieties of pawpaw. Pawpaw trees are self-incompatible. This means that cross-pollination from another unrelated pawpaw tree will give you better results.

Remember the KSU pawpaw breeding program? KSU came up with some varieties to suit your needs.

If you want a tree with heavy crops, then you might want to get the KSU-Atwood variety. If you want an early ripening variety, then the KSU-Benson might be for you.

How Do You Eat Pawpaw Fruit

Now that you’ve figured out how to get your hands on a pawpaw, you might wonder: what’s the best way to eat them?

There are lots of ways to eat pawpaw, and because the pawpaw is getting really popular among foodies, there are more ways to enjoy them than ever before.

Eaten Raw

The pawpaw fruit is usually eaten raw. Just open one up and scoop the delicious flesh out. Watch out for the seeds and the skins! They’re not edible, and they don’t taste as delicious.

If you want a fruit dessert that tastes a lot like ice cream, just chill your pawpaw before serving. This was how George Washington liked to eat pawpaw.

It really is best to let the pawpaw ripen on a tree, but if you picked your fruits early, make sure you wait until it ripens under room temperature first. Otherwise, just toss pawpaw in the fridge, and you’ll be good to go.

Cooking With Pawpaw

Pawpaw has a custard-like texture, so it’s hard to use the flesh as a garnish. It also oxidizes quickly, like a banana does, so it’s best that you use pureed pawpaw flesh the same day you’ve extracted them.

The easiest way to use pawpaw pulp is as a syrup in frozen desserts like frozen yogurt or in pudding recipes.

If you have a banana smoothie, banana ice cream, or banana pudding recipes lying around, you’re in luck: pawpaw behaves a lot like banana as a puree.

Besides frozen desserts, you could also try using pawpaw in your bread and cake recipes. Pawpaw fruit lends itself well to the slow heat of baking and ingredients like dairy and flour.

Conclusion

The pawpaw fruit is a North American wonder fruit still hidden in mystery. It’s making a comeback, though, so don’t miss out! Get your hands on this sweet delight.

How to Grow an Avocado Tree That Bears Fruit: Tips and Tricks

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Nothing screams “millennial” more than avocados. Millennials hyped this fruit up because of its exotic nature, but let’s not deny that avocados are delicious for people of all ages. And you could use them as a face mask, too.

If you’ve ever thought of planting an avocado tree, read below for our tips and tricks!

The Basics

Origins of the Avocado

Avocados (Persea Americana) are tropical fruits native to Mexico. Discovered over 10,000 years ago and domesticated 5,000 years ago by the Aztecs, the avocado was brought to the United States in 1833 by a horticulturist who planted trees in Florida.

However, the fruit’s popularity really took off in the 20th century, where more people started recognizing its value as a cash crop.

Should I Plant An Avocado Tree?

Avocados are expensive, but the DIY route won’t save you some pennies either. Avocado planting is an expensive investment of time, labor, and money.

So if your goal is to save money, then you probably shouldn’t plant avocado trees.

If you want to take on a cool life project, maybe planting an avocado tree would work for you.

The Ideal Environment For Avocado Growth

Before you get your feet wet trying to produce fruit from your tree, make sure you know what it takes. That way, you won’t get disappointed when things go south.

Climate

Avocado is a tropical fruit, so it grows best in warm climates with plenty of sun. If you’re in the United States, it’s best if you live in USDA Zones 9 through 11.

This means you have better chances of growing avocados if you live in Florida, California, Hawaii, or Texas.

Cold weather is dangerous to avocado trees, so you’re out of luck if you live in a colder region.

Avocado Varieties

The three common varieties of avocado fruit in the united states are the West Indian (Persea americana var. americana), Mexican (Persea americana var. drymifolia), and Guatemalan (Persea americana var. guatemalensis) varieties.

Knowing the avocado tree variety is important for growing these trees. Different varieties thrive under different conditions, though they share some things in common.

The West Indian variety is the most sensitive to frost, and the Mexican variety can be more forgiving with colder temperatures.

