New Gardener Hints and Tips

\”Are YOU Ready?\”

There are some tips and hints I usually end up giving new gardeners. I know we’ve got some of those among our readers this year, so this is for y’all.

Assume you WON’T remember. You are putting seeds in the ground, pretty little rows, in logical places. You may think, “Oh, I’ll remember this, no problem.” DON’T THINK THAT.  You won’t remember. Even with markers or signs, it’s always best to write down where you are putting seeds. This will help in a week or two when you have to decide which sprout is a weed, and which is a darling little veggie.

One of these things is NOT a baby carrot

Baby Radishes!

USE a garden journal. There are all sorts of options for this, pick one that works best with your lifestyle, gardening style and needs. I use a paper, hard bound journal, but digital options exist, 3 ring binders with pockets exist, the list goes on.  Write down what you are planting (including variety/generation info if you have it) where you are planting it (in relation to other plantings, and aprox length of row).  I do all of that, even though I usually stake the beginning and ending of my rows.  Small hands have been known to move row markers, storms can blow them away, it’s just best to be cautious and have the written backup. It’s also best if that written backup isn’t a random piece of paper in your back pocket that gets sent through the wash.

Here’s a new garden!

Learn your weeds. You need to purposefully cultivate an understanding of your local weeds. What they look like as sprouts, as juveniles and as adult/flowering plants.  Watch the bare patches in your lawn, what tries to grow first? What tries to grow when you rip the first weeds out?  Watch the edges of your garden beds, what likes to sprout in the disturbed soil? Some WILL look like your vegetables at times. There are closely related weeds that look similar to carrots, parsnips, and squash, and that’s just what I know off the top of my head.  You need to learn the subtle differences so you can confidently yank them out of your garden as soon as possible. (Hint: It’s much easier when they are babies.)

Space the plants properly. It’s so nice to see the baby sprouts in the spring, it can be hard to remember that they will turn into large vegetable producing plants. You will have small and/or stressed plants if you plant transplants too close or don’t thin seedlings.  Vertical growing  techniques can use less horizontal space, but roots will always need sufficient space to grow and process nutrients. Square foot gardening uses tight spacing, but you have to make up for it with more water and nutrients.

Finally today, an update on my running

I have to say, the first couple of weeks have gone better than I could have hoped for. No wheezing, no coughing. I use one puff as a preventative before I run, I run in the early mornings, and I do a proper 5 minute warm up. Breathing through my nose more seems to help too. I haven’t had to use the inhaler at all the past couple of weeks except for those preventative pre-run puffs.

And I ran further this morning.

-Calamity Jane