Get Green-Fingered This Spring

Now that spring has finally arrived after what seems like a winter that lasted forever, you can start to enjoy being out in the garden a lot more. There’s nothing better than when all the flowers start to bloom and everywhere is green and healthy, even if your garden is a little bit overgrown.

But it isn’t just flowers that you can cultivate this season, as it is the perfect time to start thinking about adding a vegetable patch to your garden. With recent vegetable shortages, you may have found it difficult to get your hands on some of your favourite greens, but what if you could just pop outside and pick a vegetable?

Growing our own food is a great way to keep your cupboards stocked, provide you with fresh and delicious food and avoid the frustration when you want to cook something but can’t find a bag of spinach to save your life.

You may even find that you end up growing things you wouldn’t normally pick up in the shop, helping you to get more inventive and adventurous in the kitchen.

With this in mind, here’s how to grow some lovely veggies in whatever outdoor space you have:

Those with plenty of outdoor space have their pick of vegetables to choose from and can grow things in a variety of different ways. Once you’ve decided on how much of your garden you want to give over to growing your own food, you can see what you have space for.

One of the best things about a big garden is that you can plant more vegetables that need a deep rooting. This means you could have an abundance of root vegetables like potatoes, carrots and swede, as well as leafy vegetables that can take up a fair amount of room, such as lettuce.

However, it’s important to make sure you grow any vegetables in the best environment, which means building up your plant beds with compost and nutrient-rich soil to give your vegetables the best start. It’s easier to do this if you create slightly raised vegetable patches, which are also simple to look after throughout the year.

If you have a paved garden or a small outdoor area, you can still easily grow your own vegetables, although you won’t have quite as much choice. Rather than digging out vegetable beds, you can use pots or grow bags for your veggies, which will add a nice amount of green to your garden and can be moved around easily.

Things like tomatoes, spinach, herbs, onions, peppers, courgettes and strawberries can all easily be grown in pots, with some of them being suitable for putting in the same pot. Just be sure that you use good soil and water your vegetables regularly to keep them as healthy as possible.

You may find that eventually you need to trim the roots of your vegetable plants or re-pot them into something bigger. This is to ensure there is still enough soil in the pot to allow healthy vegetables to grow. Luckily, it isn’t too hard to do, especially if you have an extra set of hands.

If the only bit of soil you have in your property is in your window boxes, you can still grow yourself some great vegetables, Just as with any potted veggies, you just need to make sure they have good soil, plenty of water and room to grow.

Herbs are a great option for window boxes, especially if you can access them from the kitchen as they are tough and always come in handy when you’re cooking. However, you can also grow things like spring onions, radishes and even new potatoes (although you won’t get too many of these).

If you are growing veggies in your window boxes, be sure to keep them pruned and tidy so one type of vegetable or herb doesn’t strangle the rest. You should also add compost regularly to keep the soil nutrient-rich, as well as place them on windows that get plenty of natural sunlight.

Even not having any outdoor space at all is no reason not to try and grow your own vegetables. Potted veggies can be grown just about anywhere, including your kitchen or living room.

Just like any other houseplant, you need to make sure vegetables that are grown indoors get plenty of sunlight, water and nutrients, which is why plant food might be a good investment. Cherry tomatoes, lettuce, garlic, herbs, beetroot, carrots, spinach and lettuce can all be grown indoors with the right care, so you can still enjoy fresh produce without having to pop to the shop.

In fact, if you aren’t usually someone with green fingers, growing your vegetables inside might help you ensure they are looked after well, as you’ll be able to spot if there are any problems much easier. On top of this, they are a great project for kids to help with.

So now you have your vegetables, you can enjoy cooking food that tastes deliciously fresh and have an endless supply of staple ingredients to choose from.