Gardening is a learned art passed from generation to generation in my family. At a young age I began to garden with my grandparents. It was a year round endeavour to produce veggies and work the garden. In Fall and Winter you need to add leaves, compost and manure to replenish the nutrients used in producing veggies through the Spring and Summer. Everyone has different ideas on how to get the best production from their plot. My grandparents did something called Companion Gardening. Granny explained to me that veggies are sort of like people.

They do best in an environment where they are happy with their surroundings. For example tomatoes do well near cucumbers, onions and peppers but not near potatoes or corn. Beans do well with corn or cucumbers but not near tomatoes or onions. So it takes some thought to plan and use your garden plot well. Insect and animal control also affect the veggie yield. If you research you will find numerous chemicals and traps to rid all these pests. My grandparents used mostly natural means to keep bugs and variants at bay.

Garden lime or even flour sprinkled liberally on plants kept most insects away. Also planting flowers like marigolds helped with insect control. Marigold emit an odour that will deter many things. Animals required harsher methods such as traps or tying the dog near by. Usually a scarecrow was erected and netting was installed over strawberries to deter birds. Deer are a huge problem and can ruin a whole garden in a couple nights. A dog near by usually kept them away. Some also use a bit of human hair or urine scattered on the outer perimeter of the garden. The other big nuisance is weeds. For that you need a good hoe and alot of elbow grease. When the garden is planted and in production you will be spending at least a couple hours a day planting, weeding and tilling. You may have to irrigate if it is a dry gardening season. We have used yard sprinklers, soaking hoses and misters to keep the plants producing. It is all a lot of hard work but the type that is a good tired feeling.

If you are dedicated by the end of the gardening season you should yield enough to feed your family and have plenty of veggies through the Winter months. Gardening can become a great stress reliever and a also a good source of income if you have excess and sell at the local farmers markets.