Many vegetables, including salad greens and lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage are perfect for starting indoors now if you plan to start planting in March. If you live in a colder climate, you can wait a few weeks or months, however.

The first step to growing transplants indoors is to decide what vegetable you want and to acquire the seeds. Using the planting information on the back of the package, you can determine when to start growing indoors.

Mixes for seed starting can be found at low prices at garden and home supply stores. The soil is light and well drained. Add the mixes to pots or anything of appropriate size that has good drainage. I’ve used old egg cartons as well as old plastic bottles cut in half. Getting a little creative with what you have on hand can save money.

For best results, do a little research on each kind of seed you’ve chosen. The back of the seed packet has basic information, but a quick search on the Internet can provide lots of tips that will help you achieve the best results. Keep an eye out for the ideal temperature, moisture, and light for the seeds you have chosen, and plan your indoor planting with those facts in mind.

As your seeds sprout and grow, continue caring for them according to the information you found in your research. Then, about a week before it’s time to plant them in the garden, begin setting your translplants outside for a few hours each day so they will be fully acclimated to the climate outdoors.

No-till gardening mimics the way soil normally forms in nature. Once the garden is established, the soil is not disturbed. Instead, layers of organic fertilizers and mulches such as compost and lime are laid on top of the soil. With watering and the work of microorganisms in the soil, the nutrients work their way down into the soil and the plant’s roots naturally.

There are numerous benefits to this type of gardening. First, there is less work for the gardener. Tilling is often the most tedious gardening task, and this is eliminated. Mulch makes weeds a rare occurrence, limiting the amount of weeding that must be done.

No-till gardening is a more eco-friendly option as well. It protects the natural ecosystems in the soil, making them less likely to be invaded by disease or pests. Layers of organic material on the soil reduce the amount of water required and help prevent soil erosion.

With these benefits come a few challenges. For the first growing season, tilling into the earth at a depth of about two shovel heads is necessary to get the garden going. Gardeners should also remove rocks and any roots in the soil. From here, organic materials should be mixed into the soil.

The next step is to plant seedlings and add a few inches of organic mulch, such as straw or grass clippings to the top of the soil. As the growing season progresses, fertilizing materials should be added in layers and covered with mulch.

Keep an eye on the garden, making sure there is always a protective layer of mulch and fertilizer or soil compaction will happen. Once the off-season hits, the soil needs to be protected by cover crops or a thick layer of leaves and straw. Although this is not a no-work way to grow vegetables, by your second season you can have a productive garden for a lot less time and energy.

There are many varieties of winter squash. The most popular for eating are the butternut and spaghetti squash. Although, the acorn, the delicata, turk’s turban, and cushaw squash are just a few of the many varieties available for planting.

Their planting season is in the middle of spring. You have to plant the seeds after the last frost of the season. The seeds simply do not like cold weather.

You need to space a grouping of a few seeds 50 feet or more apart. They need plenty of space for their vines. Prune the resulting groups so you get the best plants from each group.

You will need to keep the weeds pulled until the vines naturally choke out the weed growth. You also need a healthy dose of bees in order for the squash to produce fruit.

Winter squash is susceptible to beetles and bugs. You might want to look into natural pest repellents for winter squash. The squash bugs can be hard to get rid of, and they are best handled if you catch the infestation early.

Harvest time occurs around the same time as pumpkins in October. The harvest should be pulled before the temperature drops to the freezing point. Make sure to leave a few inches of the stem when you harvest the squash.

Like pumpkin, the winter squash is high in beta-carotene. It also has complex carbohydrates and contains potassium, iron, and niacin.

Winter squash is a versatile vegetable. It can be used in pies like pumpkins, or it can be roasted for a tasty addition to a meal.

1.  Choose the Prettiest Varieties

We all love the beauty and color of flowers, but many vegetables look nearly as lovely. Some Swiss chard varieties for example, have bright stems in bright colors like pink, yellow, and orange that look magnificent. Many other greens and herbs like red-leaf lettuce, kale, and parsley also have beauty that rivals the look of ornamentals. Peppers and tomatoes come in bright colored varieties that look good as well.

2. Add Ornaments

Even boring vegetables grown in your yard can feel romantic amongst yard ornaments. Grow climbing plants like beans around an arbor. Add some water with a fountain or bird bath. Or add interest around your plants with statues, bird houses, attractive signs, or anything else that you could imagine putting in a flower garden.

