Provident Principles and Practices: Vegetable Gardening

Provident Principles and Practices
© David Edwards, 2009

PRINCIPLES: Spencer W. Kimball encouraged us as Church members during the April Conference in 1976 to plant and grow vegetables in our own yards. He indicated that even those living in condominiums can usually plant and grow some vegetables in small containers. He counseled us to apply ourselves and learn best practices for growing our own food.

Marion G. Romney in April Conference in 1975 echoed prophetic counsel from the past when he affirmed that the time will come when it will be our own produced goods that will keep us alive.

PRACTICES: As President Kimball said, you can grow vegetables in above-ground containers, such as pots or planters. The reference at the close of this posting gives additional information.

On a somewhat larger scale, it is possible to grow vegetables above ground in lasagna gardens, kiddie-pool gardens, or raised-bed gardens. Each of these generally share the characteristic of using “soil” mix created from compost, mulch, aged manure, peat moss, grass clippings, or other organic-rich natural materials as well as native soil materials, all added to a well-drained container. 8-10” of the mix is usually sufficient for vegetables. Cardboard is often put down first to prevent weeds from growing up into the garden. If the soil mix is weed-free, then so may your garden be for a while.

You can learn about lasagna gardens, which use organic materials laid down in layers, at http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organic-Gardening/1999-04-01/Lasagna-Gardening.aspx. See descriptions of kiddie-pool gardens at http://idigmygarden.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6298 and http://www.ehow.com/how_4562661_grow-pumpkins-kiddie-pool.html.Read about raised-bed gardens at http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/raisedbed/index.html and http://extension.missouri.edu/explore/agguides/hort/g06985.htm.

A method that many people enjoy is the Mittleider method. It is said to provide large yields of food per unit area, minimize the amount of work involved in gardening, permit the use of only simple tools, decrease the amount of water used, produce healthier plants, and allow for growth of nearly any vegetable in nearly any climate. Books are available to assist in learning this method. (See http://foodforeveryone.org/vegetable_gardening/22/how-is-this-method-different)

Experts say that your garden generally needs six to eight hours of sunlight per day. In hot climates, it may be necessary to put shade cloth some distance above plants to block part of the midday heat.

You may need to alter soil pH. It generally should be in the 6.0-7.0 range. If pH is too high, as is typical in the arid southwest, then you can mix in pure, elemental sulfur to moist, well-aerated soil to increase soil acidity after a few weeks (http://hubcap.clemson.edu/~blpprt/lowerpH.html#table2).

To understand more about soil preparation, bed development, planting, watering, fertilizing, weed control, and harvesting, you can read books and articles and talk with successful local gardeners.

More at www.hgic.umd.edu/_media/documents/HG600Containerveggardening.pdf

Graphics credits: