Gardening 101: How do I start a garden? What type of garden tools do you suggest? Serious replies only.?

Question

Right now the area is partially covered with mulch.

Answer 1

Start small...identify a small area or existing bed and focus on good soil first. Then try to use native or local plants...they'll be easier to grow and best for a beginner. Don't forget to mulch afterwards to keep down the weeds and help the garden retain moisture.

As for tools, I need a rake, a shovel, and a pitch fork.

Good luck!

Answer 2

Having it covered with mulch is good. Start small. There's nothing more depressing than a too-large garden which has gotten away from you. Better to have a small patch that looks terrific. New gardeners often dig up more than they can handle.

Think about what you plan to grow. Flowers? Veggies? If you're growing veggies pick the ones that you like the most. Don't waste land growing veggies that nobody is going to eat. Save your energy and space for the things that taste best fresh, like tomatoes, or are most expensive at the store, like snow peas.

You need to take into account what kind of soil you have. Hopefully, you have loam which is dark, relatively fluffy and full of rotted plant materials. Clay and sandy soil require slightly different gardening techniques and it's too much to put here. You'll need local advice or a gardening book.

Find out which varieties grow best in your area. Buy good seeds from a reputable seed dealer. Your first try isn't the time to mess with old seeds from the bargain bin. They can be fine, but save that until you're more confident. Find out when it's time to plant each particular seed in your area. For example, green beans need warm soil or the seed won't sprout and may just rot in the ground. The soil is warm in Georgia a long time before it's warm in Wisconsin, so you'd plant them earlier in Ga.

Look in a good gardening book for tips on what grows best in your area and what conditions each plant likes. For example, you need to have soil dug up and loosened up fairly deep for carrots because they grow downward. Tomatoes usually do better if you stake them up and keep the tomatoes off the ground. A good gardening book will tell you these details. Sunset magazine puts out one of the best books.

A good source of gardening information for your area would be the county extension service. This is a government agency funded by the Department of Agriculture. Look in the phone book. They often have free or low cost gardening workshops and they really know your area.

If you can, have the area rototilled. Working the mulch in will add to the soil. If you don't have a rototiller, you can dig it up with a spade. Break up the clots of soil. Once you've planted, don't walk on it. You don't want to compact the soil. The new roots like fluffy soil that they can spread out in.

You don't need very many tools to start with. A shovel. I have a smaller than standard size shovel because I find it lighter, easier to handle. and I can get in tighter spaces with it. You'll need a garden rake, a heavier rake than a leaf rake. A hand trowel will be needed for planting small plants like peppers or tomatoes that you buy already started. A hoe is good for getting rid of weeds without having to bend down and pull them out, but you can get by without it in a small patch. If you're turning over the soil yourself a turning fork would be helpful. Gloves! Buy several pairs of gardening gloves when they're on sale.

Before you plant, go to the library and look at gardening books. Sunset magazine's gardening book is great. It'll give you details about your location. Mel Bartholomew's "Square Foot Gardening" is an excellent book. He has a slightly different gardening system, planting in squares rather than in rows. It's good information. Research done before you plant can save you a lot of disappointment.

Good luck. I hope you find gardening to be as rewarding as I do.