Get An Early Start On Your Garden

Not all area’s of the country are created equal. In the Southern states, spring comes early enough to get our gardens started early enough to give us a long gardening season. But, if you live in central Ohio your gardening season doesn’t start until around May 15th and ends around October.

Moving to the South doesn’t make sense so learning how to extend your growing season is a viable option. Here are some tips that won’t break the bank and help you get an early start and extend your growing season:

1. Start your seedlings in either a greenhouse or inside the house.  Wait for a warm day. You want the soil to turn a bit warm.  Plant your seedlings, and place the milk jug over the seedling. This keeps the bugs our and the heat in.  Use the bottom of the jug you cut off for your clay pots indoors. This helps protect surfaces your plants rest on we you might over water.

2. Do the same thing with soda bottles (if in Ohio or the north “pop bottles”). For smaller seedlings save your two liter bottles, cut the bottom out and place the bottle over the plant. During the day leave the lid off. At night put the lid back on.

3.  If you don’t want to mess with planting seeds, buy your plants as plugs.  A plug is a seed that has germinated and is ready to transplant in a bigger container. Doing this accomplishes two things: you save money on plugs and you get a quick start on your garden.

Hope this helps you get started with your garden early.