3. Use Mulch

Dress up naked dirt with a mulch in a bright color like red or green. Not only will this make your garden look cleaner and more attractive, the mulch will hold moisture in the soil during hot weather and keep weeds at bay, making your gardening work easier. If you put mulch in your pathways, you’ll also avoid getting your feet muddy when working after rain.

4. Make a Border

A simple border or small fence around your garden will give it a neat and ornate appearance. You can use rocks, wooden poles, a simple white picket fence, or anything that you can think of.

5. Integrate Flowers

Probably the simplest way to make a vegetable garden look prettier is to mix in some flowers. Not only will this add color and beauty, it can be beneficial to your vegetables. For example, flowers like daisies will attract pollinating insects that eat common garden pests. You can also choose edible varieties that will give you both food and beauty.

They are naturally high in beta carotene. That is attributed to the orange coloration which occurs as they ripen. They also have fiber and vitamin C. This makes them an nutritionally smart choice when replacing regular potatoes.

For beginning gardeners, the sweet potato is a relatively easy plant to grow. It has a planting to harvest time of approximately four months.

They can be grown in many states but have two major requirements. They need to be watered regularly, and they need to be grown in the summer in states that develop frost.

Usually, sweet potatoes are started in the spring with little pieces called slips. This is the term you want to look for when searching for starter plants.

They should be started right after the final frost of the season. Since they are a root vegetable and need plenty of space, you want to plant each slip about ten inches apart. You also want to keep the weeds pulled until they develop their upper foliage.

Other than that, they are a relatively easy plant to take care of. The only real pest you have to protect them from is mice. They do have a couple of diseases that can be lessened if you rotate your sweet crop on a yearly basis.

They do need to be in the ground to gain more vitamins and nutrients, and they should be harvested before any frost. All is not lost if they are not, just dig them up quickly after their leaves die. Finally, don’t forget to save some slips for future crops.

The sweet potato is more than just a side dish at Thanksgiving. They have a diversity that many people don’t really expect. Frankly, they are a nutritious addition to any garden.

Many areas of the United States are suitable for growing crops into October or November, even without greenhouses or cold frames. More southern regions have growing seasons that can last even longer. The first killing frost of the season is your due date to get your vegetables to maturity. The average date of your area’s killing frost can be found by contacting a local extension office or other garden authority in your region.

Once you know the approximate date of the first killing frost, you can get an idea of how late you have to plant your fall vegetables. Plants that grow quickly and thrive in cooler weather include broccoli, chives, radishes, bunching onions, leaf lettuces, mustard greens, and spinach. All of these can be planted in the fall and will reach maturity in about 30 days, giving you one last harvest of fresh veggies before the cold days of Winter.

For more ambitious gardeners, or those in colder, northern regions, cold frames can significantly extend the growing season of many vegetable crops. Some gardeners even grow vegetables outside all winter using these simple structures. You can purchase these from garden supply stores, or you can build your own by mounting an old window onto an elevated frame that slopes downward. By carefully placing cold frames over crops, you can protect them from harsh winds, warm the soil around them, and protect them from frost for many more weeks or possibly all winter.

Carving the pumpkin was brought to America by the Irish. Though the pumpkin wasn’t the first medium to have faces carved into it, it was tailor-made for carving. Thus, the pumpkin has gained its fame.

The pumpkin is actually considered a squash and can be treated as such in cooking. For pie making, it is recommended to use the smaller types of pumpkins, because they generally have less water than the bigger ones. A lot of people prefer to use the cans, because it is less messy than actually cleaning out a pumpkin. The seeds can be roasted and seasoned in a method similar to roasting other types of seeds.

Pumpkins should be started very early in the planting season. You want to plant them when the weather is warm. Pumpkins aren’t fond of cold weather. If you expect any type of frost, pumpkins should be covered up, otherwise they won’t get that big.

Pumpkins love the sun and need plenty of it. Avoid planting tall plants such as corn near them. They also need plenty of water and manure to grow really big.

Not all pumpkins are giant sized. They also come mini sized. You can just as easily grow the mini pumpkins in the same type of soil conditions.

This time of year is when they are ready for harvesting. Many farms will allow you to go select your pumpkins. It can be a fun family adventure to find just the right one for Halloween.

Many cities also hold festivals for the pumpkin. Every year, there is a competition to see who can grow the biggest one. So far, the Guinness World Book of Records has recorded the largest pumpkin at 1810 pounds.

Pumpkins are only around for about two months. But in those two months, they really shine and are a visual reminder that fall is here, and winter is on its way.

