Back in early February, British supermarkets brought in a cap on certain vegetables, such as lettuce and broccoli, after storms destroyed crops across the Mediterranean – the amount of the affected vegetables that shoppers could buy at one time was limited.
This got us thinking – growing your own vegetables can be handy! Not only can you avoid being affected by vegetable shortages, but you’ll save money and gardening can be enormously rewarding.
If you’re ready to start your own vegetable patch, read on for some of our tips for first time growers:
- When preparing your plot for growing, ensuring it is weed-free will save you a lot of hassle in the future. Pull out the weeds and their roots as you dig.
- If have a small garden, contact your local council to apply for an allotment near you.
- Try starting by growing something simple, such as courgettes and tomatoes.
- It could be worth talking to a gardener to find out what produce is best suited to your ground. Different conditions could mean that it is more difficult to grow certain vegetables.
- Crop rotation is an important part of gardening – it deters pests, helps to prevent erosion, and improves soil stability. Try not to grow produce in the same spot for two years running.
- A good way of getting rid of pests is to mix a product that is suitable for edible plants in your watering can, effectively killing slugs and snails while you’re watering your plants.
- Make sure you pickle, freeze, or cook your produce before storing it – supermarket vegetables have been preserved so will last longer than home grown veg. (Home grown is much tastier though!)
Growing your own vegetables can so rewarding – at your next dinner party, you can tell your guests that you actually made the meal completely from scratch!