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Site Selection
Water: Be sure to choose a site near a water source. You may eventually put in micro-irrigation, but in the meantime, make hand watering easier on yourself.
Sunlight: Most vegetables will need full sun, which equates to six hours of direct sunlight. Tallahassee is an urban forest so it is important to site your garden where it can be productive. If you are unsure your site receives enough sunlight, face south and raise your arms to make a "Y". If tree canopy encroaches in your view within your "Y", find a sunnier location.
Beds
Many gardeners choose to grow vegetables in raised beds hoping to avoid challenges that come from native soil and for convenience in tending the garden. Growing directly in our native soil (a range of sand to sandy clay) is doable even for first time gardeners with the addition of soil amendments.
There are many designs for raised beds, but they only need to be about six to ten inches of soil deep. Vegetable roots tend to stay in this range in the soil.
Avoid old pressure-treated wood (pre 2004) or railroad ties that can leach creosote and arsenic. Modern pressure treated wood is safe to use as well as naturally rot resistant woods like redwood and cedar. Untreated wood will start to rot within a year. Other materials include concrete blocks, bricks, and logs.
In the VegHeadz garden, we have filled the bottom of the tall raised beds with garden debris like leaves, branches, and banana stalks. Mushroom compost was then added to the top six to ten inches. Over time, the debris breaks down and the soil level sinks a bit, but we top it off as needed. This cuts down on up-front costs for filling a taller and more accessible garden bed and the debris material helps retain moisture and adds nutrition as it decomposes.
Timing
North Florida has a completely different set of growing seasons than the rest of the country and even the state. We have hot, wet summers and colder winters than the average Floridian is used to. This means common planting sayings can be off the mark here. "Knee high by the 4th of July" works for corn in northern states but here in Leon County, corn is knee high by early May if not sooner.
A year in the vegetable garden here might look like this:
Tomatoes and peppers can be started from seed indoors as early as the first of the year for planting mid-March and onwards. Tomatoes don't set fruit when night temperatures are above about 80 degrees, so it's important to give your plants a head start on the heat. Grape and cherry tomatoes are tough and may fruit all summer long, but larger tomatoes usually stop fruiting when the summer heats up. Peppers can fruit all summer and may even last two years if the winter is particularly mild.
Plant white potatoes and English peas (along with snow and sugar snap) on or before Valentine's Day. This allows the potatoes enough time to grow underground before harvest in about May. Peas are harvested as ready throughout the spring.
Transplant squash seedlings by the middle of March to help avoid squash vine borers. Squash plants are frost sensitive so pay attention to the weather in late March and early April as they may need protection. Squash are native to the Americas and so is a major pest: the squash vine borer. This moth is native, but the caterpillars can wreak havoc on plants in the cucumber family. Transplanting seedlings early in the season can help you get at least a harvest or two in before the borers descend upon your garden.
In the heat of the summer (June, July, and August) the pest pressure and heat can become intense. Many gardeners take these months off by planting cover crops in lieu of harvestable crops. Cover crops help reduce run off, maintain soil structure and limit weeds taking root while you take a few weeks or months off.
Cool season vegetables can be started from seed as early as September, though usually the latter half of the month. September can still be particularly hot for cool season vegetables. If you plant out cool season vegetables too soon, the heat can cause them to bolt, or they may get overwhelmed with pests.
Follow the calendars in this guide for best results. Treat your garden like an experiment, if you miss a planting deadline but already have the plants, just go ahead and plant them.
Seeds
Seeds are a cost effective way to start a garden. You can get a lot of variety for your money but seedlings need tender loving care.
When planting seeds, follow the spacing directions on the packet and remember to thin as needed. This is particularly important for small-seeded crops that can be difficult to sow by hand so as to give the crop enough space to reach maturity. Thinning will be required for carrots, turnips, beets, radishes, and other root crops. It seems harsh to thin but it is necessary if you want a good harvest in a few months. Simply pull the smallest seedlings and eat them in the garden or a salad.
Some seeds do better when started inside under a grow light months before they are ready to be transplanted outside. Warm season crops like tomatoes, peppers and eggplants can be started in winter and cool season crops can be started inside in late August to beat the heat.
Remember that we have different growing seasons than the rest of the country so seed packets may not have the most accurate instructions. Use the calendars in this guide when you are starting seeds or buying transplants to make sure you are growing in the right season.
Check out the Leon County Seed Library at your local Leroy Collins Leon County Public Library branch for free seeds starting each February and August.
Seeding
Fill starter cells with pre-moistened starting mix. In each pot, make a shallow indentation into the starting mix with your finger and place one to two seeds into each hole (if more than one seed germinates, pinch out weakest seedling). Seeds should be covered to a depth of two to three times the diameter of the seed. Label with crop name, variety, and date. Mist with water from spray bottle/mister hose. Keep moist but not water-logged. Place in temperature-controlled room or out of direct sunlight. For spring/summer crops, germination is best between 75-90°F. For fall/winter varieties, germination is best between 50-80°F. Once seedlings emerge, immediately move to sunny location (at least six hours direct sunlight). Keep moist, but not water-logged.
Transplants
Transplants are young plants that have been grown from seed in a container, either by the gardener or purchased. They are a good way to get a head start on gardening without all of the babysitting young seedlings need.
Plant your transplants with their mature size in mind. If they are too close, it can limit airflow and lead to disease and fungal problems, as well as making the bed hard to maintain.
Choosing the right transplant at the nursery can set you up for success later in the season.
