Tips to Growing a Great Vegetable Garden in Tulsa

Growing a veggie garden in Tulsa this year? A trend among Tulsa gardeners is centered around organic gardens. Organic gardening has become a popular feature of landscape design in recent years with many homeowners looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle and a more sustainable landscape design.

The American Society of Landscape Architects’ annual survey noted: “Slightly more than three quarters of respondents noted food and vegetable gardens, including orchards and vineyards, will be in demand this year.” The ASLA said that growing food gardens can be a low maintenance, sustainable alternative to growing turf in your yard.

Even if you’re a beginner, you can have a successful organic garden. Here’s some tips…

Make sure you have healthy soil. The soil in your garden must be healthy and have enough nutrients to sustain vegetables growth. Compost can support with the soil, but it’s also good to do a test of the soil’s pH levels. Leaves remaining from the fall can be used as mulch, the ASLA said, and grass clippings make a superb weed suppressant.

Start with a small garden. Often new gardeners will plant more than they can really maintain or even eat. It's good to plan out where in your landscape you will plant your garden, whether you want an in-ground garden, container garden or a raised garden bed. Vegetables need a great deal of sunlight, at 6 or more hours a day, so thoughtfully plan the location of your garden. Gardens located too close to a tree may lose too many nutrients to the tree while also getting too much shade, The Old Farmer’s Almanac noted.

Choose hardy plants. Perennial plants that return yearly are frequently low-maintenance, the ASLA said. They suggest perennials like asparagus (purple-passion variety), rhubarb, blueberry bushes, and blackberries. Herbs, the ASLA also reported, can be very sustainable in even dry and hot regions with tarragon, sage, and chives returning year after year.

“A great idea is to explore the many varieties of mint like chocolate, marshmallow, and fruit salad, which carry flavors that match their names,” ASLA noted.

Be sure to check the Tulsa frost dates to find out when the ideal times to plant different seeds are.

Water, water, water. Vegetables will need lots of water, at least one inch a week, The Old Farmer’s Almanac said. There is a helpful vegetable watering table on the Almanac website that tells how much water is needed for different vegetables and when.

For more tips to planting a successful veggie garden, contact the Tulsa landscaping and gardening specialists at Oklahoma Landscape.

Tulsa Landscaping Company Offers Spring Gardening Tips

Many Oklahomans love to plant a garden and see their delicious vegetables grow before their eyes. Some may plant right in the ground, while others may use a raised garden bed. Either way, you’ll have fun in your garden and relax while working with nature. Here are a few tips to help your Tulsa garden thrive this year.

Plan and start small. If you are a new gardener, many gardeners say that you may want to start small in how much you plant. In your excitement, you may see a ton of colorful things to buy at the nursery or garden store, but it’s good to be modest in your first garden planting. You may want to use more common warm weather varieties of plants that will likely grow well in Oklahoma like green beans, okra, squash, radish, and melons.

Plan out your garden, possibly even on paper, to decide where plants will get the best sunlight, when you will need to plant each type of seed or plant, if you’ll plant in the ground or in a raised bed, and how big the plants and garden will get when you’re finished. Allow plenty of room to work in the garden and for the plants to extend out as they grow.
Before you plant, it’s good to have all the gardening tools you will need including cages or stakes for climbing plants, string to tie the plants to the cages, tillers, pruners, and other equipment.

Prepare and nourish the soil. You’ll need to remove any weeds, rocks, and grass in the garden and may want to test the pH of the soil to know exactly what nutrients it’s lacking. A few weeks before you plant, you may want to add some compost to the soul to make sure it has enough nutrients to support the plants. Then you can turn the soil when you add the compost and just before you plant to make sure it’s aerated.

Follow directions. There will often be much helpful information on the seed packets or plants about when to plant the seeds, how far apart to space them, and when they should be harvested. The Old Farmer’s Almanac will also have helpful information on when the best time to plant each vegetable. On the Almanac website, you can search for your particular city or state and see the exact planting directions, planting dates, directions for planting by the moon, and estimated frost free date. Along with being tax day, many gardeners will say April 15th is around the frost-free date for much of Oklahoma.

Trim shrubs and trees. Along with planning your garden design and boundaries, you may need to prune any overgrown bushes and trees that may block needed sunlight to your garden. This will also help your overall landscape to have a more polished look for summer.

These are just a few Oklahoma gardening tips for this spring. Talk with the Tulsa landscaping and gardening experts at Oklahoma Landscape for more details on how they can help you have a successful garden this year.