Time to Plant a Garden. Need suggestions

HR 933 passed into law yesterday. One of the provisions protects Monsanto (creates genetically engineered foods) from any litigation in the face of health risks. Federal courts have no authority regardless of any consumer health concerns. This, after .gov has already stated that GMO's pose health risks to humans, animals, and the environment.

With that said, the spouse unit and I have been talking about planting our own crops, especially now with this law passing.

Anyone have your own?
Any reliable/inexpensive sites to buy seeds?
Any decent natural/organic pesticides to keep the bugs away?
For you folks in hotter climates (I live in FL), which plants have worked best for you, and at which time of the year?
If I have the correct soil, is fertilization still suggested?

We're just looking at doing a 6'x6'ish size plot to grow some goodies.

 

not much info, but i live in the birmingham area and a 6'x6' garden is nice.... but you wont like it. couple reasons.. first its much easier to go ahead and make it 8'x8' cuz then you can make it out of landscaping timbers and not have to cut anything, second if you actually look at spacing for majority of your plants you wont get but a few rows of plants in a 6'x6' space. when i first purchased my house i started with a simple 8'x8' raised bed with the border made out of stacked landscaping timbers.... the very next year it grew to 16'x8'. now i plant that bed plus another spot at my parents house(about 10 miles down the road) which is whatever i feel like tilling up at the start of the season... last year it was roughly 15x20 or so. its a fun "hobby" IMO and gives you something to keep you motivated and rewarded for when you come home after a long day of work.

Good Luck!!!

 

Good input. Thanks. I can do 8'x8', but not much bigger I think. Why did you raise the bed? Critter concerns? Weeds? Water permeation?

 

nativeseeds.org
They try to set you up with seeds that grow best in your region. Most big box seeds come from GMO plants to begin with so looking for a local seed supplier will help keep the plants you grow truly organic.

 

primarily for water permeation, and also to separate it from the rest of the yard to control the need for constant weeding. if you have any stray cats expect your newly setup garden to be their newly created litter box until plants start to come up esp if you keep the soil cultivated.

 

Subbed, no time to chat right now, will have suggestions and help tonight.

 

I'm about to prep some beds and acquire some soil soon..subbed.

 

Good to know. Thanks for the information.

 

i have 4 4x8 raised beds growing.

i am pretty much growing stuff for salsa. some chinese veggies..but mostly tomatoes and peppers.

 

My wife and I use Horse water troughs 3x5 and 4x6 .

 

I have a garden, but I can't tell you where it is or what I'm growing...


Seriously tho, make sure you mulch with plenty of straw if you want good weed control + water retention.

 

I have a 16x4 garden, but an increasing it to 16x8 this year. Raised bed. 16x4 was just too tight for the amount of veges I was growing, too many things competing for light.

Also, I have a shed with a gutter right next to the garden, so I used the downspout to make a 25gallon rain barrel. Works Awesome! It doesnt take much rain to fill it and I can water the garden mulitple times a day for a few days without a problem.

 

Try Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds, Landreth Seed Company, and Seedsavers.org for non GMO, heirloom varieties. Honestly, check ebay too, they have neat stuff.

As for pest control and that sort of thing, it depends on what you plant. I can give you more advice if you tell me what you're planting. You might want to check out Jerry Baker and Rodale's Organic Gardening at your local library. Just good, common sense advice. Generally, a spray of chili pepper or cayenne pepper on your plants mixed with soapy water helps keeps bugs and deer and other critters away. Marigolds or onions or garlic planted around the border also help to deter pests. Marigolds especially because they encourage bees to pollinate but keep away other insects.

If your soil has all the right stuff, don't screw with it. People always seem to over fertilize and over feed. Plant it and watch it grow. The plant will tell you what it needs, don't anticipate what you THINK it needs and you may end up damaging something before you even begin.

8 x 8 is a great start. If you're not doing raised beds, you can lay down newspaper and straw to begin your plot. It keeps down weeds, kills the grass underneath, and enriches your soil. Or, you can dig a plot by hand. I prefer this to tilling because it really gets the grass and stops a lot of weeds in the beginning. You could also try double digging but I've found that this isn't worth the HUGE effort but there are those who will argue with me.

Any other questions, please let me know. I'll be glad to help you!

 

Forgot to say--- if you're looking at an 8x8 or a 6x6 plot, you might want to look at French intensive gardening and companion plantings. It works and you maximize your plot space.