Crystal over at Biblical Womanhood is talking about gardening and how it can help your food budget. I thought I would post an old article about gardening. I am an avid gardener and this year we planted 32 potatoes this year in a 4×8 raised bed and they are doing wonderful! Anyway, this post is mainly about timing and how you can have a garden almost year around even when you live in the Rocky Mountains like me.
You can plant these seeds as soon as you can get out and work the soil. I planted my spring garden the first part of March, I have planted as early as mid-February. All of these plants are very hardy and can handle the cold, in fact items such as spinach and leaf lettuce do better in the cold. Sunday I woke to 6 inches of snow on my little plants, and as you can see, they are no worse for the wear.
The hot days of summer will make the lettuce and spinach go bitter and bolt faster. By the time these early spring plants are ready to harvest it is time to plant you tender summer vegetables; corn, tomatoes, bean, squash and cucumbers, this is a great way to maximise your garden space. There are mid-spring vegetables too. Things such as beet and potatoes. Beets have about a 50 day cycle. Meaning from the time you put the seed in the ground to harvest it usually takes 50 days. If you plant your beets in April you can harvest mid-June, replant, harvest again end of August. You have harvested twice from the same garden plot. Potatoes are a little different, they require a longer growing season. I am going to plant mine the end of April and they will stay in the ground until the first frost.
This Earth has the ability to give us a bounty of beautiful, fresh food. All it takes is hard work and a little planning and you can serve fresh vegetables to your family almost 12 months out of the year.
