Create Your Own Organic Vegetable Garden

In recent times there has been a real shift in our connection to the food we are putting into our bodies. Even until recently only around 12% of consumers bought free range eggs. According to some reports that figure has jumped to 51%. Now it seems there is a growing trend for people to create their own self sufficient food producing gardens.But where to start and what to do?

Hopefully this layman’s guide to creating your own organic vegetable garden will provide you with some tools and inspiration to help you create your own little piece of food paradise.

What you need:

Space – even 2m² will suffice
Compost / soil
Seeds / plants
Sunshine & water
Spade and garden fork

Step 1	Pick a sunny, sheltered and preferably flat area to build your garden.Dig down 5-8 cm using the spade horizontally to cut off the root system off the grass.Using a garden fork break up the soil and mix in a couple of bags of Daltons organic compost.
Step 2	Edge your garden with stones or bricks. Now you’re ready to plant!
Step 3	Choose your favourite vegetables to plant.Popular vegetables include: lettuce, tomatoes, beans, courgettes, cucumbers and of course herbs are always great in a garden.
Step 4	Plant your seedlings providing ample space for each variety to thrive:

Plant	Growing Time	Space Requirements
Lettuce	2-4 weeks	15cm in diameter
Tomatoes	6-8 weeks	Place stakes in ground
Herbs	2-4 weeks	Varies, generally 6-8cm in diameter
Beans	6-8 weeks	Place stakes in ground
Courgettes	4-6 weeks	1m²

Step 5

Look after your new garden:

For a completely natural pest control that kills and repels insects and feeds plants, try Betta Crop ready-to-use Garlic and Pyrethrum pesticide. It’s non toxic, biodegradable and is proven to eradicate 98% of all types of insects.
Water your garden early in the morning or in the evening.
Feed plants and soil with great natural fertilisers such as worm juice, comfrey tea, seaweed, animal manure and well composted food scraps.
Some crops may require light netting over the top to stop birds from beating you to your produce.

Other useful tips:

Most herbs are perennial meaning the same plant will live for many years.
Vegetables are annual meaning they need to be planted every year.
For a great green salad, try planting 2 types of lettuce, parsley & rocket.
Companion planting works really well. For example tomatoes & basil grow well together.
Hedgehogs make really good slug deterrents.
Pop into one of our stores for seeds, seedlings, seed raising mix, compost, books, organic gardening supplies (slug repellent, fertiliser etc.) and advice.

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Our mission is to provide New Zealand's best range of natural, organic and gluten free foods. If you can't find what you want please contact us and we will do our best to source it for you. Products and prices on this website may vary from those in our stores. Please contact your local store to check availability.