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by Emily Bishton, CPH
Green Light Gardening / www.greenlightgardening.com
You might be surprised just how much fresh, organic food you can grow in a small backyard garden. Here are some tips for delicious success!
1. Choose a Good Site: As in real estate, location matters, and your power of observation is the best tool in choosing a good site. Keep these guidelines in mind:
- Most food crops need full sun exposure. Tomatoes, squash, beans, and corn need a minimum of 8 hours of sun per day throughout summer in order to bear well in our climate. The same is true of fruit trees and berries. Carrots, chard, and other crops such as salad greens can thrive with less.
- Raising the temperature of the soil can extend your growing season. A south-facing wall or sidewalk will absorb and reflect heat into nearby soils, even in the cooler months. A bed that is mounded or raised a few inches will warm up much earlier in the year for spring crops.
- Good access to an outside spigot is important because food crops need summer water, whether delivered via soaker hoses, drip irrigation, hose-end shower wands, or watering cans. Convenience for watering, harvesting, and maintenance will help you get the most from your garden.
2. Build Healthy Soil: The foundation for growing healthy crops is building healthy soil. Whether your existing soil is sandy or full of clay, adding compost from the start is the key to improving it. Use a garden fork or spade to incorporate a 4-inch layer of compost into your soil in the early spring, after it has dried out a bit. Later in spring, mulch the soil around your crops with 1-2 inches of compost, to help the soil retain water during the summer months. In the fall, grow cover crops or mulch any open areas of your beds with fallen leaves, to protect the soil from compaction and nutrient loss during winter rains. A little time spent each season on soil improvement will result in much more vigorous crops.
3. Plant for Pollinators: Plant perennials and annuals nearby that attract bees and other pollinators to your food crops. Fruit trees and berry bushes depend on insects for pollination, as do tomatoes, peppers, pumpkins, and other crops. Attracting beneficial insects can also greatly reduce your pest problems. Some of the best plants for attracting insect friends are also beautiful and delicious, such as oregano, dill, bronze fennel, lavender, sage, and other herbs. Echinacea (pictured), yarrow, cosmos, and black-eyed susan are additional choices whose spent flower heads will also feed birds in the fall and winter.
4. Go Vertical: Make the most out of your growing space by planting edible vines on a trellis, arbor, or bamboo pole tripod. These structures can be used for peas, beans, cucumbers, and even small squash varieties. Grapes and Kiwi need a very sturdy arbor, which can provide a great focal point for your garden as well as a place for summer dining. If your garden is extremely sunny, grow your salad greens in the shade of any vine-covered structure during the summer to help prevent them from bolting (going to seed).
5. Have Fun: Experiment with your favorite foods, learn what works grows best in your garden, and have fun!
Resources for more info:
www.westsidegardener.com
www.seattletilth.org
www.organicgardening.com
Emily Bishton is a landscape designer, educator, and garden coach in the greater Seattle area. For more information or to contact her, visit www.greenlightgardening.com
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