How to Plant a Garden Using Seeds

Providing fresh vegetables for the family is the goal for any home gardener. From choosing your favorites to planting and harvesting, the process itself is rewarding. Add sunshine, fresh air and the rich flavor inherent in home-grown produce and you have an addictive habit that can become a lifelong obsession. While gardening in itself is relatively easy, proper preparation and care are needed to produce a harvest that will allow you to invite your friends and neighbors to dinner.

Vegetable seeds
Garden plot
Water
Gardening rake
Row or vegetable markers
Organic material
Hoe
Mechanical tiller

Instructions

- 1
  
  Seeds come in many different sizes and shapes.
  
  Choose your seeds. Whether you purchase your seeds from a local store or order them from a catalog, there are a number of things you need to consider. First is the length of your growing season. Most produce needs between 70 and 120 days to grow. Northern growing seasons last only 90 days, so seeds need to be chosen accordingly. Seeds and plants are also designated by zone to inform home gardeners what temperature and climate are needed. For example, okra is often placed in zone 5 or 6 as it grows best in warm climates and would not grow well in a northern zone 2 or 3.
  
  Growing space is also a consideration. Vine-growing produce needs more space than a bush type. However, more than one thing can be grown in the same area. For example, radishes germinate in seven days. They can be planted in the same row as peas or beans and will be harvested before the other plants grow.
- 2
  Prepare the soil in your garden plot. The plot should ideally receive about seven hours of sunlight per day. Till the soil to at least a 12-inch depth. Add organic material like peat or worm casings to the soil and till once more until all large lumps are broken up and the ground is easy to work. Rake the plot smooth.
- 3
  Design your garden. Lay out your seed packets and decide what you will be planting. Consider growing height for each plant. For example, in one planting row of five rows of seeds, you could plant corn in the center, bush beans or cucumbers next and lettuce, spinach or radishes at the outer edges. Combining planting in this way will allow you to grow the most produce in a limited space.
- 4
  Kneel at the edge of the garden and extend an arm toward the inside of the plot. Mark the spot with your hoe where your wrist meets the dirt. This is the center of your planting row. In the same way on the opposite side, place your wrist in the center spot and flatten the area where you are kneeling, about 24 inches wide. This marks your walking path. Continue to mark your planting rows in this manner for the entire garden.
- 5
  Plant your garden. Starting at the center of the planting row, use your hoe to create a shallow row in the dirt to the depth needed to plant your seeds. Place your seeds evenly along the entire row. Use your hoe to carefully cover the seeds with dirt and tamp down gently with the flat bottom of the hoe. Continue with each row, allowing at least 6 inches in between.
  
  Once the planting row is complete, mark the end of each row with a plant marker showing what is planted in each spot. Water the garden well.

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