February Gardening: Getting Ready for Spring

It is hard to believe but it is already the second month of the new year and spring is just around the corner. While the ground outside may still be partially frozen, it is time to start preparing for the start of the new growing season. April and May are not far off and many decisions must be finalized before tilling the spring garden spot.

Site selection is crucial for your garden to succeed. The outdoor vegetable garden requires approximately 6-8 hours of sun a day. The light is an essential part of photosynthesis which is the process in which plants make their food. If a more scientific explanation is desired, try looking up photosynthesis in the Google search bar provided at the top right of this page.

Once a garden spot has been chosen, it is then time to break out the paper and pencil and draw out your garden plan. Unless you own a large partial that can be devoted to a garden, then your garden spot will determine what you can grown. Planning a head of time what you will plant and the row size in the garden will help to utilize the entire garden spot.

Gardens can be grown in raised beds, a traditional garden, or containers on a patio or porch. You do not have to have a large garden spot to enjoy fresh vegetables, just an area large enough to yield what you want to harvest. The mechanics of the traditional garden, raised beds and patio gardening will be addressed in later articles. The articles will include the method of soil preparation, fertilization, irrigation, and weed control.

It is recommended to keep a journal from year-to-year to track what went well and what did not from the year before. If you are a new gardener, documenting your current gardening experience will save a lot of time and effort through out the years to come. If you had a garden last year, then it is time to review your journal notes from last year garden to make appropriate changes. But no matter where you are in your gardening venture, documenting your experiences will help you to learn through trial and error and produce delicious and nutritional vegetables for years to come.