Grow Your Own

Today, I would like to welcome Rebecca from Chicken Scratchings to TheNorthForty.  An avid gardener, she gives us tips on how to make growing your own produce easy for anyone.  What better way to eat nature's goodness than right out of your own backyard?

Are you new to gardening?  Perhaps you would like to garden and don't know where to start or are afraid of failure. I've been gardening pretty steadily for the last fourteen years and before that I helped my parents garden, but every year I learn something new.  A couple of years ago I tried a veggie that has become a standby.  What is it, you ask?--why, zucchini.  Now you might be wondering why grow such a common vegetable.  If you just wait long enough someone will give you a bushel or two.  Well, there are a couple of reasons, but the main one is that it is a very versatile vegetable to grow.  If you want to have a garden, zucchini plants are easy to maintain.

First of all, I would recommend that you start with a couple plants from your local greenhouse.  If you haven't had time to prepare a garden plot you can easily use a corner of a flower bed.  You will need a spot about three feet across as zucchini plants grow rather large.
Prepare the soil by cultivating it with a small tiller or a hoe and some elbow grease.  Add some fertilizer and work it into the soil.  I prefer to use manure, but you can use commercial fertilizer, just be sure to follow the directions for the amount you should use.

Dig several small holes about four or five inches deep and five inches apart in a small circle.  Fill each hole with water and then gently place one zucchini plant in each hole.  Pat the soil around the plants firmly, and water a little on top of the soil.

Now comes the fun part--all you need to do is keep your zucchini plants watered and watch them grow.  In about six weeks you will have impressive sized plants and they will begin to bloom.  As the tiny zucchini form, watch them carefully, because overnight they will get huge.
It's best to pick your zucchini when they are about 8 inches long, but you can pick them larger or smaller if you prefer.

A few interesting facts about zucchini:

It is a good source of Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Vitamin B6, and dietary fiber.

It's relatively mild flavor makes it an easy vegetable to add to other dishes.  For example, the next time you make sloppy joe sandwiches double the sauce and add several cups of grated zucchini--it will extend your meat.

Some of the ways my family enjoys zucchini are: raw with dip, zucchini bread or muffins, in salads, as a substitute for apples in apple pie, and as a filler in various soups and casseroles.

So there you have it--one of the most used and loved vegetables in the garden, with a thousand uses and so easy to grow. Why don't you try zucchini?

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