How To Plant A Garden Step By Step

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So you've decided to start a garden? It's a lot easier than you might think! The first step is to figure out what you want to grow, then provide the right accommodations for your plants. Learn how to plan your garden, start your plants, and give them the right care!

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Decide what you want to grow. There are many different types of gardens, and they all provide a different type of pleasure. Think about why you want to start a garden when you're deciding what to plant. What type of garden will suit your yard, meet your needs, and bring you the most pleasure?
- Vegetable gardens are a practical choice for people who want to be able to eat what they grow. Growing your own vegetables saves a lot of money, and home-grown vegetables are highly nutritious. That said, vegetable gardens require more preparation up front, and they need consistent, ongoing care to ensure they produce a crop.^[1]
- If adding beauty to your home is your primary goal, you may want to grow a flower garden. Choose flowers with different shapes, colors, and textures to create a gorgeous new feature. Plant greenery among them so the garden stays pretty after the blooms have gone for the summer. Flowers do not require strict soil conditions like vegetables do, and they don't take quite as much ongoing care.
- If you don't have a lot of space, you can still grow a wonderful garden. Consider growing herbs, which can look beautiful. If you enjoy cooking from scratch, an herb garden can give you access to fresh herbs in your backyard.^[2]
- When you have specific ideas about the type of garden you want to grow, determine which varieties of those plants will grow in your particular growing region.^[3] Some varieties of the same plant will grow better in certain climates, regions, and soil types than other varieties.
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Plot the garden area. Choose an area of your yard or property with conditions that meet the needs of the plants you want to grow. Many vegetables, for example, need full sun for most of the day. Flowers, on the other hand, often require partial shade to thrive. If your yard has both shade and sun, you can have plants that need both types of conditions. Aside from sun, take the following into account:
- Choose an area with good drainage. If you see a puddle of standing water after it rains, the soil there probably has clay or rocks that are preventing the water from draining well. This isn't good for the roots of many types of plants. If the soil conditions aren't ideal, you can always build a raised bed and fill it with nutrient-rich, well drained soil instead.
- Consider the aesthetic you're going for. Plant it within view of your home's windows if you want to be able to see it from inside. Plant it in an area away from trees that drop a lot of leaves, so it will be easier to keep neat and trim. Also darker soil tends to be the better soil for plants.
- It's easier to garden on flat land, but planting on a hill is also just fine and can have a very pretty effect. It's also possible to level a sloping garden if you wish. Choose an area without a lot of roots and rocks, so the soil won't be too difficult to till. You can have rocks and roots when you start but you must get the roots and rocks out immediately.
- Consider the location in regards to how you will use and visit it. If you are growing herbs for cooking purposes, plant them near your back door. If you are growing flowers for ornamental purposes, you may want them somewhere farther away so that you can go on a long stroll.
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Buy gardening equipment and supplies. You'll need seeds, bulbs, or sprouted seedlings or bulbs to plant. These can be purchased from a catalog, an online store, a dollar store, or your local nursery. You'll also need to figure out which garden tools and other supplies to purchase based on the type of garden you're planting and its size. Simple hand tools will do for small gardens, but if it's bigger than a few yards, the work will be much easier with bigger machines. Consider getting these supplies:
- Seeds. Nurseries have great selections, and you can ask the staff there about which varieties do well in your region. Seeds are usually started indoors a month or two before the weather warms and its time to plant. Some seeds, however, do better when planted directly in the ground outside. Check the seed packet for specific recommendations.
- Bulbs or seedlings. Seedlings and bulbs can be planted as soon as they're purchased. Some bulbs take years to come up from the ground so you have to be patient.
- Fertilizer. This gives your plants an extra nutritional boost, helping them grow strong and healthy. Choose a natural fertilizer like blood meal, bone meal, or compost. You can also get chemical fertilizers geared toward specific plants. The coffee from coffee filters also works okay.
- Mulch and topsoil. Many plants should be protected from cool weather and wind when they're first put in the ground. Depending on what you're planting, choose mulch or another ground covering like hay, and pick up some extra topsoil.
- A soil tiller. This machine breaks up new ground for the first time. Buy or rent one if your garden area is more than a few years squared. You only need it for the initial tilling if you're not up to breaking the soil by hand. After the first tilling, you can use hand tools to maintain it.
- A shovel, a spade, and a garden rake. These essential garden tools are used to dig holes, move plants, and dig weeds.^[4]
- A ruler or measuring tape. This helps you figure out how deep to dig the holes for plants that need to be put into the ground at varying depths and how to space plants at the appropriate distance.
- A hose and sprinkler. Can be used for filling a watering can. Or can be set to mist and water the plants itself.
- Fencing supplies. Whether you're growing flowers or vegetables, you may want to fence in your garden to keep out deer, rabbits, squirrels and other critters.
- Garden notebook. This will help you plan and track your garden activities and harvests. After a few seasons you will have records to look back on so that you can make adjustments to your garden.
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1

