Growing

Gardening

BY STACIE GAETZ

We are all spending more time in our yards this summer due to the COVID-19 pandemic and that is causing many local residents to plant gardens for the first time.

Combine that with the fact that people are becoming more concerned about sustainability, their own health and availability of food products, and you get a drastic increase in gardeners who are picking up spades and digging in to plant vegetables.

“People need to be anchored at this time and growing food feels like it could ground them,” says Rosa West, president of the Airdrie Horticultural Society.

“Gardening is a commitment of time people didn’t have before. We have all slowed down and are looking at the world around us.”

GROWING GARDENERS Sheena Haffner, marketing manager of Blue Grass Nursery, Sod & Garden Centre, says they have seen a huge increase in new gardeners coming into the store since the pandemic hit and many of them are looking to try their hands at vegetable growing.

“I tell them that anyone can grow anything with a bit of knowledge,” says Haffner.

“Growing is not hard, it’s about making sure your plants are in the right environment. You just have to decide how you are going to do it: with in-ground or raised beds? Will you be amending the soil? Which direction will your gardens be facing? Will you add fertilizer?

“You get out of it what you put into it. The better you treat them, the better they will treat you.”

She added that gardening can be intimidating for many people but now that they are staying home more often, they are willing to dedicate the time and effort to growing something.

VETERAN VEGGIES Linda Delahay has been tending to vegetable gardens for 30 years and she agrees.

She lives in Yankee Valley Estates on a two-acre parcel and has a 30-foot by 30-foot garden containing almost every vegetable you can think of from beets to rhubarb.

“We go by the motto that you should plant what you like to eat,” she says, adding root vegetables tend to be the easiest to grow in Airdrie’s climate.

“The best thing about growing your own food is that you know

where it comes from. It’s a great learning process and it shows you that you can provide for yourself. If it fails, that’s just part of the joy. You never know what will work out and what won’t.”

THE RIGHT PLACE Haffner says one thing many people don’t realize when it comes to planting a garden is that you should put just as much thought into where it will be as you do into what you will grow.

“It’s important to actively engage in looking at the soil and location,” she says.

“Really plan it out before putting in the time and money.”

West says it’s hard to go wrong with peas, beans, cabbages, cauliflower, broccoli and brussels sprouts as they are a fairly hearty cool-weather crop.

She also says if people are more comfortable with planting flowers but want to try their hands at produce, it is possible to scatter vegetables throughout a flower garden.

“Most commonly used is kale,” she says.

“Just make sure there is enough room and that the veggies share similar needs as the flowers – such as light and nutrients.”

Haffner adds that a common mistake people make when trying to grow vegetables is not realizing how much sun they need. She says every yard has a micro-climate with some areas getting more sun or being marshier than others.

“It comes down to where the bed is,” says Haffner, adding that she personally has raised beds because she finds it easier to control the quality of soil and fertilizer and to weed them.

When it comes to harvesting, she says the best thing to do is to keep and read the seed package but when all else fails, do it the old-fashioned way that has stood the test of time since farming began: pull it up to see how it is looking.

West agrees and adds it is best to pick in the morning and process right away or eat soon. “The sugar will turn to starch very quickly and not taste its best,” she says.

“Garden to table is best and a huge bonus of being a home gardener.”

Whether you are looking for something to fill your time or your plate, growing vegetables can be a fun and easy way to bring the family together to learn about where your food comes from. life

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