Preparing Your Vegetable Patch For Spring

Given the consistently warm weather we have had this winter, it is no surprise many of us are out in the garden much sooner than we planned to be. This means many of us will be ahead with our spring garden preparation, and you cannot beat being ahead of the game!

It’s time to start Preparing Your Vegetable Patch For Spring!

Soil

You should only do anything to the soil if it is not hard and frozen, or soggy. If you do anything to it while it is frozen, you won’t get very far. If you do anything to it while it is sodden, you will just be working with mud.

Clear – Clear away all the debris from the top of the soil like sticks, leaves and surface weeds.

Dig, Dig, Dig – Make sure you dig deep into the ground to ensure the soil remains high quality deep down. This is especially relevant if you plan to grow plants that grow deep below the ground. Get rid of stones and rocks within the soil.

Add Good Stuff – No matter how great you think your soil is, you should still add extra good stuff to it, especially after winter when a lot of the nutrients may have been sucked out of the ground, especially if you have been growing plants in it over winter. Mulch, dehydrated horse manure, compost – your new plants will love being planted in nutrient rich soil.

Raised beds

If your soil is in bad condition it may be worth considering creating some raised beds. The benefits of raised beds are the fact they get warm really quickly when spring comes, allow excellent drainage and allow air to circulate around the soil well. They are also extremely easy to maintain.

You could create a small raised bed by placing tiles or other firm matter around the current vegetable bed and fill the middle in with good quality soil. Or you could create a brick structure in a suitable spot in the garden and make the raised bed as tall as you want it to be.

Composting

There is never a bad time to start composting, so why not start a compost heap or bin while you prepare your veggie patches, it will only benefit them in the end!

Coffee grinds, vegetable peelings and garden waste can all be added to compost which when added to soil makes it more absorbent and nutrient rich. It is a really good start to making your garden more eco friendly.

Kit

Although you will be focusing on getting your veggie patches right, part of that is ensuring you are equipped to do a great job throughout the season.

At this time of year it is a great idea to start replacing old tools that don’t work properly any more, getting some new wellies and maybe even clearing out the shed so you can be a bit more organised with your gardening. We like this shed below!

What Will You Plant?

It is a great idea to start thinking about what you would like to plant this year. As well as all the usual spring plants like tomatoes, courgettes and salad leaves, why not try something a bit different like a fruit tree, or some edible flowers? Gardening can be really exciting if you want it to be!