Square foot gardening is an organic intensive gardening method coined in Mel Bartholomew’s 1980′s book of the same name. The basic premise is that vegetables and fruits can be grown organically in small spaces by using raised beds with nutrient rich soil and compost. These beds are divided into 1 square foot sections. Seeds are planted in each section in ideal amounts for the most efficient use of space without overcrowding.

Gardening is much easier for many with this method. The raised beds and close spacing make it easy to tend the plants even for those who have bad backs or knees. Since plants are close together, they provide a barrier for weeds, making weeding almost unnecessary.

Since compost is heavily used with this method, the existing soil of a garden location doesn’t matter. Square foot gardening has been done successfully all over the world.

The recommended way to start with square foot gardening is with a 4 foot by 4 foot raised garden. These should be built with untreated lumber in a sunny location. Fill this raised garden with “Mel’s mix.” This is Bartholomew’s recommended soil mixture made of 1/3 vermiculite, 1/3 peat moss, and 1/3 compost.

Divide your raised bed into 16 squares of equal size, and plant your seeds. To decide how many seeds you should plant per square, look at the back of each seed packet. Ignore what the package says about row spacing, and look at the recommended plant spacing. If the package says to plant them 12 inches apart, plant 1 seed in a square. 6 inches means 4 per square, 4 inches means 9 per square, and 3 inches means 16 per square.

Most people know about perennial fruits, such as raspberries and strawberries, but few realize there are perennial vegetables to grow as well. And the good news is that many of these perennial vegetables thrive in a wide variety of climates. Even more, they tend to be some of the healthiest vegetables, and they are pretty inexpensive to purchase and sow.

Once established, these plants take no more care than the average perennial flower, and they will provide an annual vegetable harvest with a lot less effort on the gardener’s part.

There are actually over 100 varieties of perennial vegetables to choose from. To keep it simple, here is a list of some of the easiest to grow. Start planning next year’s garden with some perennial vegetables in mind.

Rhubarb

Although rhubarb prefers colder climates, it is one of the easiest vegetables to care for. During the first year, it will need to be left unharvested. After the first year, a thriving rhubarb plant can supply stalks for 20 years or longer. This vegetable is one of few that tastes delicious in desserts. Rhubarb pie and rhubarb sauce are two ways to prepare the stalks that are grown.

Kale 

Kale is a member of the cabbage family. It has an abundance of nutrients, including high amounts of Vitamin K. Unlike salad greens, kale is often too tough to eat fresh, and it is grouped with other cooking greens like mustard and collard greens. Beyond it’s nutritional qualities, its large, green leaves make it useful as an ornamental plant. Kale comes in both annual and perennial varieties, so check the seed packs before you buy to make sure you’re getting the kind you want.

Asparagus

Like kale, asparagus is an attractive plant. Many gardeners use it as a border plant with landscaping since it stays around for years, and it can reach up to five feet in height. Asparagus shoots are best picked in spring and eaten fresh. A simple way to prepare this vegetable is to steam it, then add a little olive oil and sea salt.

Garlic

Any gardener is missing out if he or she doesn’t have garlic growing in the garden. This vegetable from the onion family goes well in a plethora of recipes, from Asian to Italian. It’s also used as a natural health remedy for a wide variety of ailments, including the flu and heart problems. Although this vegetable is usually grown as an annual,  it will produce like a perennial each year if some bulbs are left in the soil at harvest.

Even though some chefs like to put onions in with beans, they actually don’t like each other in the garden. You could call them enemies. The trouble is that the onions prevent beans from reaching their full potential. You get a smaller and less productive bean crop if you plant them together. The same thing is true with peas.

Cucumbers with fresh herbs are always good in a salad, but keep the herbs away when planting. They are no friend of the cucumber. They also don’t particularly care for being next to potatoes.

Tomatoes are a popular vegetable that doesn’t play well with either cauliflower or cabbage. They tend to share the same disease. Once it infiltrates one crop, it will spread to the others until all three of them are wiped out. Keeping them far away will isolate the disease from the others. You also want to avoid planting corn too close, because the height of the corn stalk shades the tomatoes preventing them from getting the full sun that they need to grow.

Cabbage also has a strong dislike for strawberries and beans. It comes back to the spread of disease. Keep them away from each other to improve the chances at least one crop to survive.

Aside from tomatoes, peas also don’t like onions or garlic. Both the onion and garlic tend to have a stunting effect on them. Even if you like peas and onions, don’t match them up in the garden, so you can get a healthy crop of both.

Vegetables have their enemies as well as their friends. Just because they work well in a dish doesn’t mean that they should be planted together. The biggest issue is disease, but you can also hurt the potential of the crop by growing vegetables near their enemies.