The top 3 mistakes (beginning) gardeners make

Lots of people would love to have their own vegetable garden.

I get it. Is there anything more amazing than putting a seed in the ground and watching it grow? Taking care of it, harvesting, and - eventually - eating it. There's nothing like growing your own food.

Sad to say, I've seen so many people do 3 major things wrong. They ended up with a vegetable garden that's nowhere near as successful as it could have been. 

Or - even worse - they quit after a few months. They ended up totally frustrated and fed up.

The answer's simple:

But the mistakes aren't all that interesting. You want to know how to avoid them, don't you?

Here you go:

OK. If I say urban farm or vegetable garden, most people think of a big back yard. Anything less and you won't get much out of it, right?

But a vegetable garden like that means hours of digging, fertilizing, weeding, and heavy-duty, dirty work. 

Start small. Go with one or two vegetable garden boxes instead of huge tracts of land. A small area can produce a lot, without all the work.

If you'll use your boxes for most of the year, you'll be amazed at how much you can get from just a few square meters.

When you use a smart system, you can produce up to 5x more than from another plot of the same size.

You know the saying 'out of sight, out of mind'? It applies here too. Compare it to taking care of a houseplant in your attic. You're bound to forget that one.

Our garden boxes don't take up much space. And because they're easy on the eyes too, most people want their garden in view. In a front or back garden, on a (roof) terrace, or on a balcony.

So if you were to ask me: "Jelle, what's better? 10 raised beds in a community garden or 1 garden box outside my kitchen door?" I'll say: "Go for the 1 garden box near the kitchen."

You'll enjoy it so much more. Plus: it'll stay in view. Grabbing a few lettuce leaves for lunch and a carrot as a snack. Cutting some herbs for your omelet. Lovely.

But if you first have to bike 20 minutes to a community garden plot, you just won't enjoy your garden the same way.

When it comes to growing vegetables, people tend to make it way too complicated. An endless number of books and websites are filled with all kind of advice.

It feels like you have to learn everything about the soil, the fertilizer, the seeds, and what to do with all that stuff. Make a planting schedule, understand crop rotation, research plant varieties? It goes on and on.

So of course first-time growers get nervous:

"Can I actually do this? I've never done it before, and I don't have a green thumb. Maybe I'll mess up."

Before you know it, they quit before they start.

It doesn't have to be that hard. It's actually easy. Your plants only need 5 things to be strong and healthy: sun, water, nutrients, air, and room to grow.

Sure, you can find all kinds of complicated, sweaty ways to give your plants those things. Most gardeners do:

But there's another way: using the right materials and a simple system.

Why not set your garden up for success from the start, so you can focus on the fun stuff: sowing the seeds, caring for your plants, and harvesting. All this without breaking your back (or your brain).

What about all those complex planting schedules? No need to worry. If you use the free Planty Gardening app, you'll be just fine.

The app is like a personal coach that takes you through every step of the way. In 5 minutes a day.

That's the Planty motto. Go with the flow 🙂

Sow your garden boxes full of greens and herbs that fit with the season. And then see what the weather does and follow the app's advice.

Because even with all the planning in the world, you can't schedule the weather. It can be warmer, colder, wetter, or drier and all these things will impact your plants.

Not really. Not if you use the Planty Gardening app.

You just need to set up your Planty Garden, but that's easy to do. Everything else you need to know is in the app or on our site.

Once you've taken 1 afternoon to set up your garden box, you're ready to start.

So, now you know them: the three mistakes that many vegetable gardeners make. Other vegetable gardeners. Not you, because you know better 😀

Have fun and enjoy your vegetable garden.

Still have to get started? Don't worry about all the horror stories you hear and just go for it.Really, it's simpler than you think.

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