Beginning with Vegetables

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Vegetables-

Many people think of a garden as a space that is beautiful with flowers. But to just as many, the word “garden” means “vegetables.” There is no reason why you cannot combine flowers and vegetables into an attractive picture that will please not only the eye, but the palate, as well.

There can be just as much beauty in a well-laid-out array of plants that produce food instead of flowers, and, from an economics standpoint, a vegetable garden can contribute a great savings to your food bill, something not to be overlooked in today’s society. For every dollar spent on a vegetable garden, you will reap a $5 to $6 return in value. Not only do fresh, homegrown vegetables save you money, they contain the optimum in health-giving nutrients. Plus, there are fringe fitness benefits to the gardener who must exercise in order to prepare, weed, and care for a vegetable garden.

The space allocated for vegetables should be gauged by the preferences of your family. Ask the members of your household which vegetables they prefer. There is no sense in growing bushels of eggplant if only one person likes to eat this vegetable! Once you have made a list of your family’s preferences, do a little arithmetic to work out how many plants you will need to produce a sufficient crop during a season. This will help you decide whether you need 2 or 12 tomato plants, 1 or 10 rows of corn, a dozen summer squash plants—or none at all.

MR. GREEN THUMB RULE
Your vegetable garden will grow that much better if you sit down and draw a plan for the garden first.