Every good idea needs a plan. Gardening may intimidate some but it is rather easy and you do not have to dig up your yard and plant a farm. It can be as simple or as difficult as you make it.
Keep it Really Simple. To start with, I suggest you start with a simple concept for the types of plants you purchase. For the past several years we have planted a low-maintenance “Salsa Garden” and have enjoyed the variety and simplicity of that assortment every time. Here is what goes in our salsa garden:
- A variety of tomatoes plants
- Peppers
- Cilantro
- Green Onions
Ask an Expert. Explain that you want to keep it simple and ask what you need. My own experience here is that it will do you no good to ask the 17 year-old at the giant Depot store what are the best tomatoes to grow for an early harvest in your area of the country. This is where the little mom and pop gardening store shines. Ask one of the employees (who probably is in the midst of growing her own garden at home) what you should get.
Use the Correct Container. Read those little tags carefully that tell you how big the pots you plant in should be. I was crowding my plants and not getting the results that I needed.
Figure out your watering system. For most gardeners I know their watering system is them. But since I travel a lot, it was important that I didn’t need to rely on teenagers to keep my basil alive. If you know that you are not going to want to rise at dawn every morning with a c. of coffee in one hand and a hose in the other, you may want to create a system for watering.
You’re right: keeping it simple still gets great results. We’ve been trying to keep a small veggie garden most years – if nothing else, so that the kids can see actual veggies grow. Great experience, even though we’re no experts.
And, for me, it helps to not be too perfectionistic about it – so I do what I can when I can. (In fact, my favorite flowers did great one year, even though I’d planted them in the dark, by porchlight, as an afterthought, one night after my kids were in bed!)