Video: How to Start a Garden

Woman smiling in garden holding freshly pulled carrots with green tops

Misty NewcombMisty Newcomb is a wife, mother, gardener, and small-scale chicken farmer interested in using natural foods to build a healthy, connected family and community. She has a full-time professional career off the farm and enjoys figuring out how to efficiently feed her family like it’s 1899 while living a modern, balanced lifestyle. She’s also a die-hard NBA and NCAA basketball fan and amateur fermenter. You can find the chronicles of her farming journey on Instagram @newcombfarm.Mar 22, 2022

When starting a garden, the first thing to ask yourself is why you want a garden in the first place. Perhaps you want to be more self-sufficient, want your kids to spend more time outside, or maybe you want to plant some flowers tosupport pollinatorsin your area.

Determining where you will plant your garden is the next step. You need a flat, open place that receives adequate sunlight. When plotting out how much space you’ll cultivate, consider how much time you have available for this pursuit. My rule of thumb is that every 500 square feet of garden space will require at least one hour of intense labor per week.

Plant what will grow in your climate and be sure you plant foods that you and your family will be excited to eat. Start small and transplant the lessons you learn there into a bigger space when you’re ready to expand.