The Makings of a Vegetable Garden
Even for those of us with a more relaxed attitude towards garden design, a vegetable garden demands discipline. For one, you don’t want to question whether the contents of your herb wheel are edible, and vegetable crops are energy intensive enough without unproductive demands on their resources.
The most important task in a kitchen garden is keeping it tidy: weed religiously and trim excessive foliage to encourage produce yield. Avoid diseases promoted by poor air circulation by respecting the plants’ spacing requirements.
The optimal width for a vegetable bed is three feet if it has access from one side and five feet if it has access from both sides, this way you can reach easily to clean and harvest and don’t have to step on the dirt. This keeps the soil loose and gives the plant roots room to develop.
Starting a vegetable bed in any area that does not receive full sun for the entire day is hardly worth the trouble.
Companion planting improves both yield and flavor, so don’t miss out on the classic combinations: tomatoes and basil, pole beans and corn, green beans, eggplant and pepper, dill and cabbage and yes, peas and carrots. Lovage, tarragon and marjoram improve the taste of any neighboring vegetables.
Marigolds are a staple of the kitchen garden, because their pungent scent repels damaging insects. They fit in the color scheme beautifully, since most vegetable flowers tend to be white or yellow.
All trailing vegetables do better staked, trained and cleared of excessive foliage. Keep invasive herbs like mint and dill contained by planting them in a buried pot or chimney flue. Respect height hierarchy for visual appeal and easier maintenance.
Prepare the beds thoroughly at the beginning of the season by mixing in a good amount of compost or natural fertilizer, but don’t overfeed during the growing season. Let the dirt dry out between waterings to encourage the plants to develop a deep root system.
Be patient and allow the vegetables to reach their peak of ripeness before you pick them, getting that perfect flavor is one of the best things about growing your own garden.
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