Soil and Water

Avocado trees don’t do very well in wet soil but thrive in moist soil. They aren’t sensitive to the soil pH level, but they do best in soil with a pH of 6 to 6.5.

Be careful of salinity. Avocado trees won’t thrive in salty soil. You should also keep your water’s salinity in check.

When to Plant an Avocado Tree

There’s actually an ideal time to plant your avocado tree: early spring. In spring, you’re sure that the soil is warm enough and free of frost and you get to avoid harsh, direct sunlight at the same time.

The same rule applies whether you’re transplanting a potted avocado tree, or you’re planting avocado saplings in your backyard.

How to Grow an Avocado Tree From Seeds

A Fair Warning

If you start from the pit, you won’t see your trees bear fruit until you’ve changed careers, had children, or moved to another city.

That’s because you’ll be waiting years for your seed-grown avocado to bear fruit. Maybe a decade or more.

For graft-grown saplings, it only takes 4 years until your tree starts bearing fruit. On the other hand, it takes around 10-15 years for an avocado tree to be mature enough to bear fruit—if you’re lucky.

Avocados aren’t true-to-seed. This makes it that much harder for your plants to pollinate and bear fruit. This is why commercial avocado trees are graft-grown, engineered so that it grows more fruit.

You could always try to plant a tree to experiment and have fun, though. And if things don’t go well for you, at least you’ll have a houseplant.

If you’re really after growing a fruit-bearing avocado tree, skip to the growing avocados from the saplings portion below.

Method 1: The Water-Sprouting Method

This method of planting and growing avocado trees is the most common method you’ll see. It’s also pretty easy to do yourself at home.

What You’ll Need

  • Prepared Avocado Seed
  • Toothpicks
  • A jar, drinking glass, or another container
  • Water
  • Potting soil
  • 10-inch pot with drainage holes

Step 1: Prepare Seed for Planting

To prepare an avocado seed for planting, wash the seeds in water. Then figure out which side of your avocado is the “top” and the “bottom.” The top side of the seed is usually the pointier side, and the broader side is the bottom.

Poke around four toothpicks on each side of the seed, about halfway through the pit. The avocado pit is firm, but you can poke holes into it with a toothpick just fine.

Fill a glass with water. Then take your avocado pit and suspend it, broad end down, over the glass of water, taking care to align the toothpick with the walls of your glass or container.

Make sure the water covers the bottom third of the seed.

Step 2: Wait for Sprouts to Grow

Make sure you keep your glass with the avocado in a spot that’s warm, but not directly hitting sunlight.

Check the water to see if it covers the bottom third of the pit every day and change the water regularly.

You’ll go through this process for about 2 to 8 weeks, or until sprouts and roots start to grow from the seed.

Measure the stem as it grows. When your stem measures 7 inches, cut it down to about 3 inches to encourage root growth.

Step 3: Potting the Avocado Sprout

You’ll know it’s time to transfer the avocado pit to the pot when you see new top leaves growing from the pit.

Make sure you choose a pot that is at least 6 inches in diameter. It’s also important to get a pot with drainage holes because avocado trees need well-drained soil to thrive.

When choosing soil, make sure you get a sandier variety that has less salt. Insert the seed in the soil, covering the entire pit. Leave only the stem above the soil.

From here, you’ll only have to remember to water your plant regularly. Transfer your potted plant to ground soil once it reaches around 2 years old.

Method 2: The Soil-Sprouting Method

Though the water-sprouting method is the most popular, some gardeners prefer the soil-sprouting method. It could be easier and faster than the water sprouting method when done right.

The process is more or less the same as the water-sprouting method, except that you won’t be sprouting your avocado seed over water. Instead, you’ll wait for your avocado to sprout in your pot.

What You’ll Need

  • Prepared Avocado Seed
  • 10-inch pot with drainage holes
  • Potting soil

Step 1: Prepare Seed for Planting

Make sure you clean the avocado pit and rinse all the fruit flesh out. Try to peel or at least score the brown outer skin on the seed. That’s all the preparation you’ll need to do for the seed.

