A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The Food Garden Forum Vegetable Gardening Not sure where to plant!

Hi there, I'm new to gardening really, but I've decided to jump into veggie gardening this season and very excited.

I have an odd backyard...it is somewhat flat at the top, then slopes downward rather sharply and is flat at the bottom. Our lot runs west to east, so I wanted to put the garden in the NE corner of the yard. That seems to be the best spot for sun, as it is out of range for the shade from the two story house. However, I'm worried about the water drainage. From the NE to the SE corner, it does slope down a bit, so would I be ok on drainage?

I think ideally the NW corner would be a great spot for land levelness, but there isn't enough sun. I just want to make sure I'm putting it in a good spot so I don't waste all the time and energy and end up with a bad garden!

Thanks!

Snewto5,
Helloooooo, and Welcome to The Garden Helper's Forum,
We're so veryyyyy glad you found us!!!

First congrat's on doing a veggie garden..
I don't think you'll ever regret growing your
own veggies.. Nothing finer than fresh picked produce..

Can you tell us some more of your food likes and dislikes?
That will help with ideas' of what to plant for you..

Also, you wouldn't happen to have any pictures of your
land/property do you??
That can be a good help to us to get a basic
idea of the lay out..
If you don't no biggie..

And for ammending the soil, COMPOST, can't get enough
of it... it's organic, natural and very good for the soil,
the soil structure, the worms, the drainage.. and over all
good health..
That is you MAIN idea first for a veggie garden..
To get good soil going....

And remember, even if you can't put all the stuff you
want in the ground the first year, there's always next year,
and the next...

And then there's container gardening too..
If you can't get all the soil worked up you want,
or the area isn't sunny enough..
Do some of your veggies that require full sun in
containers, and you can move them around into the sun...

Don't start out tooooooo big, where it over whelms you..
That can get you discouraged, and down..
Start small, just the basic's you have to have..
I did SALAD stuff..
Tomatoes, assorted lettuces, cucumbers, and raddish's and peas..
And then go from there season to season...

And don't forget, some of the other gardener's may
pass thru and lend a helpin' hand too,
but it takes a bit of time, so check in and back often..
Some come thru on a regular basis and other's on a weekly basis..

*don't forget to peak around here, there's a ton of stuff
to do here, thru every season, any thing you can think of,
just about..*

Thanks so much for the helpful reply! I have a hard time not going all out when I start something, but I'm trying to keep it manageable. The thing I want most is a salsa garden, with cilantro, tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic...I LOVE making my own salsa!

It just rained here the last few days so I was able to get a good look at how the water drains in that part of the yard, and I think it will be fine.

This is how my yard runs. The west to east is a pretty huge slope, and then a minor slope east to south. LOL, I hope that helps with the picture!

East

^ ---------------> South
|GARDEN
|AREA!!
|
|
|
|

Definately stay small..
Trust me, then as you gain knowledge
of your plants and more confidence in your
gardening, and it becomes second nature.....
Then go and start tryin' new and more..

And really ammending the soil, learning about
organic's, worms, and how they work for you...

The Salsa garden sounds fantastic..

I do know onions and garlic are cool weather crops..
Some you plant in the fall time, for harvest
come spring time...
**I love home made salsa too**

Have you grown from seed before or do you
purchase flats of already started plants????

And remember always plant tall plants and climbers
in the back, so they don't shadow other plants..


(I am rotten with directions,
and my barings aren't good with which way is which..
I hope someone can come thru with some more better
details for those than I can)


And how much sun would you say there is where it is...
2~3 hrs, 4~6, 5~8....
That's helpful to know, especially tomaotes...
Which love alot of sun...

I'm not very good at visualizing either--sure could use a pic. Oh well, I agree, the salsa garden sounds like a good way to start. I don't think any of the veggies required for that are too difficult to grow. When I lived in Arkansas, my whole garden was on a slope. I just made sure to till against the slope, not with it, and planted everything along the lines of the tiller rows to help keep it from washing during hard rains. Between that and mulching with lots of wheat straw, I never had a problem. Something else you need to consider is "micro climates." Your temps will likely vary between the uphill and downhill areas.

Suggested lay-out.

Lay out plots in a North---> to --->South direction.

plot measurement: 4ft. wide X 12ft. long
!------------!------------!--------------!-------------!

--

!------------------------------------------------------!
walk way between plots 24 inches to 30 inches wide
!------------!-------------!------------!--------------!

--

!-------------------------------------------------------!

the number of plots and the width and length of each plot is essentially a matter of choice; however, for convenience, a plot 4ft wide is recommended because one can reach the center of the plot from either side [of the plot]. if using 4ft x 12ft, mark the each plot into 3ft sections. plant the taller vegetables [like corn, or okra] or those vegetables that will be staked, trellised or caged, like tomatoes in the northside of the plot, followed by other veggies.

to address your concern about the area where water drains, here's a list of water resistant vegetables:

brussel sprouts, carrots, corn, lettuce and muskmelon.

Fast maturing crops
cress, lettuce, mustard greens, radish, spinach, turnipss

prolific producers
beans, brussel sprouts, cucumbers, mustard greens, peas, radish, spinach, tomato

Warm season vegetables
beans, collards, corn, cucumber, eggplants, meon, okra, peppers, peas, spinach [New Zealand], squash, sweet potato, tomatillo, tomato, watermelon.

Interplanting.
Look into companion planting with herbs or flowering plants to retain moisture, repel insects and to help reduce weeds in vegetable plots.

grow your garlic and onions from cloves and slips respectively. If you start with seeds it takes two years for these plants. And welcome to the forum. It's always nice to meet a new gardender.

:gabb:
I agree with tk,

my cloves are now up and growing like mad.. past the onion sets up..