How to Start a Vegetable Garden—and Keep Your Kitchen Stocked With Homegrown Produce (2024)

There are many great reasons to grow your own vegetables at home, but we’ll stick to our favorites: You know exactly where the food comes from; working the soil organically helps the environment; and vegetables taste infinitely better when you cultivate them yourself. No matter if you have a big plot of land or just a few pots, you can start your own vegetable garden. Ahead, we're walking you through the entire process, from sowing by seed to harvesting your crops.

1. Getting Started

Before deciding what you want to grow, map out a space and consider how much time and effort you can put into your garden.

Find a Location

Look for a spot that gets at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight a day. If planting in the ground, choose a well-drained area where no big puddles form after rain. To prevent critters from accessing a new vegetable garden, fence it in with wire.

Know Your Soil

The foundation of any garden, your soil should contain plenty of nutrients and organic matter. Contact your local cooperative extension and send in a sample for analysis. Prior to planting, enrich your plot with a layer of compost. If you're using containers, get organic potting soil.

2. Gather Your Garden Tools

You'll need a few essentials if you're planning on establishing a vegetable garden.

• Hori Hori knife: Also known as a soil knife or weeding knife, this tool digs and cuts and is especially helpful for removing weeds with deep taproots (like dandelions).
• Clippers: Invest in a pair of sharp, fine-pointed garden scissors for harvesting cut-and-come-again greens and herbs.
• Cultivator: This is the go-to tool on Martha's farm for digging out weeds quickly.
• Trug: You'll want a long, shallow basket, like a trug, to carry your vegetables from the garden to the kitchen.

3. Choose Your Growing Method

There are three basic ways to grow edibles: in containers, raised beds, or in the ground. When deciding which to go with, weigh these options.

Containers

Containers are perfect for small spaces. Just make sure they're deep enough for roots to grow. Vegetables grown in containers require frequent watering—almost daily when it's hot and sunny. Since space is limited, stick with herbs, dwarf varieties, and greens that don't require a ton of room.

Raised Beds

When you choose to grow your vegetables in a raised bed, you're in full control. You can customize soil and bed size and easily correct problems. Since raised beds are contained, the soil heats up faster, so you can plant earlier. An important note: Use only untreated wood to prevent unwanted chemicals from leaching into the soil.

There are a few cons with this method—since you need to fill beds with soil, initial costs can be higher than growing in the ground. You may also have to water and feed more frequently because they drain so effectively (but usually less than with containers).

In Ground

This method is most economical and requires less work in the beginning. You can water less frequently than with pots or raised beds. But you do have to work with what Mother Nature has provided, which could include poor soil or lots of inconveniently placed tree roots or rocks.

4. Pick What (and When) You Want to Plant

Talk to fellow gardeners, visit your local nursery, and look through seed catalogs to learn what grows well in your area. Then think about what you love to eat and be open to branching out from the basics, like mixing in 'Green Zebra' tomatoes with your beefsteaks.

Sketch out where you want to plant what and record everything you sow in a notebook. And while it may be tempting to put everything in the ground on the first warm weekend in spring, be careful: Some varieties tolerate the cold; others cannot. Before you start, ask your local nursery for the last frost date in your area, consult seed packets and plant tags for growing times, and plan your plantings from there.

5. Decide Between Seeds or Seedlings

You can either grow vegetables by seeds or seedlings.

Seeds

Seeds are inexpensive (you can purchase dozens for just a few dollars), and you'll find a wider selection of unusual varieties. However, they do require more effort because you may have to plant some varieties, like tomatoes and peppers, indoors. Since you're starting at the beginning, you'll also have to wait longer for the harvest. Discover some of our favorite places to purchase seeds below.

• Johnny’s Selected Seeds: One-stop shopping for edibles, the go-to for Martha’s beds.
• Hudson Valley Seed Company: Heirloom and open-pollinated seeds in beautiful, gift-worthy packaging.
• Kitazawa Seed Co.: Specializes in Asian vegetables, like shish*to peppers, chrysanthemum greens, and shiso.
• Seeds from Italy: Offers traditional Italian varieties, such as borlotti beans, radicchio, and seven kinds of basil, organized by region.
• Seed Savers Exchange: Rare and heirloom seeds from a nonprofit organization dedicated to saving and sharing.
• Southern Exposure Seed Exchange: Offers heirloom southern varieties, like okra and collards.

Seedlings

Get seedlings at your local garden center or farmers' market. They'll carry the varieties that are best suited to your location. However, it's not enough to just plant and go—seedlings need a little extra care as they establish. For example, to keep moisture in and prevent weeds from taking root, scatter a layer of mulch around seedlings (leaving a radius bare around the bases) and over paths after planting. Some common mulches include seedless straw, salt hay, leaf mold, and even nitrogen-packed grass clippings. Avoid regular hay, which can contain weed seeds.

6. Group Like Vegetables When You Plant

To maximize your space and streamline your tasks, put edibles that require similar amounts of water and sunlight in the same bed or container. These are some of the most classic groupings.

• Tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, basil, and parsley
• Squashes, beans, and corn
• Carrots and radishes
• Kale and chard
• Peas and cucumbers

Plant blossoms like marigolds, nasturtiums, and calendula among your vegetables to decorate your beds, brighten salads, attract beneficial bugs, and help ward off troublesome pests like nematodes, tomato hornworms, and aphids.

7. Tend to Your Vegetables

After the work of preparing and planting your garden is done, all you have to do is keep up with routine tasks, like watering and weeding. You should also check regularly for signs of disease (such as leaf spots and powdery mildew) and pests (like Japanese beetles and tomato hornworms). Follow these four simple steps to keep your garden beautiful and bountiful.

Feed

Add about an inch of compost at the start of the season. Then apply an organic fertilizer, like fish emulsion, or another thin layer of compost as the season progresses.

Hydrate

Water deeply when needed, about an inch once a week. Opt for a soaker hose or drip irrigation system that delivers moisture directly to the roots, rather than sprinkling down from above.

Weed

Pull weeds anytime you see them sprouting. This will save you time in the long run, because if you remove them while they're young, they won't spread. Also, remember that you're going to eat what you sow—so skip herbicides.

Resow

Fast growers like radishes, lettuces, and other greens can benefit from multiple plantings. Stagger the timing, starting seeds directly in the ground every few weeks so you have continuous salad fixings.

8. Stay on Top of Your Harvest

There's something magical about eating a perfectly ripe tomato just off the vine while it's still warm from the sun. (Martha likes to bring a little salt with her into the garden to do just that!) You'll know when your vegetables are ready by looking at their size, shape, and vibrant color. Tomatoes will give with a gentle tug rather than needing a hard pull. Some plants, like okra, beans, and turnips, are extra-delicious and tender when picked young. Keep up with your harvest to encourage new growth: Cucumbers will slow their production if they aren't plucked when ready, and when zucchini get too big, they aren't as tender and tasty as when they're smaller.