Let me start by saying I have in no way optimized this post for SEO. I have not made a pinnable image. I’m not even hoping you share it like I always appreciate you doing with my more sharable posts. Nope, our spring garden, despite my efforts, is a complete rookie’s play by play. So feel free to read on and either commiserate our black thumbs or unload your best tips in the comment section. Keep them simple please because, well, you’ll see…
This is the before picture.
Let me be the first to give David many fist bump emojis for his awesome hard work on building a beautiful garden.
The well-built structure is not part of this garden fail.
The nice soil he mixed with CLAY to fill it up might be, but he would adamantly disagree with a hearty eye roll and snarky comment on my black thumb no doubt.
Let me back up for a minute and let me tell you how hard I tried with this garden.
I picked up this little seed starter kit that basically guarantees things to grow.
I carefully selected the proper plants to grow based on this North Carolina growing chart.
… and by “carefully selected” I mean I let the girls toss fistfuls of seed packets into the cart, then I tediously re-shelved the excessive number of pink flower and random vegetable packets when they weren’t looking.
Given a 4 year old and 1 year old may not be the most meticulous seeders, but guaranteed to grow, remember?
I was so proud of all those little labels and followed the directions of where to place this greenhouse to a T. My first mistake, perhaps, was the excessive celebration I threw when just over a week later my greenhouse looked like this.
We did it! I screamed as I high-fived the girls and showered us all with freshly-popped champagne.
(just kidding about that last part)
Then they just kept growing, so much so that it forced us to go ahead with the transfer.
I mean, just look at those beasts. Surely they were hearty enough to make the switch in environment and survive a couple cooler nights.
Right?
Right.
Man, were we proud when we saw our little seedlings start they’re venture into the real garden.
They even kept a brave face for a couple days.
…until we realized they had withered so much that we couldn’t even find remnants of where we had planted them.
Ah well, back to Lowe’s.
We picked out a few sturdy small plants and lowered our ambitions to just a few varieties.
30 minutes of digging later, and ta-daaaaa!
Our neighbor came by and congratulated us on our gardening success, just as I had just put the garden spades back out of view.
I decided to just smile and say thank you. My bruised ego needed a win.
So, now here we go, family garden 2.0.
And just for the record, the snap peas are the ones we grew from seeds, so I suppose a total failure I am not.
…at least not yet anyway.
Ok, weigh in here…
Any other rookies?
Otherwise PLEASE impart your knowledge on me.
How does your garden grow?
Kate says
Keeping my fingers crossed for garden 2.0!
We’ll keep it simple this year, because we want to revamp the whole garden. We’ll have lots of herbs though – they don’t require much skill or input, especially parsley and peppermint grow like weed.
Growing from seeds is tricky – I’ve had great sucesses, but also quite a few failures. Particularly, basil – I have yet to grow a basil plant from seeds that doesn’t die at some point in the process…
Liz T says
I find sprinkling a couple basil packets over a patch of soil is the best way to get lots of basil. Transplants typically won’t give you much yield. For that matter, transplanting seedlings is hardly worth the effort IMO- it’s too easy for the seedlings to become “leggy” and then they don’t do well.
Brittany Dixon says
I think all mine got leggy, so that definitely makes sense. I’m going to try your basil trick!
Kimberly says
I agree with this. If you are a beginner, get starts for most of your plants. I use seed for ‘row plants’ like carrots, spinach, onions, and herbs. I get starts for ‘bush plants’ like tomatoes, squash, and peppers. Transplanting takes a lot of practice and isn’t a great way to start if you’re a beginner. Just get your starts and seeds when you’re ready to put them straight in to the garden. Clay is not a great way to start if you’re a beginner. It’s true that Clay has a lot of nutrients but those nutrients won’t benefit your plants if your clay is too acidic or too alkaline. You’ll need to test the soil and then ammend as appropriate. For a beginner it’s best just to start off with the good stuff. Your raised beds look awesome and you’ll see these new plants rocking it in no time!! Gardening is fun and also frustrating. Even seasoned gardeners have failures every year. Learn and try again, right!?