Step 2: Prepare Soil

The rules for choosing soil are the same here as it was in the water-sprouting method. We recommend soil that’s sandier and not too salty. Your soil should ideally have a pH of around 6 to 6.5.

Step 3: Plant Seed in Pot

Make sure you don’t bury the whole seed inside the soil. You’ll want to expose the upper half of the seed to air and bury the bottom half inside the soil.

Just like with water-sprouted pits, make sure you water your avocado enough without flooding. And always expose the pot to warm areas with indirect sunlight.

How to Grow an Avocado Tree From Saplings

Choosing a sapling from your local nursery is the best way to ensure that you get an avocado tree that can bear fruit for you. These days, you can even get saplings from Amazon!

Unlike seed-grown avocado trees, there is a higher chance that you’ll grow fruits with grafted avocado plants. It will only take 3-4 years, which is much shorter than the decade you’ll need for seed-grown avocado trees.

Step 1: Purchasing Your Sapling

Whether you purchase your sapling in your local nursery or from Amazon, make sure you get one that’s grafted. Some nurseries or sellers will tell you if the seedling was “grafted for earliest fruit” or “grafted for heavier fruit crops.”

There are plenty of options, so decide what you want from your avocado tree before you get your sapling.

If you want more yield from your trees, don’t just choose one sapling. Try going for two! Cross-pollination will help increase your fruit yield per year.

If you get two trees, make sure you get one “A” variety avocado and one “B” variety avocado.

The reason for matching an “A” variety with a “B” variety is to time the plants for cross-pollination. You’ll want the male parts of a Type A tree to open at the same time as the female parts of a Type B avocado tree.

The common “Hass” variety is one example of a Type A avocado tree. You could match this with the Type B “Bacon” avocado tree. Both grow in USDA Zones 9b and 10a. These two varieties are a perfect match for both pollination and climate.

If you live in a different region though, you can try to find a list of common varieties for each flowering type here.

If you live in an avocado-growing neighborhood, then you don’t have to worry about buying two saplings. One avocado tree in your backyard should be good enough.

Step 2: Choosing A Planting Site

After you get your hands on some avocado saplings, choose a suitable planting site for your avocado tree to grow.

There are two important things to consider when you choose a site for planting your avocado tree: soil and climate.

When picking a plot in your backyard, make sure that the soil drains well there. Remember: avocado trees hate flooded soil!

Also, make sure to plant in an area with adequate exposure to sunlight.

Step 3: Transplanting The Sapling

Irrigate your plot with water before transplanting the seedling. Water your seedling as well. But always be careful to avoid flooding your plot and the seedling with too much water.

Dig a hole that’s 3 times as wide and 3 times as deep as your tree.

After digging, gently lift your sapling from its container, taking care not to pull too hard. After you’ve placed your tree on the hole, backfill that hole with native soil. Tamp the soil near the tree’s roots to remove air pockets.

Remember: you shouldn’t add fertilizer at this stage. It’s important for your tree to adapt to local conditions such as the climate and native soil.

And there you have it: your backyard fruit-bearing avocado tree, ready to give you some delicious avocados.

Avocado TLC: How to Give Your Avocado Tree the Care It Needs

Fertilizer

Only start fertilizing your tree when it has already adapted to native soil, and try to time it when frost might come. The fertilizer will prepare your tree for cold winters, so it’s best to do it before then.

Try to feed your tree with fertilizer 6 times a year when your tree is 1-3 years old. In its fourth year, reduce your feeding to four times per year.

Avocado trees need nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and zinc to thrive. Any fertilizer that works for a citrus tree will work with avocado trees.

Nitrogen is probably the most important nutrient for avocado trees, so make sure you feed your tree with at least 1 pound of nitrogen per year.

You could spread out your fertilizer applications, but be careful of the weight.

Pruning and Staking

Pruning is important to make harvesting avocados more convenient for you.

Make sure you prune every after harvest during the autumn and winter months. Any earlier or later and you risk the avocado getting sunburnt on the parts you’ve cut out and pruned.

Watering

We recommend you water your avocado once a week to make sure that your tree gets the hydration it needs without flooding it. You should water more regularly when there’s a drought or limited rainfall in your area.

When in doubt about whether you should water, just check the condition of your soil around a couple of inches (2 to 3 inches) or so deep. If it’s dry, then you should water your tree.

Conclusion

Growing avocado trees bearing fruit is tough. Besides the environment, there’s the human factor, too. You’ll need a lot of commitment and time until your avocado trees will finally produce fruit.

Treat your avocado tree like you would your pet. Give it lots of love and devotion. Your tree with thank you for it, maybe with some fruit!

Everything You Need To Know About Growing Fruit Trees

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A fruit tree can turn your backyard upside down and make it a better-looking place to live in. It also comes with a few pluses. Hand-picked fruit snacks, anyone?

Here, we have everything you’ll want to know about growing fruit trees.

Benefits of Growing Fruit Trees

There are plenty of reasons why you should try to grow your own fruit tree.

For starters, trees improve air quality. Plants are natural filters and can remove harmful pollutants from the air we breathe.

Having your own fruit trees can reduce your carbon footprint because you’ll be sourcing your fruits from your own backyard.

The global supply chain, which involves many steps from harvesting to packing, to shipping fruits, takes a huge toll on the environment, so you can do your part by planting fruit trees.

Fruit-Bearing Trees for Beginners

We’d love to tell you that planting trees is as easy as eating fruit and planting the seed in it, but it’s a bit more complicated than that.

Not all trees are created equal. Some kinds, like avocado trees, are hard to get fruits out of. It’s the same with apple trees, which are also not true to type.

“True to type” trees produce the same fruits as their parents. This means that no matter how hard you try, you might not get the same fruit from your seed as the one your seed came from.

You’ll be lucky if your apple is even edible.

Most commercial growers use the grafting technique to make trees produce fruit. Grafting is an old propagation technique that works by connecting a shoot (the “scion”) to a root piece (the “stock”).

If you want to make sure you’re planting a tree that will produce fruit, don’t bother starting from seeds or pits. Start with grafted fruit plants from your nursery or online instead.

How to Get Started

Choose a Suitable Planting Site

There are two important things you have to consider when you’re choosing a place to plant your fruit tree in: soil drainage and sun exposure.

Trees that grow in flooded soil die within a few years because it doesn’t give your plant roots enough room for growth.

Choose a spot in your backyard with good soil drainage. Well-drained soil is best for fruit trees because your fruit tree can receive ample hydration and nutrients without stunting root growth.

You should also look for a place in your backyard that receives full sun exposure. Your fruit trees need sun for at least 6 hours a day.

Choosing Your Fruit Tree

Why Pollination Matters

Pollination is how trees can produce fruit. There won’t be any fruits around without fertilized plant ovaries, after all.

If this is your first shot at planting fruit trees, we suggest you choose self-pollinating trees and shrubs to start with.

Self-Pollinating Trees

With self-pollinating trees, you’re sure that your tree will grow fruits after dedicating some time to taking care of your tree.

Some self-pollinating fruit trees include apricots, peaches, and sour cherries. With these fruits, you don’t have to worry about the variety you’ll choose, because the common varieties of these fruit trees are self-pollinating.

If you want to grow pear trees, you’ll have to be more careful. Pear trees generally aren’t self-pollinating.

If you’re in California, you’re in luck: some pear varieties are self-fruitful, like the Bartlett and the Comice varieties.

If you want an easier tree to start with, you could give persimmons a shot.

Persimmons are easy to grow because they survive diverse soil conditions, they’re self-fruitful, and they can also cross-pollinate.

Cross-Pollinating Plants

If you can take on a challenge, then maybe you can try planting an apple tree.

Apple trees are challenging because they’re self-incompatible and will only grow fruit by cross-pollinating complementary varieties.

