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Forum -> Hobbies, Crafts, and Collections -> Gardening

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amother

Mon, May 09 2022, 7:31 pm

I want to start planting in my backyard.
What's best to plant as a beginner that could be planted now, I'm in tri-state area.

I never did this before. What do I have to buy along with the seeds?

gamanit

Mon, May 09 2022, 8:28 pm

It's too late to start peppers from seed but you can still start tomatoes, sugar snap peas, radishes and carrots.

GLUE

Mon, May 09 2022, 9:47 pm

If you are interested in reading up a little this book helped me a lot, did not do everything and read the 2nd edition not the 3rd

https://www.amazon.com/Square-.....r=8-1

You can find this book or another similar book at the public library

Look at the seed packets they will tell you how many days you need for them to grow and it will help you figure out if you have enough time for it to grow.

amother

Wandflower

Mon, May 09 2022, 9:55 pm

You can buy plants that were already started and replant in your garden. Lowes and home depot sell tomatoes, peppers, squash, etc...

amother

DarkKhaki

Mon, May 09 2022, 9:56 pm

I know many will call this "cheating", but we plant vegetables every year from starter plants. If you're not makpid on doing it all the way from seeds, it's great. We still put a lot of work into our garden so it's really ours, even though we didn't do it from scratch.

chanatron1000

Mon, May 09 2022, 10:06 pm

You probably should plant tomatoes. Homegrown tomatoes taste so much better than store bought. If you're doing tomatoes, whether you're starting seeds and transplanting or buying seedlings from the store, when you plant them, plant them deep. They'll grow more roots along the stem.

Sugar snap peas are amazing, but if there's a lot of herbivorous wildlife in your area, I think they're pretty much guaranteed to eat the pea plants. (The stems and leaves are edible for humans too.)

amother

Mon, May 09 2022, 10:41 pm

amother [ DarkKhaki ] wrote:

Where do you buy the starter plants?
And what type of soil is needed? And what else? Fertilizer?

flowerpower

Mon, May 09 2022, 11:36 pm

Go to Ave P and Mcdonald- if you live close by. They have whatever you need and are super helpful

chanatron1000

Mon, May 09 2022, 11:43 pm

OP, are you using raised beds, planting straight in the ground, or container gardening? Each uses its own type of soil. Potting mix is lighter with more drainage, garden soil is heavier and holds too much water for use in raised beds or containers, and raised bed soil is somewhere in between. They come labeled as what they are at the store. Home Depot and Lowes both have a nice selection.

GLUE

Tue, May 10 2022, 12:03 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Where do you buy the starter plants?
And what type of soil is needed? And what else? Fertilizer?

If you live in the Suburbia, Home Depot, Lowe's, Walmart sell plants

There are also farm stands that sell them some of them will answer all your questions.

amother

DarkKhaki

Tue, May 10 2022, 12:12 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Where do you buy the starter plants?
And what type of soil is needed? And what else? Fertilizer?

Home Depot, Lowe's, or if you have any nurseries/greenhouses/gardening centers nearby, those are the best. You can usually find someone there to give advice. There's a cute lady at a greenhouse near me who is always happy to answer my random, ignorant questions!
I buy garden soil, and replace some of the actual soil from my backyard with that. The first year we did it we needed to buy a lot of it. Now the area where we plant in is in much better shape, we usually just buy a bag or two to spruce it up a little.
Garden soil usually has some kind of fertilizer mixed in to it. I don't buy it on its own. We sometimes buy Miracle Grow plant food (powder), and periodically mix it into the water to water the plants with it.
I have a big watering can (I got from Lowe's) that my kids love using to water the plants. Though you can also use a hose. In the beginning we water them a lot, keep the ground pretty moist. Later on we slow down (and I think honestly the last few summers we had a lot of rain!).
Enjoy!
Gardening is an amazing hobby. My husband laughs that I get more excited over it than my children do! And it's so great for the kids too. Such a healthy activity, they learn so much and really gain from the whole experience.
I think if it's your first time you should for sure start with the starter plants. They're kinda fool proof. We knew absolutely nothing about gardening when we started and we've had a few years now of real growing. Tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, eggplant, string beans, basil, and all in my tiny backyard, in my very city-like neighborhood!

amother

Seafoam

Tue, May 10 2022, 12:35 am

Tips on getting the seedings in the ground?

How deep and how much space between each one?

How many of each kind of plant?

GLUE

Tue, May 10 2022, 12:44 am

amother [ Seafoam ] wrote:

Tips on getting the seedings in the ground?

How deep and how much space between each one?

How many of each kind of plant?

You should dig a hole that is twice as wide as the roots. Make sure the roots are completely covered. When putting the plant in the ground make sure that you do not cover any leaves or they will rot and can cause problems with the plant.

The book I posted up thread has a handy guide on how close many common plants should be.

Rule of thumb, even if you are buying plants it pays to look at the seed packs were they usually have guide on them telling how far apart the plants should be.(every vegetable is different some you can crowd some need a lot of room)

amother

Tue, May 10 2022, 7:08 am

amother [ DarkKhaki ] wrote:

Thanks! It sounds so tempting to start! It's something I dreamt of for years. Where r u located? Wonder if have a greenhouse in my area

amother

DarkKhaki

Tue, May 10 2022, 11:01 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Thanks! It sounds so tempting to start! It's something I dreamt of for years. Where r u located? Wonder if have a greenhouse in my area

Lakewood

amother

Tue, May 10 2022, 11:11 am

amother [ DarkKhaki ] wrote:

Lakewood

Same here! Where is the greenhouse located?

amother

DarkKhaki

Tue, May 10 2022, 11:14 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Same here! Where is the greenhouse located?

Betty's Greenhouse
On Lane's Mill Rd, off Rt. 88, right after the bowling alley
She doesn't sell soil, so you'll have to go to Lowe's for that. But she has lots of good advice!

amother

DarkKhaki

Tue, May 10 2022, 11:18 am

There's also another place on Rt. 9 in Howell, further than Target and Lowes. I don't remember the name but it was big an had tons of things, and very good prices.

I just searched and I think this is it https://www.twinpondfarm.com/

amother

Hunter

Tue, May 10 2022, 11:36 am

Do you need to spray your vegetables with chemicals/pesticides so that the bugs and animals don't eat them? I don't know if the area makes a difference, but I'm in Lakewood.

Also, do you find that you have more bugs and/or animals in or around your house because of the garden?

Thanks!

chanatron1000

Tue, May 10 2022, 1:40 pm

Pesticides help against insects, but they don't really work against other animals. You don't have to use them unless there's a bug problem.

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