Karen says
I used to grow a garden with my daycare kids every spring. Then by June/July we were not able to keep up with the weeds and tell what were plants and what were actual weeds. I did this for about 5 years and now we have beautiful grass again in this area.
My pointer to you is…..the farmers market is much more fun in the long run.
Although, I do wish you luck:)
Michelle says
ha ha, loved this post.
Parita says
LOL! At least you’re having fun 🙂
jennifer says
We will be planting our first garden this year. I am ‘over the moon excited’. Over the weekend we weeded the area. We were planning to plant this weekend however the temperatures are still below freezing in the mornings here in Northern VA – so I might need to wait 1 more weekend.
Growing up my parents would have a small vegetable garden and that was only a few miles from where we are now. Therefore, I think I am ready to give it a go on my own.
We will plant tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, basil, and cilantro.
I have 2 concerns at this point: 1.) The only area we have to grow is not in direct sunlight all day – only a few hours. 2.) I am worried that bunnies and squirrels will eat everything (this has happened many years growing up).
However, we will give it a whirl.
Keep updating on your progress!
Brittany Dixon says
Oh I am excited for you!! Yes, we have a lot of critters too which is why David built a raised bed, but I’m still considering adding chicken wire around it if the plants actually thrive. Good luck to you!! And please report back 🙂
Liz T says
I really enjoy gardening. One pro tip – always wait until the almanacs final frost date to plant tender summer veg. Then watch the forecast for frost. If frost is on the way – cover the plants with homemade greenhouses – best to use old fashioned plastic milk jugs w the bottoms cut off. I hope your plants make it through the next couple week! We are having frost tonight in Durham.
Brittany Dixon says
I saw that it is getting down to 36 next weekend here– blast. Love your idea about old milk jugs! Maybe a silly question, but would I leave the cap off or on? I’m going to try and find some jugs!
Carolyn says
I bought those same seed pods and I’ve definitely had to re-plant some in bigger containers. I’m not ready to put them outside, yet, and I don’t think they’re ready, yet, either. Oh, and did you harden then before putting them outside. It says on the package to put them out in the shade for a week, bringing them in at night, before putting them outside. Wish me luck on mine!
Brittany Dixon says
Oh dear, I think I was so excited that they grew that I tossed the directions. Another rookie mistake. Honestly, I never even knew about how to harden plants until I read this comment, so thank you! Good luck– surely you will have better luck than me!!
Kristen says
Rookie gardener right here! I have tried to grow seeds in a ‘seed starter’ kit 3 (T.H.R.E.E.) times and each time it ended exactly as you have described in your posts. The only plant I’ve ever had survive that way is basil. I decided to toss the kit after I had a particularly immature outburst one spring and I just dumped an entire packet of seeds (for flowers) on a small corner of horrible dirt by the driveway in frustration. I literally paid no attention to them EVER and THEY GREW SO BIG. Meanwhile, my plants in my little seed kit withered and died. Those little expanding dirt pellets are forever tossed from my gardening shed.
I have had much much better luck buying small plants like you have. And actually, I’ve managed to successfully transplant/split/and even propagate several plants since I’ve switched… and this rookie gardener considers those advanced gardening techniques.
I mostly grow herbs, but my father in law grows a very successful vegetable garden every year and says the same thing. I should have listened to him to begin with….
Brittany Dixon says
I’m cracking up laughing because I did the same thing with SUNFLOWER seeds (just tossed them) and they grew to be HUGE. Like, super tacky huge, haha! Yet the things I tend to daily kick the bucket. At least I’m not alone 😉 Thank you!
