Gardening 101: 5 Tips To A Successful Garden

1. When planting, mark your rows with strings and markers, so that you know what is coming up where. I often use the plant slips as my markers so that I know EXACTLY what type of pepper it may be. Though, I have the unfortunate experience of my red and yellow peppers never really turning out. Maybe someday...

2. As your plants start to come up, know what the plant should look like. Gardeners can get weeding-happy and end up pulling up their new garden! For example, carrots and lettuce can get in the mix, so be sure to know where you plant what and know what is what.

3. Be sure to water, but not to much. Water is always good for a newly planted garden, but be careful to not drown your seeds and plants, where rotting can occur. Water enough so the dirt isn't dry and crumbly, but not too much, where water drips as you form a ball out of the dirt.

4. If you are known to have some wandering creatures around your garden, consider putting up a fence with stakes. This can protect from animals like squirrels and rabbits. If you have a large garden, consider putting up a higher fence to fend off deer. Of course this is completely dependent on where you live. Know what other "neighbors" might be milling around! We always put up chicken wire zip-tied to poles to protect from outsiders. The first time we did that, people wondered why, but we never had our garden over taken with unwelcomed creatures!

5. Keep up on the harvest so that produce does not get too ripe. For example, beans can overgrow, becoming not as crisp, and prevent new growth from happening. Keeping up on your plants, will ensure the most bountiful of harvests! I have forgotten about our garden before after being gone for a week (I know, the biggest no-no), and our beans had a meal-y consistency. Not too pleasant. Keep on up your garden and it will thank you with more produce!

Keeping up your garden may seem like such a chore at the time, but in reality, if you think about the yield and how your family can enjoy the harvest for months to come, it all of a sudden becomes a well-worth-it process. During those long days of weeding, remember back to those days in January, when you are enjoying that can of green beans from the garden! Gardening is hard work, but when you literally see the fruits of your labor, it is worth every pull of that weed!