3 Reasons Why Your Vegetable Garden May Stink

Tweet

Ok it is the hard truth that most people don’t want to hear and that is your vegetable garden, well, it stinks. Not in a bad rotting compost smell type of stink, but in a way that anyone, with or without vegetable gardening experience can immediately look at and say, “dude, your vegetable garden is a mess.”

Your vegetable garden stinks, because it looks messy and is not producing the fruits, vegetables and.or herbs you had hoped it would. Two of just a few reasons why many people give up on vegetable gardening. I have put together some reason as to why your vegetable garden stinks and some solutions that will help. The last thing I want to see is you giving up on your vegetable garden, when the solution may be something simple.

Reason 1: Planting Too Much

I have been guilty of this myself. Most of the time it happens for me because we are coming out of a long cold and/or snowy winter and I am so anxious to get started, I plant more than my property (and sometimes the neighbor’s property) will allow. Solution: Plan ahead. Know what you are going to grow once the weather breaks, and make sure you have the space available to put it there. Even if you are container gardening, you still need some space to put it. So plan ahead.

Reason 2: Attack of the Weeds

Your neighbor’s garden might look like it should be on cover of Better Homes & Gardens, but rest assured they get weeds just as you do. They don’t have magic soil that prevents weeds from growing, but more than likely they take steps to block as many of the weeds as possible making the activity (chore to some) of “weeding” more bearable. Solution: Use multiple layers of newspaper as a weed barrier and then cover the newspaper with straw. It helps keep the weeds at bay, protects your vegetable plants as well as many other benefits. Your weeding will be at a minimum.

Reason 3: No Chance for my Plants to get a Sun Tan

One of the major reason’s why many vegetable plants produce little results is that many vegetable gardeners do not plant them in an area where they can receive plenty of sun. Sure, the sun may be bad for us “humans”, but for plants, the more you give them, the better off they will be. Solution: Pick a spot on your property that receives full sunlight throughout the day or as much sunlight as possible.

Here are some simple rules of vegetable gardening you can live by to make it easier on yourself. One, grow only the vegetables, fruits and herbs you family will eat. Two, never grow more than what you can handle. Vegetable gardening should be fun not a full time job (unless you want to be a farmer of course). Three, keep your vegetable garden within sight of a window or door. If your garden is out of sight, it won’t be long before it is also out of mind.


About the Author
Mike Podlesny is the owner of Mike the Gardener Enterprises, LLC, the exclusive home of the Seeds of the Month Club, which has appeared on NBC, ABC and MSN Money as a great way for consumers to save money.