Look for plants that are about the same height as their pot is deep. This will ensure you don't get root-bound plants.
Don't buy transplants that show signs of disease, even if they are on the discount rack. You could transfer disease or pests to the rest of your garden for the price of that good deal.
Don't buy plants that already have flowers or fruit, as this is an indication of stress.
Plant your transplants when you get home - don't let your investment dry up.
Timing Tip
For spring gardening, plant transplants once danger of frost has passed (around the middle of March), when the transplant has had time to develop a strong root system, and when the transplant is about the length of its pot.
Tomato seedlings ready to be up-potted. Note the first leaves (cotyledons) are still present. The plants are as tall as the pot is deep so it is time to up-pot to further develop the root system.
Transplanting Process
Prepare garden site with compost and other soil amendments.
Water plants very thoroughly just before planting to decrease transplant shock.
Dig a hole that is at least double the width of the plant’s root ball.
Add one to two handfuls of fresh compost or worm castings to the hole.
Avoid covering any leaves or stems under the soil surface. Remove these lower stems with sharp garden clippers to minimize the size of the wound.
Avoid touching the stem and avoid disturbing the root ball when removing the transplant from its pot. Gently squeeze the pot to loosen the potting soil and turn the transplant upside down with the palm of your hand to gently catch the transplant.
Unless the transplant is a tomato, plant so that the soil level is about the soil level of the transplant, making sure the plant has good structure to decrease susceptibility of falling over as it grows.
If transplanting a tomato, plant deeper than the soil level of the transplant, as tomatoes can grow adventitious roots from their stem, which will improve overall root development.
Make sure to cover up all roots and water the soil around the plant thoroughly. Continue to water deeply, keeping the soil moist but not soggy, for the next three to four days while the plant becomes established. You can then begin to switch to a normal watering pattern.
Always water the soil around the plant, not the plant leaves, throughout the season to decrease susceptibility to disease.
Other Vegetables
Sweet Potatoes
Sweet potatoes are propagated primarily from slips. These can be bought or easily grown at home.
Slips can be grown from store bought or home grown sweet potatoes. You can use the water propagation method pictured above or lay them in shallow pans with loose soil over them. The slips will grow off the root. Trim the slips off the potato when they have several long roots and leaves. Plant directly in the garden.
Garlic and Onions
Garlic and onions are part of the Amaryllidaceae family. Both can be planted either by seed or clove or set, respectively.
Garlic cloves can be planted from either nursery or grocery store bought bulbs. Simply take apart the cloves (leave the papery skin on) and plant them pointy side up throughout your garden. You can interplant garlic and onions with other crops.
Onion sets are small bulbs that can be planted the same way as garlic.
Potatoes
Irish potatoes (those we use for typical mashed potatoes, French fries, and baked potatoes) are in the Solanaceae family along with tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers. We eat the modified stems that grow underground, though colloquially they are referred to as tubers.
When planting potatoes, you will purchase seed potatoes. These aren't seeds, but actual potatoes, that will sprout to form a new plant. Depending on the size of the seed potato, you can plant them whole or cut them into 'chits.' Make sure each chit has at least two 'eyes' to ensure sprouting. You can plant right away or wait until your seed potatoes have started sprouting.
Seed Saving
Adapted from UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions
Collecting seeds is one way to take your passion for gardening to the next level. You can collect seeds from annuals, perennials, vegetables, and fruits in your garden with varying degrees of ease.
Part of the fun of collecting seeds is growing your own low-cost plants and having extras to share with friends. Just remember that not all plants grown from seed will look exactly like the plants from which they were gathered (their parent plants).
For flowering plants that do not make fruit, wait until the flowers have dried, leaving you with a dry brown seed head. You can snip off a whole seed head into the container of your choosing. Figuring out exactly when your seeds are ready to be harvested may take some practice, just like it takes some practice to know when your vegetables and fruits are ripe for picking. Once picked, seeds will not continue to develop, so they do need to be harvested once mature and not too early.
Seed heads and seed pods need to be air-dried after they are harvested. You can lay them out on newspaper or in a shallow box to do this. Make sure you spread them out to allow them room to dry as you want to avoid seeds becoming moldy. Once they have dried out you can shake seeds loose from pods or seed heads. Keep seeds from different flowers in separate paper envelopes and label them with the plant’s name and the date collected.
It is best to use paper envelopes to store your seeds; if there is even the slightest bit of moisture present, mold can develop. Keep the seeds stored in a cool dry place until it is time to plant.
When you are told to store seeds in a "cool, dry place," you may wonder what exactly that means. We recommend putting seed envelopes in a tightly sealed jar in the refrigerator. Some people choose to store seeds in the freezer, but this can be tricky, as seeds have to be very dry before freezing or the seeds can be killed.
Saving seeds from vegetables can be easy, too. Many vegetables like broccoli, greens, carrots, and more, will "bolt" and go to seed when temperatures rise. You can harvest seeds from these vegetables much the same way you harvest and dry seeds from flowers.
For fruits and vegetables that have wetter seeds (think tomatoes or blueberries), you’ll want to clean and dry the seeds more thoroughly. Smear the seeds out across a paper towel and allow them to dry out. Once they are dry you can remove any leftover fruit particles.
Dried seeds should then be stored in a labeled paper envelope that is kept in a cool, dry place.
Of course, not every seed will grow. Errors and failures are all part of the game, but it can be immensely rewarding to grow plants from seeds collected in your own garden. Plus, passing along your own seeds to gardening friends can be a great gift.
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