Giving a Green Thumb's Up to Your Diet

Faced with the prospect of a new yard, a yard that begs to be reworked, or even a lonely patio, new coastal residents may want to consider the idea of becoming a little “greener” by growing their own vegetable garden. Master gardener and horticultural NC Cooperative Extension agent Anne Edwards gives people the chance to change the color of their thumbs through classes, programs and her blog, soundharvest.blogspot.com, where she chronicles her experiences having vegetable gardens in her own yard to provide food for her family.

With the price of fresh produce high, and the price of fuel even higher, many people are starting to look for alternate solutions. Edwards said that depending on how the gardener goes about taking care of his or her garden; with the initial starting costs gardeners won’t be saving any more money at the end of the year than they would normally spend at the grocery store.

“It’s not a very expensive proposition, but if you buy tools and organic matter, you’re probably not going to save money,” she explained. “What you do get is food of amazing quality that you know exactly what went into it.”

A big cost to start gardening is a sturdy frame for a raised bed. Raised beds are necessary in property with a high water table as vegetables won’t grow in soggy soil. Edwards said many people put in raised beds for other reasons, such as the aesthetic appeal, easier weed control and the ease of working on the garden while sitting on the edge of the bed.

Don’t expect a need for giant portions of the yard to be eaten up by the bed, however. Edwards said the main recommendation for starting a garden is to start small. She suggests two plots 3.5-feet wide by 7-feet long to start. If more space is needed, more can always be added later. If even this size is daunting, or if there simply isn’t enough yard to garden on, it is possible to plant an entire garden in two great big pots on the back porch.

Whether in raised bed, regular earth or large pot, Edwards and the NC Coop Extension suggest gardeners follow a few guidelines. Placing the garden in a place that has at least eight hours of sunlight is extremely important. Also, use a high quality soil, composed of organic matter. Local gardener and bee keeper Steven Steadham reminded new gardeners to take into account the fact that the sun in the winter is lower in the sky than in the summer, so if working two beds in the yard, sometimes it is good to have them spread out.

Be sure to use soil that has plenty of good drainage: a raised garden bed won’t do anything if the soil inside makes your garden into a swimming pool.

Making sure a hose is nearby the garden will make it easier to water, a vital part of making sure vegetables don’t wither away from heat and drought. Finally, grow things that you actually enjoy eating—don’t take up valuable garden room with Brussels sprouts, for example, if you aren’t a fan.

Here on the coast, gardeners are fortunate that the growing season is year round. The slowest growing season is actually reversed from colder regions, as August and September are often just too hot and humid, with too many insects to grow anything and winter on the North Carolina coast offers a bountiful harvest of carrots, beets, cabbage, lettuce and other popular veggies. Because the growing season is so long and varies so much, the NC Coop Extension has provided an easy “when to plant what” list, so you can be sure that there is always something fresh gracing your table. Steadham also suggested that gardeners remember that to eat all year means to constantly be planting, so new vegetables won’t all ripen at the same time.

For Edwards, even with only two 3-feet by 7-feet plots, that hasn’t been a problem. In only 10 months during 2008, she harvested 123 pounds of vegetables. “And that’s from a poorly managed garden—check my blog,” she joked.

Steadham, who has a large garden on his property, said he harvested nearly 80 percent of all yearly vegetables from his garden.

There are some coastal gardening quirks that new gardeners will want to look out for. During hurricanes or tropical storms, often a “salt wind” will blow in, leaving a layer of vegetation-killing salt everywhere. The only way to save the crop is to wash the salt off as fast as possible. Some vegetables, such as cucumber and tomatoes, require pollination from bees to grow. If there are no local hives nearby, gardeners may have to either not grow the vegetable in question, or to start keeping a small hive of bees. Both Edwards and Steadham keep bees, and suggest going that extra “green mile.” There are several bee keeper resources on the Crystal Coast, including a bee keeper society and classes offered through the NC Cooperative Extension.

If the local homeowners association has rules against vegetable gardens, Edwards said often it is possible to plant a few vegetables right alongside perennials in an ornamental garden. Some popular flowers in gardens along the coast are actually vegetables that simply don’t bear fruit. The sweet potato produces beautiful violet flowers and is often grown as an ornamental for that reason. However, if the vegetable is planted, it will still add the same brilliant purple hues to your garden.

Edwards said most perennial flowers use the same mildly acidic soil (with a pH of 6 or 6.5) as most vegetables. The important step of adding organic material is vital to both perennial and vegetable gardens as well. Edwards said choosing the specific type of plant is really a matter of personal choice. “The important thing is to look for something that grows well in zone 8,” she said. She also stressed the importance of following the planting requirements, such as never planting bulbs in soggy soil.

Edwards suggested a few hardy plants to give the new gardener the chance to “green” their thumbs. Coneflowers are members of the Echinacea family and are a hardy plant with a bright purple bloom. Daylilies and daisies can also do very well in coastal gardens. For the gardener who has trouble remembering to water, Edwards recommended a drought tolerant plant called coreopsis; it is a brightly colored plant with many blooms that can tolerate the strong sun and varying soil conditions. For something a little more exotic, Edwards suggested the gaura, “swirling butterfly” variant. It has tiny white or pink flowers that resemble butterflies settling on long stems. “It looks like the butterflies are hovering right over the plant,” she said.

There are some flowers that are firmly in the “do not plant” list, according to Edwards. “Don’t plant tulips, unless it’s what is called a ‘species tulip.’”

If the salt spray or an unexpected frost does manage to claim some of the garden, don’t fret. To keep costs down, instead of buying composted manure from the nursery, Edwards suggests gardeners start simple compost piles in their backyards, or even use special composting devices.

While all these various processes seem time consuming, Edwards says in her little garden, there is very little weeding, and she only spends 30 minutes every other day, or sometimes even less. She said the process is so much fun that she finds herself staying out in the garden much more often than the required half hour. “Of course, I do go out every day to peek around and poke around—but I enjoy that.”

For more information on coastal gardening, planting guides, and to register for gardening or beekeeping classes, visit carteret.ces.ncsu.edu. For Edwards’ blog, visit soundharvest.blogspot.com.