Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

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PsYcHo
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Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

Post by PsYcHo »

There is a wooden "fort" in my backyard, from the previous owners, and I am considering re-purposing the wood to make a small vegetable garden.

We have excellent soil here (I'm guessing, based on the amount of earthworms and nearby farms), but as it is the backyard, it is mostly shaded.

I have very little growing experience (some in college, but I don't think it's a good idea to try to grow that particular herb here....), but we did have some success growing carrots recently, (by accident. they were part of a "beneficial insect" blend that we planted in a small area.) so I'm wondering what types of veggies I could grow that do well in shade, and that a novice could easily deal with.

I'm leaning towards potatoes and carrots, since they are excellent additions to any meal, but I'm curious as to anything I can grow in a shaded area without a lot of "extras". (Stakes, special soil additives, pesticides, etc.)

Ideas?
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brimstoneSalad
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Re: Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

Post by brimstoneSalad »

For gardening applications, I'm fond of perennials since you don't have to mess around with planting them every year. But that's very zone dependent...
What's your zone, and what kind of frost are you looking at?

Also, consider when they yield: you probably don't want no vegetables at all and then suddenly 50 lb of carrots at the end of the season.
You'd want to have things that produce food either continuously, or stagger them... OR something good to turn into jam.

For this, leafy vegetables are good because you can harvest them gradually as you need them, but there are some fruit bearing plants that have ongoing production.

I know there are a few tomatoes that grow continuously and fruit all summer... but most tomatoes will die off in the winter in most areas. They also like to grow ON something...

Have you considered planting some trees or bushes?
How long are you planning to stay there?
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PsYcHo
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Re: Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

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This is likely a permanent move (Great deal on a mortgage), and we have plenty of trees around and in our yard, plus several bushes in the front and a few in the back.

It gets below freezing here regularly, but only drops to the teens or less on severe occasions.

I do like the jam idea, and am not adverse to learning to can. I'm familiar with the basics, but staggering sounds like a good idea as well.

And I would love 50lbs of carrots! If I can't eat 'em or can 'em, farmers market! :D
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brimstoneSalad
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Re: Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

Post by brimstoneSalad »

There are some berries, like blackberries, that give great yield and are pretty low maintenance you can plant against your fence or house if it gets a little bit of sun. I'd take advantage of existing structures as much as possible.

In other areas, you can go for berry bushes, and fruit and nut yielding trees.

Deep rooted plants pull up minerals and capture more water, so they're naturally better for the soil.

Then under that, you'd want to plant shade tolerant veggies eventually.

Although while you have full sun, if you want to earn an income from selling excess, I'd say go with herbs 100%. You can sell to local restaurants, or as you said at farmers markets. Herbs have a better return than something like carrots (which with 50 lb you might make 50 bucks, but something like basil will fetch something like ten times that at least).
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PsYcHo
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Re: Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

Post by PsYcHo »

OOOooo, I love blackberries, and used to pick them wild for people. Hadn't even considered those. I don't think I have any room for more trees though.

And a massive herb garden would be fun. I also have a shed, that with a minimal amount of effort could be converted into a sheltered grow house.
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brimstoneSalad
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Re: Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

Post by brimstoneSalad »

PsYcHo wrote: Sun Dec 03, 2017 10:23 pm OOOooo, I love blackberries, and used to pick them wild for people.
Nice! If you're worried about neighbors complaining, you might want to limit blackberries to the shed and the sides of your house rather than your fence, because they could easily send up shoots on the other side of the fence. They can develop very substantial root systems.

Most neighbors probably wouldn't complain because it's easy to knock them down when mowing, but just a consideration.
Might want to stick to annuals along the fence if there's a chance of complaint.

PsYcHo wrote: Sun Dec 03, 2017 10:23 pm I don't think I have any room for more trees though.
What kind of trees? If they're not productive, it might make sense to take it down for wood and plant some productive trees that will pull their weight. ;)
I know if feels wrong to cut down a tree, but if you're making room for other trees that will give you food it's probably a net good.
PsYcHo wrote: Sun Dec 03, 2017 10:23 pmAnd a massive herb garden would be fun. I also have a shed, that with a minimal amount of effort could be converted into a sheltered grow house.
You might be able to get plants that are less frost tolerant, and grow them in large pots (like old barrels), then move them in there when there's a chance of frost. The trick is moving them, you have to keep them on castors or a pallet or something, soil is deceptively heavy once it compacts.

There are some great designs where people put holes in the sides of barrels and grow plants all up and down, then larger plants in the top.

Here's one:
https://homefixated.com/barrel-garden/

So if you want to save your expensive perennials from the frost and keep them from turning into annuals, that's a good way to go.
There are a few common plants people think have to die every year, but in warm areas protected from frost they can come back bigger and stronger. Some peppers, for example.
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PsYcHo
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Re: Simple Vegetable Garden Ideas

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brimstoneSalad wrote: Sun Dec 03, 2017 10:54 pm What kind of trees? If they're not productive, it might make sense to take it down for wood and plant some productive trees that will pull their weight. ;)
I know if feels wrong to cut down a tree, but if you're making room for other trees that will give you food it's probably a net good.
I have a good friend who is an avid amateur dendrologists who could tell me specifically, but the main factor is my partner thinks the trees we have are pretty. One flowers in springtime and possibly once more (we've only recently been spending time here), the other is nicely shaped and has leaves that progress beautifully through the color spectrum come fall. No way those are coming down.
brimstoneSalad wrote: Sun Dec 03, 2017 10:54 pm You might be able to get plants that are less frost tolerant, and grow them in large pots (like old barrels), then move them in there when there's a chance of frost. The trick is moving them, you have to keep them on castors or a pallet or something, soil is deceptively heavy once it compacts.
That may be feasible. We have four mini barrels, but I think my partner has earmarked at least two for "pretty" (non-productive...) plants. And I come from a "blue collar" background, a dolly with large wheels makes easy work of moisture laden planters. ;)
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