Planning A Garden
I know…it’s still that time of year where tomorrow could be a chance of snow! What am I talking about, garden planning… Isn’t that several months away?
Sadly, yes, springtime will be here in a few months. BUT, that doesn’t mean you can’t plan ahead for all the amazing things you will be planting in your garden!
Benefits of Planning A Garden
Obviously, the benefits of planning ahead are clear. You will know about how big your garden needs to be, how much to plow, and even a round about guess as to how much money you will need to spend in seed or plants.
You will know if you need to spend time fertilizing or even purchasing soil.
If you need to start adding money into a budget for your garden, now is the time to think about that as well. It is always helpful to plan ahead. It will save you time and money!
Where Do I Start?
If you are a beginner, now is the time to start dreaming and even drawing out some plans. There are all kinds of fun ways to plan your garden. From sun mapping to drawing it out on a grid…there’s so much to learn and to do when you’re first starting a garden. I’ve found some helpful resources that may interest you if you’re looking for fun ways to start dreaming:
Here are some neat layouts to inspire your garden plans from Morning Chores:
This template could be super helpful from Axe and Root Homestead:
https://www.axeandroothomestead.com/store/p28/FREEGardenBedPlanningTemplates.html
These resources should give you some idea of where to start.
It’s also important to know your planting zone. We are zone 7. A quick Google search should tell you what your grow or planting zone is. This is helpful when planning and knowing what and when to grow your plants.
How Do I Choose WHAT to Plant?
I love looking at seed catalogs to start thinking about what we can plant this year. In the past we have started our own tomato plants, zucchini, squash…you name it. But this year we will not be starting everything from seeds. When it comes time to plant, we will have to buy certain plants from our local farm store. Next year we are looking to start more from seed that we hopefully get to save from our existing plants. (We have a newborn coming in the spring…and I don’t know how committed I can be to starting seeds this season, to tell you the truth!)
Here are some places to start looking for seeds. We have used these in the past, and also just picked up seed from our local co-op.
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Rareseeds.com
Burpee Seeds burpee.com
If you want to try Azure Standard for grocery delivery, they have seed as well! (If you’re interested in giving them a try, be sure to use my referral code! RachelDavis19, or click here: https://www.azurestandard.com/?a_aid=278002d8ff)
Evidently there is a huge demand for seed this year. So you better get to ordering!
We always direct sow in our garden for certain crops. Here’s a list of the seeds I’ve ordered so far:
How Big Should I Make My Garden?
I found this article very helpful in planning for how much you should plant based on the size of your family:
The Prairie Homestead is a wealth of info on, well, just about everything. In fact, she had some great pointers in her podcast episode #2 of Season 3. Please check it out! Super informative!
Every family will be different regarding how much you should plant. For us, we almost use our garden as a community garden. We grow plenty for our own needs, then we always have extra for friends and family. We usually plant around 60 tomato plants, 15-20 bell pepper plants, at least 10 each of zucchini and squash, sometimes more…and whole rows of green beans, corn, okra, sweet and white potatoes, greens…
Sometimes, you just have to see what the year yields, take note, and make adjustments the following year.
My husband always seems to expand our garden every year by plowing up another tractor width when he goes around the garden. We use a pretty huge plot.
Of course, you will plant the vegetables that you are excited about eating! It’s tempting to grab every neat looking plant or seed that comes my way, but if it will be wasted…if we don’t like eating it…I shouldn’t waste our time and money in planting it. (This is rare, but there have been instances where we got carried away and ended up not using an exotic pepper plant, for example.)
Planning Ahead Will Prepare You For Harvest Time
If you plan ahead now…you will be more excited and more prepared to harvest. There are more things to think about than just planting the garden.
You need to contemplate how you will make the plants grow, how you will harvest, then how you will store them long term.
Do you have time in your schedule to care for as big of a garden as you’re planning? Can you spare time to do your garden chores?
Will you be canning? Should you invest in some jars? Do you have a place for cold storage for potatoes? Have you researched proper storage for what you plan to harvest?
I wanted to point the end game out, just because it’s easy to get carried away in the excitement of planting in the spring.
If you are prepared, the process will go much smoother, believe me!
Sometimes, you look back and think, “Wow, I spent a lot of time, not to mention money, on this project and I don’t feel like I came out ahead.” This is all part of farming. You learn lessons and you plan ahead for the next year! It makes you smarter and more frugal.
This is a good post from A Farmish Kind of Life on having realistic goals for your harvest and garden; especially if you think you want to save or make money:
Happy Garden Planning!
Well folks, I hope I at least gave you a few things to think about. To tell you the truth, my husband hardly ever plans anything. I’m the one that has to remind him that, “Hey, there may be a seed shortage this year, let’s go ahead and order NOW!”
If you don’t have everything perfectly planned, don’t sweat it. But it is helpful to at least think these things through while the days are still short and cold. At least we can dream of springtime.
For more articles like this, please visit Farm Life and Garden!
Interested in a unique aspect of Appalachian gardening? See this post: Going By the Signs
