The Small Kitchen Garden
Planting Guidelines
Planting three to five plants per family member is usually enough to yield enough for a family.
Herbs and leafy greens can be grown in pots, and they will produce plenty for a family, especially if they are of the cut and come again variety.
800 sq ft with full sun is the least amount of space you need for a vegetable garden; if you're hoping to grow asparagus, cabbages, melons, or potatoes then you'll need to factor in more room.
Follow good gardening practices to give the plants every advantage: weed, cultivate, prune, train on supports, treat against pests, feed and water generously, and respect the recommended spacing.
Make the most of the space by growing plants vertically. This increases both the quantity and the quality of the produce.
Use succession planting to reclaim the space left bare after the harvest of early crops like radishes and snow peas.
Stagger the planting of quick crops like beans, cucurbits and herbs to extend their productive time: gardening practices recommend planting fresh seeds every two weeks.
If you don't have room, most vegetables will grow in containers. Reluctantly. It will be a lot of work, both for the vegetables and for the gardener.
What to Start Directly in the Garden
Root vegetables and annuals with woody or tiny seeds are best sown directly in the garden after the danger of frost has passed.
These plants germinate reliably and grow fast, but dislike having their roots disturbed.
Here's a short list:
- cucumbers, squashes, melons and gourds: plant them in mounded nests of four or five seeds close to supports.
- beans and peas: if you want them to sprout faster and increase their germination rate, soak the seeds overnight before planting.
- parsley, basil, and dill: seed over cultivated patches and thin the plants as they grow to avoid overcrowding and running into each other
- spinach, radishes, carrots, lettuce and kale: plant them in rows, one foot apart, in early spring.
The Day of Last Frost
Most veggies are annual plants, cold tender and fast growing. Wait until after the last day of frost in your area before planting them in the garden.
That day keeps pushing into the summer lately, despite the overall warming of the climate, so if you don't know when it is anymore, you can check it out .