Vegetable Gardening For Amateurs (Gardening Demystified)

I happen to be an amateur gardener who learned a few gardening basics and ended up with a spectacular garden for the past two years. I started out dumb-ignorant, knowing no more than the next guy about how to grow a garden. After my successes, I have had numerous people compliment me on my garden and then tell me how disappointing their own garden has been year after year.

So I resolved to write up a short, practical guide (aimed at newbies) to growing an awesome garden. The following gardening rules must be followed not in part but in the whole. Disregard any rule and your garden will suffer.

#1 – Make good soil.
You need to have a minimum of 12 inches deep of fertile soil. The deeper the better. If you have 2 inches of topsoil on top of nonfertile ground you need to have a truckload of topsoil hauled in. Even then, the topsoil you have (or get) is not fertile until you make it so. Don’t assume that just because you paid a bunch of money for a load of topsoil, that it’s ready for primetime. It still needs lots of nutrients.

This soil mustn’t be too sandy or full of rocks. Once you have it in place, work in lots of steer manure (the cheap stuff at Home Depot is fine). I recommend 1 bag of manure per 25 square feet of soil. When you start putting it down, this ratio will seem like too much, but it’s not. This is the food your plants will eat all summer long—don’t starve them. You may wish to research what other nutrients should go in the soil. If applied properly and in the correct ratio, this can only help. But I find that a ton of manure is the most important single ingredient.

#2 – Create a good watering system.
A common mistake of would-be gardeners is thinking that they can water their garden by hand or merely adjust a few of their lawn sprinklers to spray the garden. This is folly. You need a good watering system. You can build one by hand in 3-4 hours and for under $50. I will explain the details of how I did mine, but there are many options. The most important thing to remember is that you need a watering system that will put consistent amounts of water on all your plants, and do it automatically on a timer.

You’ll need to buy some parts. Everything I’ll mention here can be found at Home Depot, Lowes, or similar.

Most people can get water to their garden in one of two ways. If you’re lucky, you’ve got a pipe (on its own controller) at or near your garden that you can tap in to. Or if you’re like the rest of us, you’ll have to run water through a hose from a faucet outside the house. This is what I had to do. Buy a valve timer for around $20 that attaches to an exterior hose bib (faucet). Attach it to your hose bib, and attach a standard garden hose to the valve timer. Run the hose to your garden. Turn the faucet on but leave the timer off. Configure the timer later (you’ll have to experiment to see how much water goes to your garden).

Buy an adapter that attaches the end of a garden hose to a ½” PVC pipe. Use this to attach your hose to the ½” PVC pipe in your garden. The pipe should run the length or width of your garden. Cut the pipe in every place there will be a row. Attach a ½” PVC tee (slip/slip/thread) for every row. Cap off the end of the pipe. Now you’ll need to connect EITHER soaker hose or laser-drilled poly tubing to each of your tees and run each hose/tube down each row of your garden. Cap off each end.

If you struggle with putting together things like this, get some help. The guys at Home Depot will answer all your questions and get you all the pieces you need. It’s really quite easy to put together but it will take a few hours.

Once the watering system is in place and the timer is configured, it’s time to prepare your garden soil for planting. With the hoses/tubes temporarily moved out of the way, rototill the garden, rake and smooth it, and make raised rows about 3 inches high and 6 inches wide. These dimensions may vary and don’t matter all that much. The idea is to get the plants growing in a slightly raised bed of soil for drainage purposes. Plant the seeds, put the watering system in place, and begin watering. Water enough so that all the soil around all the seeds stays very damp or lightly wet all the time until they sprout. When seeds touch water they sprout. If the soil dries out after the seeds sprout, they’ll die. After sprouting, reduce watering.

How much should you water after sprouting?

