Want to grow your own veggies and don’t know where to start? Look no further! In fact, it’s not as difficult as you think. You could either set up a few garden beds or you can use some half drums or containers.
If you are going to have beds, select an area in your back yard where you will get at least 6 hours of sunlight and then mark off the beds. Use a fork or tiller to work through the soil until it is loose. Add potting soil and cured pen manure to this and work it in. Water the beds. If you want you could fence off the area for your kitchen garden.
If you are planting in half drums, fill up the drums with soil and pen manure. Once you have purchased your seedlings, plant them approximately 6-8 inches apart. Mist lightly every day. If the sun is too strong, you may need to put some branches over the beds to shade your seedlings.
There are many veggies that you can choose to grow, such as poi calaloo, lettuce, celery, parsley, tomatoes, bora, cabbage, pak choy, okra, sweet peppers or eggplant, to name a few. You can have mixed beds or settle for your favourite veggie. The big plus is harvesting time when you will be eating fresh, clean veggies daily, free of chemicals.
The taste and texture would be so different. Recently, I visited some senior citizens in their ʼ70s and ʼ80s who enjoy planting their kitchen gardens and harvesting their produce. This has helped them to stay alert and be stress free. So why not plant a few veggies for 2016? You would be rewarded with freshly grown produce.
Until next week, Happy Gardening!
