My First Year of Gardening

This summer was my first time growing vegetables in a raised garden bed, and I learned so much. During the summer of 2021, all I did was grow tomatoes and peppers in pots, and didn’t get a huge harvest. This year, I purchased a Vego Garden Bed to grow vegetables and start to get move toward my homestead.

Mostly from seeds, this year I grew Loofah/Luffa, Carrots, Green Onions, Snow Peas, Green Beans, Peppers, Kale, Spinach, Lettuce, Tomatoes, Catnip, Lavender, Thyme, and Basil.

10 Things I Learned In My First Year of Gardening

Staggering Seeds — This is something I learned about midway through the summer. By then I had already planted all of my lettuce, spinach and kale seeds which are the plants I desperately should’ve staggered. By mid-July, all of the seeds I had planted for those became full grown, and within a week or two they were ready to be harvested all at once. Next year, I will be planting in succession. Every week for six weeks in the beginning of the season I will plant another round of seeds which will hopefully lead to harvesting all summer long.

Giving Each Plant The Space It Needs — I admit, I should have definitely done some research before planting loofah/luffa. It completely took over my garden bed, and ended up shadowing other plants in the garden and killing my beans and snow peas. Next year, I’ll be growing Loofah in a different garden bed and they will have a large trellis and nothing to overshadow! I also definitely should have read the directions on seed packets and only plant things as far apart as they say they should be because I had a lot of overcrowded plants. Next year, I will be more careful about planting, and not just sprinkling seeds in the soil.

Harvesting All Summer Long — I learned a lot this summer on the way to harvest things so they keep growing. For example, if you pull lettuce leaves from the outside, it will continuously grow. I also learned that green onions will keep growing no matter how many times they are chopped! Next year I will be harvesting more frequently to ensure I’m getting the most out of what I plant.

Don’t Wait To Add Your Trellis & Cage — I definitely waited too long to add my tomato cages. I ended up having wide spread tomato plants that didn’t produce nearly as much as they could have if they were caged and had more space to grow up and out, getting the support it needed. Next year I will be adding my cages within a few weeks of planting to ensure they have the support they need to grow and produce!

Planting Natural Pest Controls — This year I didn’t have too many issues with pests, but I learned a lot about things I can plant to deter unwanted pests. Marigolds & stronger scented herbs for example will keep away a lot of bad pests, and invite the good ones. Also, human and pet hair will deter unwanted pests!

Filling Garden Beds Cheaply — I filled both of my Vego Garden beds this way, and it saved me so much money and put organic waste to good use! After laying down chicken wire under the bed, I had layers of cardboard, twigs & logs, leaves, compost, and then dirt. The organic matter will break down, and fill the garden bed saving over $200 in dirt!

Rain Barrels Save Money & Water — Rain Barrels are legal in all 50 states, but some states may have restrictions or needed permits. In New York, it’s encouraged to collect rainwater. I got one rain barrel this year, and connected it to our downspout. I was able to use rain water to water my garden and plants, saving a lot of money and lowering our water usage significantly.

Not All Seeds Need To Be Started Indoors — I started everything I was growing indoors first, and I’ll admit, not everything needed to be started ahead of time! Especially my beans. They became 8 inches tall before they even got planted in the garden, and I don’t think that helped their growing progress at all, because they stalled growing once they grew too big for their indoor containers. Next year, I’ll be putting right into the garden in May.

Harvest At The Right Time — Did you know carrots are sweeter when they’re picked later in the day compared to morning? Or that lettuce is best picked a few hours after watering? I didn’t either, and never thought about the time of day for harvesting. I’ve been armed with this information for next year and will be harvesting certain veggies at certain times each day.

Not Every Plant Will Grow — Not every seed will sprout and not every plant will grow, and that’s okay. I tried to grow an entire packet of Loofah / Luffa seeds, and only two plants survived. I still had an incredible Loofah harvest. I also tried to sprout 30+ Tomato seedlings, and I only had four plants survive being an inch tall. I still had an amazing harvest of tomatoes that I could share with friends and family. Being my first year, I felt very discouraged that I couldn’t sprout all of the seeds, but next year I will be remembering the bigger picture.

All in all, I had a very successful first year of gardening, and I’m already planning for next year. I hope you enjoyed reading about everything I’ve learned so far. If you have any helpful tips and tricks, drop them below!