Post category: Vegetables

 

Vegetable growing takes time, but some kinds are much easier than others. Many people no longer bother with vegetables at all, feeling that they are too much effort. Growing bulky vegetables in an ordinary garden is more or less a waste of time. Potatoes, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots and onions can be bought more cheaply than they can be grown in a home garden. Some first early potatoes, that will not need spraying, are nice to have, and some early fingerling carrots too, and maybe some spring cabbage.

 

Vegetables

 

Vegetables that are best freshly picked from the garden are worth growing – lettuce, radish, salad onions. These are easy to grow, and the easiest vegetable of all is french beans. Also very easy are white turnips, swiss chard, mangetout peas and leeks. All of these crops can be sown where they are to grow to maturity; they do not need transplanting.

Weed control is the main issue in vegetable growing, although sowing, thinning and transplanting take up time too. The secret of weed control with vegetables is to make sure the plot is weed-free to start with. Then, never let the weeds go to seed.

Regular light hoeing is the easiest way to keep on top of weeds. It is remarkable how large an area can be kept free by hoeing for an hour about every two weeks during the growing season. Growing vegetables in a raised bed (as shown) makes it much easier to control weeds and digging is almost non-existent.