Growing Texas Vegetables with Less Effort

Growing vegetables in a home garden in Texas is not as easy as it is in the Carolinas or on the California Coast. However, here are some tricks of the trade that can reduce the effort while still yielding pounds of tasty vegetables.

Preparing Vegetable Garden Beds

Start small. If home vegetable gardening has not been part of the routine activities the family shares, renting a tiller and turning the entire yard into a garden may be tempting. Unfortunately, when the relentless summer heat strikes and the weeds proliferate, it can be overwhelming and discouraging. It is better to start with several small, raised beds. After an individual or family gets a handle on the amount of work and the productivity, the number of squares can be increased. Check out the classic gardening book, Square Foot Gardening (Cool Springs Press, 2006) by Mel Bartholomew for inspiration.

Another advantage of small gardening spaces is the ability to control the soil. Although any soil can be made productive with time, amendments, and work, a new vegetable gardener will appreciate beginning with good soil. A cubic yard of bedding, vegetable, or landscaper soil can be purchased and picked up for $30 to $45.

To figure out how much soil the raised beds need, plan on 12-inch deep soil and multiply the width by the length to get the square footage that needs to be filled. A cubic yard is 3x3x3 feet or 27 square feet. Bedding soil comes at a neutral pH and can be amended with manure added 10 days before planting.

What and When to Plant

Create a plan for the beds before purchasing any plants. Raised beds may be planted more densely than row gardens created by tilling the soil. Although it is possible to start most warm weather plants from seed, a new gardener will appreciate the convenience of transplants.

Cool weather crops such as lettuce and spinach may be started from either seeds or seedlings. If planting seeds, thin the plants to the correct density when plants are two to three inches tall. It is best to purchase plant cultivars that are suited to grow well in the location of the garden. Texas A&M AgriLife offers varietal suggestions and planting dates for each of the six Texas gardening regions following basic principles of the EarthKind program.

Mulch, Weed, and Water

Add mulch around plants to minimize weeds and retain moisture. Mulch can be composed of pine-bark, wood chips, leaves, or straw. Water the small raised beds by hand, with soaker hoses, or drip irrigation systems. It is best to water the ground around the plants and to keep droplets off the leaves because moisture remaining on the leaves may lead to fungal infections. Raised beds drain well and can absorb the heavy Texas spring rains without drowning the plant roots.

Stand outside the bed to remove weeds by hand or use a Cape Cod Weeder to clear away weeds at soil level.

Creating a raised garden, filled with bedding soil, and using transplants contribute to making one’s initial gardening experience rewarding with less effort. Using the right regional varieties with dense planting in fertile, well-drained soil produces a bounty of fresh, locally grown vegetables.