This is the tricky part, but hard to mess up if you don’t overwater or underwater. If the soil is wet all the time on the surface around the sprouts and never dries out, you’re watering too much. The right amount of water for seeds is too much for sprouts. Too much water will stunt the growth of your plants. If the sprouts seem “dry”, you’re watering too little. You should water just enough to where the plants seem green, moist and healthy. You may have to experiment. Ask questions, do research, try watering different amounts. Figure out what your plants need. Last year the peas at the end of my hose got the least amount of water and grew the best. The peas that got the most water (close to the PVC) barely grew above 1 foot. Moral of story: more water is not always better. Get the right amount.

#3 – Plant at the right time

Depending on your climate and what you’re planting, when you should plant a given vegetable will vary widely. The easiest rule here is read the instructions on the back of your seed package. They’ll tell you when and how to plant the seeds. Follow these instructions religiously—they’re written by experts! Ask local gardeners what grows well in your area and ask them for advice. You’ll learn a lot this way and prevent lots of mistakes. Some plants just don’t grow well in some areas. Use the Internet for tips.

#4 – Pull weeds
Once your plants begin to grow you may start to get weeds. Pull these weeds out every day. If you pull weeds frequently and when they’re small, it’s easy. But if you let them go a week and the weeds explode, you’ll become discouraged and your garden will be taken over by weeds. Depending on the size of your garden, plan to spend 5-10 minutes per day weeding. I cover my garden with grass clippings because they prevent weeds by starving them of sunlight. Make sure the clippings don’t cover your plants.

#5 – Harvest at the right time
This is the easiest part. Most people know intuitively when it’s time to harvest, but if you have questions, ask other gardeners and do research on the Internet. And you’ll be able to taste when something is not yet ripe, or when it’s overripe. Some plants are more time-sensitive than others regarding when you harvest. For example, peas must be picked and eaten within a few days of ripeness or the flavor will begin fading fast. I learned this from personal experience. Other vegetables may have much longer harvesting windows.

If you follow these five basic principles, you’ll still make some mistakes, but you’ll have a successful garden. You will be amazed how fast you learn from mistakes and gain experience, even your first year. Your second year will be even better because of your newly-gained experience. Your garden will be a very rewarding experience for you and you’ll come to love working in it.

The Hidden Joys of Gardening

I was reluctant to plant my first real garden last year. I knew that the prophet said to do it. And then there was that primary song, and the fact that my Dad had always had a garden and evangelized the practice. I thought of the amount of time involved in gardening—and all the work. And the fact that it would be far easier to simply buy vegetables at the store. I did the math and concluded that the costs involved in getting my garden going that first year would outweigh any economic benefit of the "free" food.

Regardless of my lack of enthusiasm, I determined that I would give it a go and see how it turned out. I bought 20 bags of manure for my 450 square foot area, and with a borrowed tiller worked it into the soil. I dutifully prepared a series of raised rows, and then hooked up a simple watering system. Finally I planted peas and some other vegetables—and waited.

The magic began for me when, two weeks later, the first little sprouts emerged from the top of the rich brown soil. I watched with wonder as the infant plants began to grow, and thought how delicate and vulnerable these little fellows were. Along with the newly minted plants came weeds, and I was indignant that these enemies would invade my garden. I pulled the weeds diligently and continued to do so throughout the duration of the garden.

To my surprise I began to love my little garden and found joy in the cultivation, the watering, the watching—even the weeding. I enjoyed the feeling of the soil, the smells of the plants, and the sight of these delicate creations of God. As time passed I began to notice the multitude of spiritual metaphors in my garden. Seeds of faith. Weeds of sin. Soil of preparation. The law of the harvest. The light of God that grants life to all living things.

I experienced delicious moments with my kids teaching them how a garden works and grows, and seeing the wonder in their eyes as they handled plants and tasted the fruit. These times were infinitely better than anything television could provide. Gardening teaches work and care, cultivation and weeding. In every gardening activity was found a lesson for life.

