Vegetable Garden Preparation Tips

Choosing what to plant in your vegetable garden can be difficult as there are many options. Regardless of preferences, the condition of your soil will have a large impact on results. The team at Centenary Landscaping Supplies has compiled a list of their favourite vegetable garden preparation tips to help you get the most out of your gardening efforts.

What To Plant:

Let’s start with a short list of options. While this is not an exhaustive list the following can be excellent choices for an autumn harvest.

• beetroot
• bok choy
• broad Beans
• broccoli
• brussel sprouts
• cabbage
• carrot
• cauliflower
• kale
• leek
• lettuce
• radish
• rocket
• salad greens
• shallots
• silverbeet
• snow peas
• spinach
• spring onions
• sugar snap peas

Vegetable Garden Preparation Ideas

Soil Preparation

Before getting stuck in and planting out your autumn crop, consider reconditioning your tired soil. Ideal vegetable garden soil should be loose, deep and crumbly. It should drain well (water should not stand on top after rain) and contain plenty of organic matter (see below). Good garden soil will deliver the right mixture of air, water, and nutrients to grow a large root system and strong, productive plants. If your working with an existing vegetable garden and have had successful results previously you may need to do very little preparation to get started for the next season.

Organic Material

All vegetables need a healthy amount of organic material in the soil in which they grow. Organic material serves many purposes but most importantly, it provides many of the nutrients that plants need to grow. Secondly, organic material “softens” soil so that the roots can more easily spread. Organic material also acts like small sponges and allows the soil in your vegetable garden to retain water. Organic material can come from either a compost or manure, or a combination of both.

Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium

When it comes to soil preparation for vegetable garden, these three nutrients are the keys that all plants require. They are also commonly referred to as N-P-K which you would have spotted before on the side of many fertiliser bags. While organic material does provide these nutrients, you may have to adjust them individually depending on your individual soil. This can be done with chemical fertilisers or if you prefer, organically.

To add nitrogen organically, use products like well composted manure.

To add phosphorus organically, use bone meal or rock phosphate.

To add potassium organically, use products like potash.

Good luck, and don’t forget to use a nice thick layer of mulch. Our suggestion is Lucern or Sugar Cane Mulch. They are perfect for protecting the soil, preventing weeds, retaining moisture and promoting microbial activity.

Contact Us Today for More Vegetable Garden Preparation Tips

We are here to help you get the most out of your gardening and landscaping endeavours. For best results, browse our landscaping store and gardening products or visit us at our shop at 26 Sumners Road, Darra and talk to us in person. For further enquiries, please call us on 07 3373 499 or reach out to us by submitting our contact form.

 

UPDATED: 09/07/20