Vegetable Gardening

While some of us have been doing it for years, there is an increasing trend of people growing their own vegetables.  With a growing trend of being environmentally friendly, people are seeing the benefits of eating only organic and locally grown produce.  With that, what could be more ‘green’ than growing it yourself!

By May, many cold weather crops can be planted and begin to be grown.  These include broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, spinach, Swiss chard, lettuce and peas.  Herbs and warm weather crops (such as tomatoes and eggplant) should wait to be planted until there is no risk of frost. 

One of the best ways to fertilize a vegetable garden is to start it off right with a good, rich soil.  Adding your own compost, a packaged compost or manure will provide many needed nutrients for your plants without the need for much other fertilizer.  We carry a variety of composts and manure, from bagged quantities to horse manure in bulk to cover large gardens. 

If your yard doesn’t have the space for a vegetable garden, consider doing containers of vegetables and herbs.  New for this year, we are selling the EarthBox^â, which is a kit that provides maintenance-free container vegetable gardening.  It is set up to automatically water and fertilize vegetables, has a staking system for tomatoes and peas, and even comes on casters so it can be easily moved around a patio, but also so it can be brought in when it gets cold, thus extending the growing season. 

Another new trend this year is the growing and eating of microgreens. These are basically very young seedlings eaten just prior to the first true leaves emerging.  At this very young development the greens have intense flavor and are rich in nutrients.  The use of microgreens in food has been a growing trend among chefs as they add a texture, color and an explosive burst of flavor to salads and as garnishes and toppings to other dishes.  These microgreens are very easy to grow and are ready to eat in a matter of days.  We have many different varieties and flavors to choose from and also have some growing kits.  An added benefit is that these microgreens can be grown all year long since they just need bright light to grow and they only need to grow for a very short length of time. 

So come in to the nursery and check out our selection of vegetable plants, seeds, soils, stakes, containers and everything else you could need to create your vegetable garden. We can also help you start small with containers of vegetables and herbs or even a tray of microgreens.