At the end of the summer there was corn and tomatoes. The times I found myself amidst my garden under the golden sun, smelling the sweet aroma of the tomato leaves and feeling the magnificent corn stalks in my palms and fingers, there was quiet euphoria. A deep joy, hidden from the world. A drugless antidepressant to counter the trials of life. A mini garden of Eden. A composite of sensations impossible to describe yet available to any who would work for the experience.

The ultimate culmination of the joys of gardening lay in the harvest—eating the fruits of my labor. The first taste of the spaghetti sauce made from my own sun-ripened tomatoes (which only an hour before had been on the vine) convinced me beyond any doubt that gardening was good, in every sense of the word. On one occasion I was overcome with the urge to lie down between two rows of my corn which exceeded six feet in height. Lying on my back in my garden bed, I was amazed to look up and behold a beautiful canopy of interwoven corn leaves of green, backdropped by the azure blue of the sky. This to me was nature’s Sistine Chapel ceiling.

And then I realized why the prophet said to plant a garden. It may have something to do with food storage, self reliance, and healthy eating. But I suspect it has even more to do with the effect upon mind, body, spirit and family. Like so many other exhortations, gardening requires a leap of faith—the willingness to put one’s hand to the plow without seeing the ends. Additionally, the gardener is better able to grasp certain gospel doctrines. Jacob 5 takes on new meaning and clarity. One realizes why Adam and Eve were placed in a garden rather than some other type of environment. And the fact that Jesus chose a garden in which to face his most terrible hours is significant. The creation, the fall, and the atonement have been called the three pillars of eternity—and all three involved a garden.

My Dad Taught Me Basketball and I Learned About Life

Between the ages of 11 and 13 I was taught the game of basketball by my dad. Hours we spent on the court--at the playground or down at the church. It always began with the hopeful question, "Dad, can we play some basketball?" I can’t remember him ever telling me no. He would grab his keys, I would grab my ball, and we were off.

I desperately wanted to learn this difficult game and become great. What I lacked in talent I made up for in sheer will. This fact would become the first of many metaphors that would shape the rest of my life. Hard work and determination can compensate for lack of raw talent.

The incredible move that I set my heart on learning first was known as the reverse pivot. Whirling backward against the pivot foot, with ball in hand, you would whisk the ball away from the defender lunging for a steal and magically blow past him for a drive to the hoop. This was a tough move for an 11-year-old to master, and I often complained in frustration about how hard it was to do.

“I can’t do it!” I would exclaim in discouragement.

“Don’t say can’t!”, or often “It’ll come!” was the inevitable reply. And it did come. I achieved what to me was the impossible, and this would form the second metaphor in a life that would later confront me with seeming impossibilities.

“You’ve got to know where the other nine players are at all times.” This was drummed into me better than any Catholic student ever learned The Lord’s Prayer. I learned it so well that it became second nature for me, omnipresent in my mind across all facets of my life. When I drive I know where all the other cars are within a hundred yards—in front, behind, and to the sides. When navigating crowds, the same principle rules my mind.

“Practice, practice, practice!” I heard the words so much that they wearied me. But the principle was learned for a lifetime, and I came to understand that anything could be mastered if enough practice was applied.

I was taught that when running, whirling, juking or jiving, when it comes time to actually shoot, you must stop dead, get balanced, jump straight up, and softly release the ball. When speeding or whirling through life, sometimes you have to stop, square up, focus, and accomplish something important.

So many other gems of wisdom I learned as my dad taught me basketball. It was okay to lose as long as I didn’t give up. Good sportsmanship is important. Always hustle. Listen to the coach and be teachable. And most important I learned that my dad loved me enough to spend time with me.

Now, as I teach my nine-year-old son this game of all games, I find myself passing along the same wisdom that has guided me for decades. There is something that goes far deeper than basketball in this multigenerational passage of principles from father to son. My dad learned the game from his dad. And my son may teach it to his son. The sport itself is perhaps incidental, but the patriarchal chain of nurturing wisdom is the real thing.