Planning Your Vegetable Garden
By: Marie Fingerhut
A successful vegetable garden takes practice, patience and planning. Begin by making a list of the vegetables and herbs you would like to include in your garden. Whether starting your plants from seed yourself or purchasing transplants at a garden center, choose varieties with disease resistance for improved yields and less need for pesticides. Next, it is useful to diagram your garden, as shown above. A diagram will help you use your space most efficiently and will show you exactly where to place your seeds or plants. (Use our growing vegetable charts to determine space requirements between plants). Proper spacing will allow for good air movement through your garden. This is important to permit water on plant leaves to dry quickly which may decrease plant disease. Plant the tallest vegetables at the north end of the garden so they don’t shade the shorter plants. Growing vine crops (i.e. cucumbers or pole beans) up a trellis or support saves valuable space in smaller gardens.
Photo: Beans are trellised and the trellis also provides for shade for cool weather crops.
Like all living things, plants need nutrients to grow strong and thrive. If possible, test the soil to determine the soil conditions (soil type, pH, and fertility) you are starting with. Most vegetables require a pH range from 6.0-6.8 for optimal growth. The best time to test the soil is after harvest in the fall or before spring fertilization. You can test the soil yourself using a soil testing kit purchased from a catalog or garden center or for a small fee use the soil testing service provided by the County Cooperative Extension offices throughout the state. Consider a free soil test through Rutgers. The results of the soil test will tell you what nutrients you need to add to the soil. In addition to nutrients, your soil will benefit from the addition of organic matter such as compost or peat moss. New gardens may need 4 to 8 inches pf organic matter the first year or two if the soil quality is poor.
Fertilize plants in the spring to get transplants off to a strong start. Vine crops like extra fertilizer when the vines begin to run and again when the flower buds are forming. Most other vegetables like fertilizer about 3 weeks after transplanting or when fruit is starting to form.
In addition to nutrients plants need proper watering to grow. For optimal growth, vegetables need about 1 inch of water per week (65 gallons/100 square feet) from rainfall or irrigation. When hand-watering, wet the soil around the base of the plant. Try to avoid wetting the foliage which can promote disease. Water as early in the day as possible to allow any water that gets on foliage time to dry off before nightfall. Water deeply 2-3 times per week rather than a shallow watering every day. Watering deeply will encourage plants to send roots down into the ground and promote stronger, healthier plants.
Mulches are a great addition to your vegetable garden. They reduce weed growth, retain soil moisture, and stabilize soil temperature. Use 3-4 inches of an organic mulch (grass clippings, shredded fall leaves, compost) around your vegetable plants. Plastic mulches are also available and work well too.
A good garden plan, proper bed preparation, and the use of disease resistant varieties will make the best use of your garden space and improve your chances of producing healthy, tasty vegetables.
