Sprout's Top Tips to Start a Vegetable Garden
Spring is fast approaching and with it the new growing season. Nothing beats that feeling when you harvest your own vegetables, but first you have to grow them! Here are our top tips for starting to grow vegetables this year.
1. Make a plan
Figure out where you are going to grow your vegetables - you're looking for a sunny spot which gets 6-8 hours of sunlight during the summer.
Then in the space available plan out what you are growing and when - try to space out harvest times so that you can harvest all year round, and you don't get overwhelmed by a glut of vegetables all at once.
2. Grow what you want to eat
This may sound obvious but it's really important - there is no point growing bucket loads of potatoes if you don't really like them!
3. Start things off indoors
Windowsills are brilliant to get seedlings started - they are warm and they are calm, just what your seeds will need to germinate and what your seedlings want for the first few weeks of their life!
You can sow your seeds in a seed tray, or even make your own starters from the inside cards of toilet rolls - check out this video to see how! You can keep growing your seedlings until they have their first two sets of proper leaves, at which point you can transplant them outside.
4. Remember to thin out your vegetables
This is the hardest part of growing veg - but it is so essential so make sure you do it.
Thinning your seedlings will create the space for the remaining plants to grow into full plants, and stop them competing against each other as they grow bigger.
This means they will focus on being sturdy and strong rather than trying to get above the other plants and nick the sunlight. It will also improve airflow around the pot - reducing the chances of diseases.
5. Harvest regularly
So often we have left vegetables growing because they look so happy - but before you know it they've gone over and we've missed them. Harvest your veg regularly so you don't miss a single one - you've put the love and care into growing them so make sure you give them the opportunity to shine on your plate!
