New to gardening

[annamolly]

I'm new to gardening, and it will soon be my roommates second season gardening, and we're talking about using as much as the usable yard as possible. We don't necessarily want to grow just potatoes and carrots etc that are so cheap to buy they aren't totally worth growing unless we eat a lot of them.

I live in Southern Idaho where its a high desert type climate ie: cold sometimes snowy winters, with hot (100+) summers.

I'm wondering though, what are the best types of things to grow in this type of climate? What grows best in primarily shade or sunlight? We'd love experimenting with veggies/herbs/whatever that we may not typically think to grow.

Any suggestions..tips...warnings...etc?

THANKS!

 

[lwheelr]

Ok, you want to look for varieties of some things that can withstand strong temperature changes.

Medania Spinach
Wando Peas

Those two can handle the early cold, and sudden changes to hot.

Some of your cool season crops can be grown in partial shade to help them with the hot temps, but they may suffer in the cooler temps early on.

Best thing is to get a few seed catalogs and start reading descriptions.

 

[Wannabefree]

Greens
Peas
Lettuces
Onions
Beets
Broccoli
Brussel sprouts


Actually most root crops..and several other crops should do great in your area.

 

[hoosier]

I'm new to gardening, and it will soon be my roommates second season gardening, and we're talking about using as much as the usable yard as possible. just We don't necessarily want to grow potatoes and carrots etc that are so cheap to buy they aren't totally worth growing unless we eat a lot of them. ...THANKS!

...a garden without potatoes - in Idaho????

 

[annamolly]

I'm new to gardening, and it will soon be my roommates second season gardening, and we're talking about using as much as the usable yard as possible. just We don't necessarily want to grow potatoes and carrots etc that are so cheap to buy they aren't totally worth growing unless we eat a lot of them. ...THANKS!

...a garden without potatoes - in Idaho????

I know..crazy right? I enjoy potatoes and all but they're just so cheap! Truly, I wouldn't know a potato farm if I saw it.

 

[Marianne]

Why don't you ask around and see what your neighbors are growing? Then you'll know what does well and if you should buy a few plants vs seeds because of the length of your growing season. People here can grow eggplant and broccoli, but you either have to start seed early or buy plants...most gardening is done in August, as we're cooked by then. Most of my garden is started with seeds rather than plants.
I gotta have potatoes! I halfway cook chunks in the microwave and freeze bags and bags of them, enough to last until the next crop is ready.

Do you have a county extension office? They will most likely have information, too. And we'll give advice, also!

Welcome!

 

[chandasue]

I go to my state extension website when I want specifics on my area. Here's Idaho's gardening link:
http://www.extension.uidaho.edu/homegard.asp

 

[savingdogs]

Buy a Sunset Garden Book. It will give you all the starter information you need and is a great reference.

I'm new to vegetable gardening too, or at least to successful vegetable gardening. I'm in a cold winter area too but we can still grow a lot of things, just find out how long your growing season is. Most everything lists how many days it is to harvest on the package, or you can look it up online sometimes too. But sometimes the variety you choose makes a big difference. I'm trying cherry tomatoes this year because I had a hard time getting enough warm days to ripen the regular sized tomatos last year. So I'm planting some grape tomatos too and leaving out any really large tomato types this year, to see if that works better.

 

[patandchickens]

I agree, talk to people who live near you and see what THEY say does well, that's your best bet for starting out.

Plan a *small* garden (12x12 is a good size, not larger unless you have a WHOLE lot of extra time and energy on your hands all summer AND enjoy weeding) and do your best to loosen, de-weed-root and amend the soil REAL WELL before planting. Soil preparation will pay off BIG TIME in easier and more-successful gardening... healthier plants in richer more-moisture-retentive better-drained soil are much better able to deal with challenges of weather, pests etc.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[so lucky]

I agree, talk to people who live near you and see what THEY say does well, that's your best bet for starting out.

Plan a *small* garden (12x12 is a good size, not larger unless you have a WHOLE lot of extra time and energy on your hands all summer AND enjoy weeding) and do your best to loosen, de-weed-root and amend the soil REAL WELL before planting. Soil preparation will pay off BIG TIME in easier and more-successful gardening... healthier plants in richer more-moisture-retentive better-drained soil are much better able to deal with challenges of weather, pests etc.

Good luck, have fun,

Pat

Pat, that is really good advice about the soil conditioning. When a person starts a new garden, it is soooo tempting to just plant something, just put it in the soil, for instant gratification. So wrong, and so much more trouble later on. Thank you for reminding us of the right way. I am starting again after not having time (or energy) to garden for about 10 years. Of course, my garden area has gone to grass, so I am starting from scratch. Now I just have to wait for it to dry out enough to work.