Avoid Bitter Cucumbers

The key to keeping your cucumbers from being bitter is water. Cucumbers require at least one inch of water every week. Cucumbers that miss out on being watered regularly -- even once or twice -- will become bitter.

Vegetables Are Picky About Their Neighbors

Some vegetable seeds do better or worse based on what is growing near them. Here are vegetable combinations that tend to work well together.

*Beets grow well alongside cabbage, onion, broccoli and cauliflower.

*Carrots grow well alongside peas, turnips, cucumbers, or tomatoes seeds.

*Corn grows well with peas, beans, squash, and melon seeds.

Avoid planting the following vegetable seed varieties next to each other:

*Squash and radishes

*Peas and cauliflower

*Pole beans and beets

Tips for Planting Your Root Crops

The key to producing a plentiful root crop is the soil preparation. These vegetable seeds need a loose, friable soil that is heavily worked.

Root crops prefer to be planted in raised beds and planted in blocks, rather than rows. You should till the bed where you will be planting the vegetables seeds to at least an eight inch depth. As you are tilling the bed, you should work organic matter into the soil.

Tips for Laying Out Your Vegetable Garden

The layout of your vegetable garden is very important. You should plant vegetable seeds which produce tall crops on the northern side of your garden. This will keep your tall crops from shading your short crops.

When planning your rows, you should plant vegetable seed families together. Here is a list of vegetable families that will help you plan your garden's layout.

*Vine Crops: cucumbers, squash and melon

*Root Vegetables: turnips, carrots, beets, onions, garlic, leeks and carrots

*Legumes: peas, limas and beans

*Brassicas: broccoli, collards, kale, cabbage, and cauliflower

Warm Season Vegetables

Warm season vegetable seeds are those that should not be planted until warm weather is truly established.

The following vegetables are considered warm season crops: beans, corn, eggplant, melon, okra, pepper, pumpkin, sweet potato, and tomato.

You should always read the back of your vegetable seed packet to ensure you are planting your seeds during their optimum growing period.

Succession Planting

Succession planting ensures that your vegetable garden is brimming with a harvest the entire growing season. After you harvest one vegetable, you can replant one or more different vegetable seeds in its place. Here are a few succession planting ideas for you.

After you have harvested your leaf lettuce, you can plant squash or bush beans.

When your radish crop is nearing completion, you can replant the area with your cucumber seeds.

Follow up your cabbage crop by planting snap beans. When your snap beans are harvested, you can use the area a third time by planting your fall lettuce.

Fall Vegetables

There are many fall vegetables that can withstand a light, early frost. The key is to know which vegetables will be productive in a cool climate, and to purchase those that have the earliest maturing varieties.

Beets, onions, rutabagas, spinach, turnips, leaf lettuce, kale and cabbage can all be considered a fall growing vegetable.

Before you plant your fall vegetable seeds, you should water the site the day before you sow. As the days grow shorter, you should ensure that your seeds are able to soak up every minute of sunshine they will receive. You can do this by applying a water-soluble fertilizer weekly.

Hybrid and Non-Hybrid Vegetable Seeds

When you order vegetable seeds, you may have the choice between hybrids and non-hybrids. Hybrid vegetable seeds tend to be more reliable because they have been produced in conditions that are controlled. This means they may be more resistant to diseases and more productive. Non-hyrbids are also known as “open-pollinated” varieties or heirloom varieties. Of the two, hybrids are thought to be the more trustworthy. However, there are gardeners who do insist on only using non-hybrids year after year.

Planting Tips for Cool Season Vegetables

Around your long season vegetables (those that require 70 or more days to produce) you can plant cool season vegetables. The key is to plant your cool season vegetable seeds early, as they like the chilly, damp season.

The following list of vegetable seeds is considered cool weather crops: cauliflower, brussels sprouts, parsnips, artichokes, beets, carrots, chard, lettuce, mustard greens, peas, radish and spinach.

Be mindful that some cool season vegetable seeds do better when planted in a flat first, then transplanted into the garden. These vegetable seeds include cabbage, cauliflower, and broccoli.

Tips for Planting Carrot Seed

It is important that carrot seeds are planted in a deeply worked soil that drains well. Raised beds are the choice of many as the soil is generally loose and stone-free. The reason this vegetable seed needs such well worked soil is because of the taproot. If it meets an obstacle, such as a rock or clay soil, it will either quit growing or branch off.

You should plant carrot seeds about two weeks before the last expected frost. When planting, you should try to place them a half inch apart. You can make successive plantings every three weeks thru midsummer.

Tips for Planting Corn

Corn does best when it is planted where it will receive a full day of sun. When planting, you should make sure the area is away from trees or buildings which could cast a shadow over your garden.

Corn seeds should be planted at least 10 inches apart in a trench. When the vegetable seeds start to sprout and grow, you should hill up the soil around it. This will support the plant as it grows, and it also keeps weed at bay.

You should plant your sweet corn in blocks. It is best to have at least four rows per block as this will help with pollination.

Be Careful Where You Purchase Your Vegetable Seeds

You should only buy your vegetable seeds from reputable gardening companies. These businesses are credible – and you can be assured that their seeds have undergone research and trials.

Vegetable seeds are living organisms and they do have a shelf life. Under the law, vegetable seed packets are required to state their intended growing season. Do not fall prey to someone peddling old seeds.

Tips for Planting Vine Crops

The squash family consists of many plants including the melons, cucumbers, pumpkins and squashes. While each vegetable is different, the vegetable seeds generally like the same culture.

This crop does not like being transplanted. You should sow these vegetable seeds directly into the ground in which they will remain throughout the season. Most vine crops do well when planted in mounds. The mounds can be one to two feet in diameter – although you should allow more room for larger squashes and pumpkins.

Order Your Vegetable Seeds Early

You should purchase your vegetable seeds early -- as the supply of popular vegetable seeds can be stripped bare when the planting season finally arrives.



When you order your seeds early, you can group them together by their growing season using rubber bands. You should group your vegetable seeds into three categories:



1) Seeds that should be planted as soon as the ground is ready.

2) Seeds that should be planted two to three weeks before the frost-free date in your growing area.

3) Seeds that should not be planted until all frost danger has passed.



Seeds will keep until planting time, especially those that are purchased through reputable companies – as their seeds are generally packaged in moisture vapor packets.

Treated Vegetable Seeds

Treated vegetable seeds are seeds that have been coated with a chemical fungicide which protects them from disease. This protection lasts from planting time until the sprout emerges from the ground. Treated vegetable seeds are fast becoming the choice of many in both the small-scale and commercial sectors.

You should keep in mind that the chemicals used on the vegetable seeds contains dyes. People and animals should not nibble on the seeds.