Kelli D says
I am obsessed with my veggie garden! I had so many peppers and tomatoes last year that I just used up our last jar of homemade pasta sauce, still have many, many jars of homemade salsa and have yet to buy a pepper all winter. We thrown our frozen bell peppers and jalapenos in eggs/quiches, chili, spicy thai basil chicken, anything that requires cooked peppers so right out of the freezer works well. I am excited to get our garden planted for some fresh peppers though. I live in Wake Forest, NC so same growing conditions as you. I am lucky to have my dad grow all of my plants from seeds in a green house but even still I have some tips for you 🙂
1. You’ll want to wait to plant until about mid-April after the last average frost. It is supposed to get down to 29 tonight so waiting until the risk of frost passes is best. Beans and peas are cool weather crops which is why they are doing okay even in the cold.
2. Mixing in clay was not the best idea, sorry David! Clay is tough and the roots have to work through it. When you plant, dig your holes and and throw in a handful of compost manure. You can buy it a Loews by the bag. It’s composted so not raw, don’t worry! 😉 This gives the roots lots of good nutrient dense soil.
3. Transplant your seedlings into bigger pots to allow them to grow larger with denser root balls. Harden your plants by taking them outside for a little each day and then bringing them back in at night. Place them in a cooler spot in the shade for a few hours each day.
4. Cover your beds with black landscaping tarp and cut holes where you plant. This allows the soil to warm up earlier in the season, keeps moisture in after watering (don’t over water!!), and helps keep down weeds in between plants.
5. Let your tomato and pepper plants get about a foot tall before planting in the beds, Strip off the lower leaves and plant them at least 8 inches deep. All those little “hairs” you seen on tomato stalks will grown into roots if planted in the ground. This will allow for better root growth and stronger main stalks.
I am by no means an expert but all of these things have worked for me the past 4 or so years so I hope they work for you as well! I am also interested to see everyone’s comments to see if I can gain some new tips too! Good luck with your garden, I wish you lots of growing success! I absolutely love picking fresh veggies from my backyard for our meals!
Kelli
Brittany Dixon says
I kind of want to copy and paste your response and put it in a post all its own. What awesome information!! Seriously, thank you so much for sharing and I’m going to heed your advice next time for sure. My dream is to be one of those people that has so many tomatoes they don’t know what to do with them. I could eat a bucket of homegrown tomatoes everyday if I could grow them, so whatever works for you I will do!
katie says
I vote Kelli writes a guest post!!!!
Brittany Dixon says
Agreed!! 🙂
Kelli D says
Ha! I am glad you found this helpful 🙂 Don’t let me fool you though, my dad does all the hard work getting the plants started and I just put them in the ground and watch them grow! I would like to try my hand at winter gardening and try beans, asparagus, carrots, etc. Maybe next year! I just talked to him about trying to set up a mini greenhouse in our third car garage to germinate my own seedlings but we will have to see how far I want to take this!
Nancy says
I completely agree with all this – I had potted gardens when I was in Charlotte and now I have a big bed in the backyard. Unfortunately unitedly it looks like you planted stuff too soon this year for most of it to survive. A great thing about the south is you could plant lettuce and spinach right now and about the time it gets too hot for it to thrive it’s about to,e to plant the tomatoes and zucchini – so you get double the produce out of the same garden space! You just have to be sure to fertilize – I use our kitchen scraps to create a really rich (and free) compost! Yeah, I’m a nerd about this stuff…
Kathy says
Regardless of the outcome–you are still having fun and experimenting and the girls are having fun. I too do not have a green thumb. I am lucky to be able to grow basil in a pot and maybe some cilantro. 🙂 Looking forward to doing just that this year. Would love to grow tons of tomatoes but that is sadly not happening. Happy gardening!!!
Brittany Dixon says
That’s how i”m viewing it too! The girls (especially Hailey) are getting a kick out of it and are excited. I figure at least we are outside playing in the dirt?