Know when to plant. Different vegetables, flowers, herbs and other plants must be planted at specific times of the year. Some plants must be planted before the last frost of the year, some after the temperature has warmed past the frosting point. Some must be planted in the spring, some in the summer, and some in the fall.^[5] Pay attention to when you're supposed to plant the items you've chosen to grow.
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Prepare the soil. Mark the corners of the garden area with rocks, survey flags, stakes, or other markers to show what area the garden will cover. Remove any rocks, roots, sticks, and big weeds from within the boundaries you have marked. Use the soil tiller or a garden fork and rake to break up the ground into small pieces. Work the soil to a depth of about 12 inches (30.5 cm), and mix in compost or fertilizer you're using.^[6]
- Be sure to use the right amount of fertilizer for the plants you're growing. Using too much can actually harm them.
- If you're tilling an area with grass, you might want to remove the big clumps of grass as you go to make it easier to till the soil underneath.
- If you have too many rocks in the soil, consider building a screen to sift out large rocks. Build a wooden frame to support a square of hardware cloth. After you have broken up the soil, shovel it onto the screen and work the soil through it. Large rocks will be left on top of the screen. You can use these to establish a pathway or border for your new garden.
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Dig holes and plant the seedlings. Use the spade to dig holes to the correct depth, and be sure to space them far enough apart that each individual plant will have enough room to grow.^[7] Place the seedlings in the ground and fill in the holes with topsoil. Finish with a layer of mulch, if necessary.
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Water the garden. A new garden should be kept moist at all times. If the seedlings dry out, they will be likely to die before they mature. Use the garden hoses to spray the area with water in the morning.
- Check the soil often. If it seems to be dry, water it again.
- Don't water the area in the evening, since if water sits overnight it can cause mold to grow. If your plants look like they need water, however, it is better to water them at night than not at all, as long as you do not make a habit of it.
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Weed the garden. As your garden grows, so will weeds. It's important to pull them out before they crowd out your vegetables and flowers. Be diligent and weed at least twice a week to prevent this from happening.
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Care for the plants according to their needs. Some plants are low maintenance, while others need consistent care throughout the growing season and beyond. Here are the factors you should take into consideration:
- How often does the plant need to be watered? It usually tapers off after the first few weeks.
- How often does the plant need to be fertilized? Some need to be fertilized more than once during the growing season.
- Does the plant need to be pruned? Some plants grow healthier when extra stems, leaves and dead blossoms are removed.
- Does the plant need support? Some plants do much better with a trellis, stake, or cage to support their limbs as they grow heavy fruits.
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Keep animals and insects away. You may need to take measures to protect your garden from deer, birds, squirrels, and insects that enjoy eating plants. If you see holes in your plants or other signs that there's a problem, determine what type of creature is causing it and take appropriate measures.
- Erecting a small fence can be an effective way to keep animals out.
- Natural insect deterrents often work quite well, and they keep your garden organic.
- Try planting at least 20% of your garden with flowers to attract beneficial predators that will eat the pests. Some plants also help repel insects, such as basil and geraniums.^[8]
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Are there any vegetables I cannot plant side by side?

Many vegetables have certain other plants with which they are incompatible as neighbors. See a list at NaturalLivingIdeas.com/incompatible-plants.

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Don't worry, bugs will eat a few holes in the plants, don't pull them up, they are still good.
Have patience and don't eat veggies until fully grown.
Don't use harsh chemicals on the plants.

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Once you've decided where to plant your garden, mark the corners area with rocks, flags, or stakes to show the boundaries. Remove any rocks, sticks, roots, or big weeds from the garden, then use a soil tiller or a garden fork and rake to break the ground into small pieces. Work the soil to a depth of about 12 inches, and mix in any compost or fertilizer you are using. Using a spade, dig holes for your seedlings, making sure to plant them at the correct depth for each plant. Water your garden each morning, and remove any weeds at least twice a week. For more tips from our Gardener reviewer, including how to choose plants that will complement your garden, read on!

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