Love The Garden Your Vegetable Garden In Spring

The secret to a successful vegetable garden is to make the most use of the space available whether that's an acre of land that you can dedicate to growing vegetables or just a single raised bed. One of the best ways to maximise your yearly crop is to plan out the growing year carefully, starting with your salad vegetables in the spring and running right through to winter crops such as Brussel sprouts, main crop potatoes and leeks. If you plan carefully not only will you have a continuous supply of fresh vegetables but you will also avoid exhausting the nutrients in your soil. So let's find out what the main jobs of the early part of the year are.

There is lots to do during spring in the vegetable garden.

Expect to be busiest in the garden during the early part of the year. If you've spent the winter preparing your beds they should be ready for planting your early crops as soon as the threat of frost has passed. Get an early start by bringing on your seedlings in trays either in a greenhouse or in a warm, sunny windowsill. If your seedlings have at least two to three sets of leaves before you plant them out into the beds they will have a better chance of surviving any inclement spring weather.

This is also the time when the dreaded weeds are going to be in full growing mode, so be prepared to go into battle! It's much easier to stop weeds from getting a foothold in your plot if you catch them early.

Plan for a steady supply of ripe crops

Spring crops are usually fast growing and to prevent a glut of lettuces for example, try planting a new row or part-row of seeds at weekly intervals. This way you will ensure that different plantings mature at different times, enabling you to prevent a glut and then drought of produce. If the spring is particularly damp you may find that tempting young lettuces become targets for slugs.

Are your vegetables getting enough nutrients?

If you've done your winter preparation properly, your soil should already be full of nutrients from all the organic matter you've double-dug into the beds. However, if your crops are struggling to grow you may need to boost the nutrient supply with a liquid feed during the early part of the growing season. Look out for plants that don't look healthy, yellowing leaves or poor growth. This will indicate that your vegetable garden is lacking in nutrients or that the soil is becoming waterlogged.

While spring in the vegetable garden may seem like an endless round of weeding and nurturing tender young plants through sudden frosts, the result of all this hard work is a bountiful crop of spring vegetables and a garden that's ready to plant your summer crops once you've lifted the last lettuce. Your reward will be fresh, tasty vegetables for spring salads and stews as well as a considerable reduction in your weekly shopping bill. Spring vegetables can be quite costly to buy in the supermarkets, so growing your own can save you plenty of money. Once the last of the spring crops are cleared away you will be ready to stock up your plots with the summer and autumn cropping vegetables, making the best use of your vegetable garden all year round.