Jess says
Last year was our first growing a vegetable garden. We actually produced a ridiculous amount of food. The secret to our success? Using someone else’s knowledge. I found a blogger who gardens in our general area, and she had posted about what varieties did well, and what seem to be a bit trickier. I only planted the ‘easy’ ones. This year we’ll do the same and add a couple more difficult but more fun foods (like baby watermelon – almost guaranteed to not work out!). I’m sure you can find the same handy info as I did for your region. Good luck!
Lauren @ Oh Hey! I Like That! says
You’re doing a GREAT job with that garden! And FYI, I was completely cracking up last night when I saw Kaitlyn’s watering the deck on Snapchat!
Alyssa @ renaissancerunnergirl says
I love this! I have no tips but am also seeking them. I used to love planting tulips with my mom as a kid (for all three years she did before getting bored with gardening) and I’d love to have a vegetable garden one day. The idea of eating what I’ve grown myself is really appealing!
Danielle says
I’m still a novice when it comes to planting in the ground, but I have been “growing” for a couple years now.
My first year was just a couple of tomato plants in pots on our balcony. They did pretty well. (They were transplants)
My second year, last year, was a complete bust. My dad was upset I only plants a couple things the year before sooo I planted more from seeds. Which is partially where I went wrong. I planted 2 types of tomatoes, watermelon, and strawberries. I ended up with 20 tomato plants, a couple watermelon plants, and a bunch of tiny strawberry plants. Strawberries died when I moved them to a bigger container. They are hard to transplant do store bought plant is better. That year we had 3 months of rain which flooded the garden and killed everything. Planting in the low, out-of-the-way part of the yard not my smartest idea. To make the season not a complete buster, I grew a cucumber plant (from store) in a pot on the balcony.
Now it is my third year, I’m starting everything from seeds. I’m doing more variety, less quantity. I also haven’t started anything yet since we’re suppose to be getting snow soon. This year my plan is a couple small raised beds, pots, and planting directly into big bags of potting mix. The previous year when I was trying to get the ground ready to plant, I realized we have clay soil which isn’t the best to plant in. So raised beds it is because I’m too lately to do all the work required to mend the soil. Lol
My one too to you would be to harden off your seedlings. Snap peas like the cold which is probably why they did fine, but things like tomatoes hate it. Hardening off your seedlings just means slowly introducing them the outdoors. Before transplanting, start putting them outside for a couple hours a day then slowly extend it to a full day. Then they can be transplanted if the weather at night doesn’t get too low which varies from plant to plant.
Well, I hope sharing my multiple fails proves helpful in avoiding some of the same mistakes I made. We’re in this together! Lol
Heather says
I have almost zero luck starting plants from seeds… unless they are in containers. Anytime I try and grow plants in the ground I have complete failure on my hands. I’m definitely going to read through all of the comments on this post for tips!!
Heather says
Love your little garden! My 15 month old doesn’t really get it at this point but loves playing in the dirt.
Things that I did direct seed with “once the soil was workable” as advised on the back of the package:
– 2 types peas
– 3 types of kale
– lettuce
-cilantro
– carrots
Things that actually came up – some of the kale, lettuce and one type of pea. This weather has been nuts so very hard to plant things correctly.
I will plant things like tomatoes from seedlings in late april/may since they take a long time to produce fruit if started from seed late in the year (sungolds are the best!). I also always buy my herbs from a nursery because I will never really need multiple parsley plants. If you get a good thyme plant it will most likely be able to survive the winter. I would plant a zucchini under your peas around this time too since the peas will die in the summer heat, but the zucchini will thrive and take over the entire bed by august.
You should cover your tomatoes and basil in the cold temps. They hate the cold.
Good Luck!
Columbia says
I can’t wait to close on our new home so I can attempt a garden this year. It will be May in Georgia so hopefully my plants will survive my black thumb.
Josephine sharpe says
We tried last summer to grow peppers and zucchini along with some herbs. We got two zucchinis! All my herbs did well except my coriander. So not much success with gardening in our household. My 4 year old is excited to plant and water with her Daddy so I guess we will give it another go this year!