Organic Vegetable Gardening

The season has officially begun for us! There is nothing like doing your own Organic Vegetable Gardening! There are many things to think about when starting off. Where are you going to buy your seeds? Are you going to pick them up just any where or are you going to deal with a reputable Organic Seed company? Are you going to buy Untreated seeds? Heirloom or Hybrid?

For us it's Certified Organic Seeds. This means that I deal with several different companies in order to get exactly what I want. Greta's Organic Gardens was my main source this year. We have added several new things to the mix this year. Huckleberries, Amarath, Strawberry Spinach and Red Cucumbers. It is always fun to try something new. But always be sure to have enough of your tried and true favourites. This way if a crop fails you still have lots to fall back on.

We start everything from seed. This definitely is a big job when you are talking thousands of seeds that make up our Organic Vegetable Gardens. Many things start off indoors under grow lights. When there is not a chance of heavy frost we move everything out to our greenhouse. It is always wonderful to see everything growing, oh and the smell of the humid earthy air is wonderful.

Being a Market Gardener means we do things on a larger scale than you might but we still go through the same process. The end result is also the same! You end up with naturally grown Organic Food! How much better can it get?

A few reminders to think about:

• Make sure that your soil mix is not to heavy for your seeds. We use peat moss with vermiculite.
• They dry out fast, so stay on top of watering every two days.
• When under grow lights, be sure the lights are just over the plants about an inch. Any higher and your plants will grow tall towards the light but they will not be strong.
• When you see a good amount of growth, it is helpfull to turn on a fan for a few hours a day that blows directly on their stems. This makes the stems stronger.
• Remember to fertilize. But it needs to be diluted, not full strength. We use Fish Emulsion.
• When you are getting ready to plant them out in your garden, be sure to harden the off. A few hours each day, out of direct sun will help them out a lot
• Water well once you plant them in the garden

If you are starting your own seeds this year right now you should have, shallots, onions, leeks, peppers and egg plants started in order for them to provide you with a full harvest. You can also go ahead with spinach, tatsoi, lettuce and the brassica family as they are cold weather veggies. I have started some early tomatoes but they will be planted permanently in the green house.

I hope this helps you think about your Organic Vegetable Garden this year. What do you do this time of year and what are some new thing you would like to try?