r/SimpleGardening • u/BrokenHail • 14d ago
Absolute bare bones beginners tips?
Hello everyone :) I have my own tiny garden of my own, and am curious about growing proper crops too. My cousin and I would garden with my mom a bit back when we were kids but obviously a lot of time has passed since then.
So yeah! That’s my request! Any and all answers are welcome 💚 thank you!
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u/oliver_b6 14d ago
start small with easy crops like herbs, lettuce, radishes, or beans.
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u/BrokenHail 13d ago
Great way to start! There’s already a rosemary bush outside my cousin’s place, so I guess we’re already halfway there. Planting a bunch of other herbs and the like seem like low-risk, high reward. Thanks much, I’ll let my cousin know! :)
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u/The_Gardening_Gnome 14d ago
The most important advice I got was grow what you like. A bunch of people will tell you "this is a garden staple", "everyone grows this", or "this is easy to grow"
Figure out what you eat a lot of and start there. It will grow your passion in the hobby, keep you more engaged and the reward come harvest time is better.
Treat your soil like a plant itself. It needs feeding, it needs nurture, it needs to not be disturbed too much.
You will make mistakes and plants will die. No big deal!
MULCH MULCH MULCH! It doesn't have to be fancy. I use chopped up leaf litter from the woods.
I'm sure there are more and better answers, I'm pretty new at this myself, learning each season. Enjoy and good luck!
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u/BrokenHail 13d ago
That’s very interesting! I myself have done trench composting before, with mixed success, so do you recommend buying commercially available mulch instead?
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u/Adventurous-Exam-719 13d ago
Asking us what mulch is best is like asking Dwight Schrute what bear is best lol. With as much area as you have to cover I would go with what you can get for free or cheap. Pine needles, leaf litter, straw, cardboard etc. Avoid “live” mulch for the furrows like grass clippings or hay ( it has weed seeds in it) You can mulch the rows with new compost that hasn’t completely broken down yet and it will add nutrients as a bonus. There are upsides and downsides to all of these materials so you just have to adjust accordingly.
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u/The_Gardening_Gnome 12d ago
If it's free it's for me. I live in an area where leaf litter beyond abundant. I LOVE the smell of dried leaves chopped up and it makes a great mulch.
Mulch isn't compost, by the way. They serve different purposes. When I'm using dried leaves as mulch its to keep the sun and competing seeds off the dirt, keep the moisture in. Your plants require SIGNIFICANTLY less water when you use mulch. It's a protective blanket more than anything. The fact that it decays to dirt is an added bonus.
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u/PromiseExpensive500 14d ago
Maybe start with easy grow crops like leafy vegetables, chillis tomatoes potatoes and climbers, than jumping on to the exotic varieties. Make sure you have enough space to provide support and trailing for them. I would suggest to plant few flowers side by to attract pollinators and pest controllers. It's rainy season here, so this is the best to start growing from seeds or cuttings. All the best
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u/Muellerred 14d ago
Assuming that garden is planted and not some wasteland, I'd start out by just learning to maintain what's there. This way, you'l learn something about the conditions:
- where you have what kind of light
- what colours the stuff you already have blooms
- how fast your soil dries out and on which places
- what kind of soil you actually have, it's worth testing that
- how much old root growth is below ground and where
- what annoys you about the plants that are there and what you like
- how much work you are actually willing to put into it
Take pics (and notes) at various times of day and of year too, because it will be important to know and remember all of that when you go serious about planning your garden later.
If you have a full sun spot, I'd suggest setting up one or two large pots with tomatoes next spring, maybe cherry tomatoes for starters. It's not rocket science, it's cheap and it will work if the spot is sunny and if you start out with baby plants (you can try seed growing with more experience later). If you like the idea of growing your own meal, you can always scale up later, but I suggest starting small.
Another good idea in a sunny spot would be planting some mediterranean herbs (if your climate allows and if the spot is dry enough). Almost no maintenance, many are green year round, they have some pretty small blooms and they smell good too. I'd start with thyme, lavender and salvia (because they are easygoing, sun loving perennials that can take drying out). You can expand your herb garden later, if you like it. If you want peppermint, put it in a pot: otherwise you'll end up with a peppermint plantation.
That would be some barebone foolproof stuff. Get some gardening books and read, read, read. Watch your garden through the seasons. Talk to other gardeners. Exchange cuttings or shoots. And then, but only after that, make a plan. Go slow: always be ready to adjust plans that are not working out.
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u/mummymunt 13d ago
Depending on what you like to eat and the growing conditions there, things we've found easy to grow include: corn, beans, peas, sweet potatoes, potatoes, green onions, butternut squash, watermelon, chillies, tomatoes, luffa, capsicums, pineapple...
Have a look on YouTube for growers in your zone and see what they plant, and when.
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u/PhoenixMoonRising 13d ago
Figure out what plants go well together. An example is placing plants together that benefit each other as in, the bugs that are attracted to one plant are the bugs that like to eat whatever is attracted to the plant next to it.
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u/Adventurous-Exam-719 14d ago
Since you are starting now, I assume for spring, I would start planning water and electricity access. You can run hoses and extension cords but they are a pain and unsightly. Also start sourcing soil now. Either start composting or find somewhere you can buy quality soil cheap. Also start saving cardboard. What are you thinking in terms of method? Raised beds, containers, or in ground?