So you want to grow a garden?  Where do you start?  Planting and maintaining a garden is not for the faint at heart.  It takes lots of work and dedication.

We would recommend starting with your site.  The site is the key.  This includes many factors such as water access, soil quality, and size.  Getting a soil sample through the extension office is a great start to finding out about your soil to make sure it is nutrient-rich or what to add to your soil to make it beneficial for your plants.  Keeping those plants watered is key also when the rain does not participate.

Next, you need to decide on what you are going to grow.  There are so many types of plants and vegetables it can be overwhelming.  Starting small could be key, and always grow what you or your family will use as well as what is suitable to your location and weather.  Also, keep in mind when to plant certain vegetables as some are cool weather crops.  Another key aspect is knowing when to plant these items as it can frost or be cold late into May here in Kentucky, and you don’t want to take the risk of losing your hard-earned work.

Planning out your garden is also a great idea.  Keeping things neat and tidy as well as companion planting and spacing of plants to make weeding and plowing easy.  Just drawing a rough sketch on a piece of notebook paper will help you tremendously in keeping things on track.

And let’s not forget your tools.  Tools are also key.  There are so many different types of tools and machinery for gardening from shovels, hoes, rakes, tillers, tractors, and more.  Most people make do with the basics but some go all out with tractors and drip tubing and more.  Just do what best suits you and your garden.

After the beginning work is started, then all the maintenance and care begin.  This is a daily chore in some instances; however, seeing all the benefits of the garden is delightful as well as eating your crops.

With the use of the internet so much information can be found that is beneficial in gardening.  One site I have found to be very beneficial is  https://www.almanac.com/learn-to-garden.  This page contains so much useful and beneficial information from beginning to end.   Go take a look.  Another great tool is your local county extension office.  They have agricultural agents that are a wealth of knowledge and can answer most questions you have about gardening or can point you in the right direction.  Many also have greenhouses and can help you pick your plants out.  We urge you to look into your local county extension office and seek their advice.  I am sure you will be very pleased.