As we head into May, now is a great time to start planting your backyard or patio vegetable garden.
This time of year the weather is starting to get milder and the frost has thawed.
Here in Nova Scotia, the best Vegetables to plant in your yard are:
- Beans
- Carrots
- Garlic
- Leafy Greens
- Potatoes
- Tomatoes and
- Squash.
Depending on where in Canada you are, the soil and conditions can be very different.
Here in Nova Scotia, the soil can be very rocky, in some parts quite sandy. In these conditions, raised garden beds could be a blessing. However, vegetables and other plants, do grow very well in these sandy soils as long as they are topped with a nutrient rich black soil that include nitrogen, manures, composts, and organic fertilizers for more sustainable growing support. In most areas, garden soil can be bought at your local Hardware store, garden centre or even ordered by the truck load from farms for larger areas.
There are so many varieties of beans to choose from. If you have a fenced yard, climbing beans can be great planted against your fence or arches for an ornamental look. Bush beans can be grown in smaller spaces, even an apartment patio without requiring support.
Carrots are slower to grow, but you can pull some as the season goes on. Pull some for your summer salad, then leave some to grow larger. Pull some in the fall for harvest suppers or, you could even wait until very early winter when they are full matured.
Leafy greens like spinach, Arugula, Kale, Bok Choy, and a variety of Lettuces can be planted right away and you should have a harvest ready within several weeks. These can be grown well into the winter and there are a variety of techniques that can help you keep them coming back in abundance.
Tomatoes are another crop that could abundantly produce throughout the season and with so many varieties you could grow them in your apartment or in your yard. Choose tomato varieties that suit your climate. Here in Nova Scotia, Brandywine, Scotia, Sun Gold, and Sweet Million are the best.
Squash and Potatoes are plants that require a bit more room. While you could grow some varieties in buckets and planter boxes, a larger spaced out yard would be ideal for these crops.
Happy Gardening!