My First Garden- Ten Tips For First Time Gardeners

Now, I should begin this post by letting you know I am not an expert gardener.  I used to help my grandmother in her garden when I was a little girl.  Then, I grew herbs, pretty successfully, here and there, over the last 14 years.  I am currently attempting to grow my own organic and heirloom vegetable and herb garden.

It seems to be going pretty good, so far.

I planted my seeds a couple of weeks ago.  These pictures show what is now happening, SEEDLINGS!  My arugula was the first to burst forth.  Next came my butter lettuce.  It seems almost everything has started to pop out now.  The hardest part, so far, has been keeping Boho from sticking her nose into the pots.  She's fascinated by them!

I've heard from a few people, who started their seeds at the same time, that they're not having as much luck with their seedlings.  I'm going to go through everything I've done to get my seedlings so healthy.  Like I stated before, I am not an expert.  So, feel free to use this information, if you would like.  It's worked for me.  I mean, look at my little seedlings!

1. Use quality seeds.  There are many companies who sell quality, organic and heirloom seeds.  My favorite is Planet Natural.  You can also find some great companies here.

2. Use quality soil.   This is the one I used.  I suggest organic soil, especially if you're growing organic veggies.

3.  Keep the soil moist.  Do not let your soil dry out.  I water mine every other day.  If the soil is still moist to the touch, you probably don't need to add much.  Don't drown them either.

4.  Read the packet of seeds for information on sun.  Some plants will require full sun, some partial.  Read and follow.  I planted all seeds that needed full sun together.  Likewise, with partial sun seeds. 

5.  Pay attention to your seeds.  Every day, I check on my seeds.  I make sure to move them as the sun moves around my three season room.

6. Keep pets and children away from seeds and seedlings.  This is the hardest for me.  Boho just wants to get all up into my dirt.  Just do your best to keep them away.

7. Protect them from the elements.  I started my seeds indoors. I highly recommend this.  There were a couple of days we had low temperatures.  I put warming lamps over my seeds.  It's a bit extreme, but it worked.

8. Be sure to mark your seed pots with what you're growing.  I was so paranoid that my labeled pics would fall out, I drew out a full planting diagram.  I wrote it's location in the room, what was planted where, and sun/water instructions. 

9. Talk and/or sing to your seeds and seedlings.  This one is optional.  But, I found mine really liked 70's tunes.  Like I said, optional, but recommended.

10. Show your seedlings some love.  I take pics of mine, tell them how proud I am of them, and share my coffee with them.  Actually, it's coffee grounds.  When I noticed my first seedlings popping out,  I put 1 tablespoon used coffee grounds into each seed pot compartment.  I, then, watered as usual.  Turns out, they really like it.  I add new grounds every other week.

I don't know if any of these tips will help your garden grow; but, mine seems to be doing exceptionally well.  Being a first time gardener doesn't have to be difficult.  Just have fun with it.  If something doesn't grow, it wasn't meant to be.  Chances are, you'll be able to grow at least a few things.  That will save you some money at the grocery store.

The next step for me will be transplanting my seedling pots into containers.  I'll be posting all about that experience.  I decided to do container gardening because I'm going to try to bring my garden indoors for the winter months.  We'll see how that works out.

Until then, good luck with your garden, and God Bless.

Resources:

Getting Ready For Spring- Seed Planting, Closet Cleaning, and Reminiscing

Yesterday, April 1st, my husband and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary.  Yes, we chose April Fools Day on purpose.  It seemed to fit in perfectly with our shared sense of humor; and, it helped us to remember the date, since we're both so bad with remembering dates.  Aah, 14 years of wedded bliss.

Anyway, this post is not about my anniversary.  I just felt I should mention it.  This post is about preparing for spring.  I do feel weird calling it spring, since it was 34 degrees outside, when I woke up this morning.  But, the calender tells me, it is indeed spring.

This year, I've decided to plant my very own organic garden.  I have planted herbs, indoors, for years.  But, I haven't had a vegetable garden in over 20 years.  I'm just hoping I remember how to do everything.  Thank God for the internet.  I have all of the information I need, right at my fingertips.  

So, on Saturday, I planted all of my vegetable and herb seeds.  I planted organic cucumbers, zucchini, three varieties of lettuce, carrots, chamomile, lavender, mint, cabbage, broccoli, basil, green onions, and spinach.  Now, I'm just waiting for them to sprout.  I'm going to plant them all in containers, when they're ready.  I decided to do container plantings because of my lack of space and optimal weather. This way, I can pull all of the containers into my three season room, when the weather gets chilly.  I'm thinking we're going to have a short summer in Illinois this year.  I want to try to grow my garden year round.  It's quite the undertaking, I know. However, I'm tired of paying the high price of organic vegetables at the grocery store.  Unfortunately, we don't have year round farmers' markets nearby.

Boho is completely enamored by the seed planting process.  She has tried to help from the beginning.  At one point, I looked up to find her face completely covered in Organic Potting Soil.  Of course, I had just given her a bath the night before!  Now, she's appointed herself "Seed Guardian".

Stay tuned for updates on my gardening progress.  I'll be posting as I go along, with what works, and what doesn't.

The next project on my spring prep, was to clean out my closet; and, change out my fall/winter clothes for my spring/summer clothes.  I know not everyone does this.  But, I highly suggest doing this.  One, you can save space in your closet.  And, two, you can get rid of clothes you haven't worn in awhile, need repair, or simply don't fit anymore.

To do a season clean-out, simply pull out all clothes that you will not be wearing for the next two seasons ( I find it easiest to go spring/summer, fall/winter), try on everything you've pulled out, if it fits, place it in a Space Saver Bag for storage, if it doesn't fit, toss it in a bag for donation.  Same goes for anything worn, frayed, or in need of repair ( unless you're going to repair it within the next hour; any longer, you probably won't get to it).  Then, put all of your Space Saver Bag into storage (under your bed, in a storage room, attic, garage).  When, the season changes to your stored clothing, repeat process.  Twice a year, it's like I get a closet full of new clothes!  

 Boho buried under piles of fall/winter clothes

My closet SPRINGS to life!

And, yes, my clothes are organized into item (jackets, skirts, dresses, shirts, pants), and then, divided into subgroups (example: camis, then sleeveless, then short sleeve, then long sleeve), and then, sorted by color.  I'm a little OCD about my closet.  Who am I kidding?  I'm a little OCD about everything!  And, that's okay!

I hope this post helps get you in the mood for your own spring prep, if you haven't done it already. Next post, I'll be giving tips on natural spring cleaning.  I will include lots of great recipes for diy cleaners and brands you can trust not to poison your family.

Until then, God Bless!

Resources

Great gardening info and heirloom/organic seeds

My Pinterest Gardening Board

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