With apple trees, you can’t plant and grow just one. You’ll need at least two planted trees with similar bloom times to ensure maximum crop growth.

Bare-Root vs.Balled-and-Burlapped Tree

Besides choosing which fruit trees to get, you also have to decide whether you’ll plant fruit trees bare-root or balled-and-burlapped.

Balled-and-burlapped (B&B) saplings come with a ball of soil around their roots. Chances are if you buy a tree from a nursery, the sapling is likely B&B.

Container-grown plants are also similar to B&B saplings, except that your root ball will probably involve all the soil inside the container.

Root-ball saplings are easier to plant and are gentler on the tree root. All you have to do is to dig a hole in your backyard, place the root ball inside the hole, and backfilling that hole with your excavated soil.

Some gardeners like planting bare-root fruit saplings. Just like the name says, bare-root trees don’t have a ball of soil surrounding the roots.

A bare-root fruit tree will establish more quickly in the environment where it’s planted, so that’s one reason some gardeners prefer it. But the bare-root process could be dangerous to fragile tree roots.

Preparing Your Soil for Planting

We recommend testing your soil first before planting, so you’re sure that you’re planting in a suitable spot. As a minimum, test for soil pH and nematodes.

Soil pH should be somewhere around 6.0 to 6.5 so that your trees absorb the right nutrients.

You should probably check for nematodes, too. Nematodes are parasites that spread viruses to fruit plants and can be dangerous to your fruit tree’s health and crop capacity.

The best kind of soil for fruit tree planting is loam because it’s well-draining.

You can use compost in the planting hole so that your plant roots can grow better, faster, and healthier.

When to Plant Fruit Trees

Spring is the season of fertility for a reason. The best time to plant your tree is in early spring.

It’s important to make sure that the ground is frost and flood-free before you start planting your tree, so don’t rush to plant on the first day of spring.

The earlier you get a head-start on planting and growing your tree, the better. Saplings planted earlier establish faster. Those planted later in the spring could grow slower compared to saplings planted earlier.

Planting Day

The time has come. You prepared your soil, and you chose a glorious spot to plant your tree in your backyard.

You bought a low-maintenance, self-pollinating pear tree. You dug a spot deep enough to accommodate your pear tree.

What now?

Planting Container-Grown or B&B Fruit Trees

If you bought your sapling in containers, you have to take a few extra steps to ensure that your roots are healthy before planting them into the ground.

First, remove the plant from the container. Even if the container is “plantable,” this could choke your sapling’s root.

Next, if you see that the edges of your rootball are just a mass of exposed tangled roots, then shave off the outer inch of the ball with a sharp saw.

Place your tree in the hole after. Don’t make the mistake of planting the entire rootball in the excavation, or else you risk shortening your tree’s life expectancy.

Backfill the hole until the top of the rootball is two inches higher than the surrounding ground.

Afterward, water your tree. About five gallons of water should be enough to hydrate your tree. Larger trees need more water though, so check for the correct amount of water for your tree.

Growing Your Fruit Tree

Your tree won’t grow or produce fruits if you don’t take care of it. For the best results, here are a few tips.

Fertilize

Fertilizer will give your tree the necessary nutrients, like nitrogen, phosphorus, and magnesium. Without these nutrients, your tree will have a hard time growing and producing fruits.

You can choose either organic or chemical fertilizers. What’s more important than the type of fertilizer you use, though, is how often you apply them, and how much.

The amount of fertilizer you need depends on the nutrients in your soil, and the type of plant you’re growing.

Water

You should water your plant regularly, at least once weekly, if you live in a place with less than 1 inch of rainfall.

Prune

You should prune your tree until it reaches around three feet.

Pruning helps speed up your tree’s fruit production because it improves tree strength, encourages new shoots, and lets your tree absorb sunlight more frequently.

Prune younger trees lightly once a year.

Conclusion

These days, it’s really easy to buy all kinds of fruits from the grocery store or your local farmer’s market. You can even order fruits online!

But there’s something different about enjoying the fruit of your own labor. We really think you should give fruit tree-planting a shot.