Completely new to gardening, advice?

[theOEGBman]

I just wanted to say Congrats & Good Luck on your gardening. Its great to see other young people doing this. I've gardened my whole life (18 years) and its hard to find others my age that do as well. I hope all goes well for you.

 

[Empera]

I just wanted to say Congrats & Good Luck on your gardening. Its great to see other young people doing this. I've gardened my whole life (18 years) and its hard to find others my age that do as well. I hope all goes well for you.

Thanks! Seriously, everyone else does sports and school activities. When I used to tell them I had chickens they would give me this look like (you can have them as pets?!) Of course. We don't live in the city city, but we don't leave in the country either. We are in between. Most teens wouldn't have the patience or time to garden.

I know I'm not a patient person, but I'm willing to enjoy this as much as possible!

I am planning on having my daughter plant her 1st garden this year, she is 3. She has already placed seeds into cups of dirt in the house.

That's adorable. & thanks for the congrats.

Here's a picture of the "will be garden" after it was rototilled on Sunday. I didn't even think of taking a picture before. It was hideous. There were large mumps everywhere with long grass and icky weeds. It makes my yard look better.

Don't mind the tree branches up above, they only block 1/3 of the gardens light and rain, and we are trimming those up a bit.

I plan on making it look really nice, I just am going to slowly do that haha.

A few days ago, I planted my celery seeds inside. But that's the only thing I've planted! Haha.

I believe I can go for my carrots, radishes, corn, and bush beans.

 

[theOEGBman]

theOEGBman wrote:
I just wanted to say Congrats & Good Luck on your gardening. Its great to see other young people doing this. I've gardened my whole life (18 years) and its hard to find others my age that do as well. I hope all goes well for you.

Thanks! Seriously, everyone else does sports and school activities. When I used to tell them I had chickens they would give me this look like (you can have them as pets?!) Of course. We don't live in the city city, but we don't leave in the country either. We are in between. Most teens wouldn't have the patience or time to garden.

I know I'm not a patient person, but I'm willing to enjoy this as much as possible!

You're welcome. Same here, although I do live in an agricultural community. Most people my age just do not know where anything they consume comes from. Luckily for me, now being in college, I am able to take agricultural classes and meet other people that share my interests. I get the chickens as pets deal a lot too, but I get talk about my snakes even more! Its a great thing to do, and at such a young age I think we are able to help others understand it more. I dont know, its fun and that's all that matters. And just think.... when everyone else is paying a million and a half bucks for groceries, we get to enjoy what we have growing right out back!

 

[momofdrew]

I have been gardening since I was 3 years old when my dad showed me my first merigold seeds and loved it when they came up in my own little garden...have been hooked on gardening for 62 years...it is one of the most rewarding hobbies you can have and you can actually make a living from it if you get really serious about it...good luck on your first garden and

 

[Empera]

I get the chickens as pets deal a lot too, but I get talk about my snakes even more!

Really? Snakes are great pets, and they feel so smooth. My boyfriend has an endangered snake speciec called the Indigo. They are supposed to be the largest non-venomous snake in the US. I guess it's because it either doesn't kill the prey as quickly or it swallows it the opposite direction so the claws of the prey scrape the inside of the snake and damages it.

Anyway, she's an awesome blueish/black color and so cool to just sit and have her wrap around you. (Not tight of course!)

I guess the whole "no legs" is something people can't get past. Haha. (It's off topic, but what kind of snake(s) do you have?)

 

[Empera]

I have been gardening since I was 3 years old when my dad showed me my first merigold seeds and loved it when they came up in my own little garden...have been hooked on gardening for 62 years...it is one of the most rewarding hobbies you can have and you can actually make a living from it if you get really serious about it...good luck on your first garden and

That's wonderful that gardening is such a passion that you've kept it that way for your whole life!

Thanks for the warm welcome.

 

[Empera]

Anyone have any other suggestions?

 

[jlmann]

I would recommend mulching. It is probably one of the best things you can do in the garden for your plants. Mulching helps control weeds , helps conserve water and at the end of the season you can till it back in and as it decomposes it adds nutrients and improves drainage. I have always used grass clippings from the yard since I know there have never been any heavy duty pesticides or herbicides sprayed on MY yard whereas with the store bought stuff you just never know. You can also post any and all questions you have on here and we will try to help. It's so nice to see younger people getting into the whole " gardening" thing - I'm sure everyone will be glad to be able to help! Good luck! I hope everything does well for you this year. And I was serious about having fun with your garden and not worrying about it too much your first time because every year is different and gardening is always a "learning" experience!

 

[Daydreamer]

As a former Seattle area person, I know you will most likely find that your worst predator will be slugs. They seemed to love my garden. I used yeast and water in containers on the ground to control them. That worked well for me. Your first year is a learning year. Keep a journal of what you do and when you do it. Have fun.