Housatonic Amateur Radio Club
Vegetable gardening is really a fun hobby. Veggies from your own garden will spoil you, as their taste is far superior to store purchased vegetables.
Their vitamin content is superior also.
Vegetable gardening is a learned hobby. Learn by reading, learn by doing, learn by last year's mistakes and learn by last
year's successes. Everyone's garden is different. Different amounts of sun, different soil, different trees, climate, plants, etc.
That's why learning from reading and learning by doing (experience) are the best. Nothing ever needs to be perfect. It is okay not to be perfect.
Make mistakes and learn from them. That's part of the fun of it! Before you know it, you will think you're okay at gardening and then someone
will accuse you of having a green thumb. What a compliment!
If you combine gardening with food preserving, you can have garden fresh tomatoes, peppers, beans and other veggies all winter long. How great is that?
Vegetable Garden
Seed Companies
Burpee Seed Co    
Gurney Seed Co
The Rusted Garden Seed Shop    
Gardeners Supply Co
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds    
Johnny's Selected Seeds
Jung Seeds    
Seed Savers Exchange
Victory Seeds    
Hart Seed Co.
Seeds N Such    
Bentley Seeds
Shumway Seeds   
Ed Hume Seeds
Park Seeds   
For my 2022 garden, I had planted the following vegetables. All these were grown from seed and transplated either outside to my garden or to a container on my deck.
The Broccoli was planted into milk cartons and placed on my deck in February.
Happy Gardening.
My 2022 Garden
For my 2023 garden, I planted the following for my traditional garden:
Better Boy tomatoes - 24 plants have provided 31 pints of tomatoes so far plus those I have consumed. I estimate these 24 plants have produced over 360 tomatoes.
Gardener's Delight cherry tomatoes - 4 plants have provided plenty to snack on.
Emerald Giant bell peppers - Make great stuffed peppers. 8-12 plants provide plenty for stuffing.
Great Stuff Hybrid bell peppers - Make great stuffed peppers. 8-12 plants provide plenty for stuffing.
Slovana banana peppers - Not as prolific as sweet banana peppers but producing a respectable amount.
Greek Pepperoncini peppers - Four plants are providing bags of peppers. Enough for 5 people to eat and freeze. Very prolific. Make great Potatoes O'Brian.
Mexican Sour Gherkin Cucumbers (cucamelon) - Two planting and so far nothing has come up. Will not plant again.
Blue Lake pole beans - Pole beans are not growing as well as bush beans this year. Unknown why, maybe the weather or smoke from Canada. Still providing beans 2nd week of September.
Blue Lake bush beans
- Froze several bags. I planted Hart Seeds Pencil Yellow Wax bush beans the first week of August as my 2nd crop. All of my HART bush beans came up lanky but okay. Mid September, baby beans are growing.
Burpee Hasta la Pasta Spaghetti Squash - Planted two plants. Each plant has provided 2 squash for a total of 4 so far. XYL likes their easy size and taste.
I planted the following in containers:
Burpee's Best Hybrid Zucchini - Planted 3rd week of July, harvested first zuke Aug 27, after 6 weeks.
Purple Top turnips - Planted last week of July. Still growing.
Midnight Moon Eggplant - I did not plant.
Bush Champion Cucumbers - I did not plant.
Burpee Millionaire Hybrid Eggplant - Planted two, one each in 5 gallon containers. Producing well. I have harvested at least 14 or 15 eggplant. Size and shape of a medium banana.
Burpee Veranda Red Hybrid grape tomato - in a 3 gal pot. Full of tomatoes. Harvested handfuls of delicious grape tomatoes from 1 plant, small round and sweet. I will plant again.
and
Waltham 29 Broccoli - I planted 7, one gallon milk jugs and placed outside in February. Did not do well this year for some reason.
Gardening Advice
Rule of thumb: For our Zone 7A, plant your seeds indoors after St Patrick's Day, plant your seedlings outdoors in the garden Memorial Day.
Remember to plant your seedlings outside after the last expected frost date.
Don't forget to harden off your indoor grown seedlings before planting outside.
Potatoes Rule of thumb: All good Christians plant their potatoes on Good Friday.
Turnips Rule of thumb: Granny Clampett from the Beverly Hillbillies says to plant your turnips outside on July 25.
Keep a journal for next year to help remember what went good and what didn't work out so well.
At HARC, we are in USDA hardiness zone 7A.
For the New Gardener
Never planted a vegetable garden before? Veggies from your own garden will spoil you, as their taste is far superior to store purchased vegetables.
For your first garden, start small. Choose a spot that gets at least 6 hours of full sun a day. Then make a 3 foot by 6 foot garden and plant a few of your favorite veggies in it.
Plant tomatoes if you like tomatoes. Plant banana peppers if you like peppers, as banana peppers are easiest to grow and you should get a lot. Bell peppers can be finicky.
Bush varieties of green beans are easy to grow and make a great first garden veggie.