South Africans are blessed with a climate that allows us to grow our own food all year round; these are some tips for starting your own garden today.
South Africa (19 April 2022) – With food security a hot topic once again in a country where it is always an issue, we thought we would look at how to start a small veggie garden in your own backyard or balcony.
Over the last two years, we have promoted several stories celebrating home and community gardens. As families became reliant on food parcels that lacked nutritional diversity, turning to growing greens and herbs was a great way to bulk up family meals and add some extra nutrients.
Now with talks of food prices rising due to the greater global economic stress, now is the best time to start growing veg! Whether there are food shortages or not, being prepared and self-sufficient can’t hurt; plus, once you have set up, it is easy on the bank account.
You don’t even need a massive plot to grow food for your home; a few pots on a balcony can supplement your herb or lettuce budget. Imagine never having to throw away a soggy bag of lettuce ever again?
So, where do you start if you have never grown anything in your life? We will start with the basics and work our way through to the more complex ideas, but this article is for beginners, so that we won’t go too in-depth.
It’s Seasonal.
The first thing you need to know when starting a garden is what season you are in. Different fruits and vegetables react and grow differently, depending on the weather.
As we are currently at the start of Autumn, heading into the cold of winter will definitely affect your ability to grow some things. Think of your delicious greens like lettuce, spinach, swiss chard, rocket or potatoes, carrots, beetroots and peas, to name a few. The Livingseeds Gardening group shares local monthly grow guides, which you can find here.
Don’t fear, though; Spring is only two seasons away, so now is the time to start preparations. Using all the methods below, you can begin today and prepare for Spring too. Planning is everything.
The Seeds and Seedlings.
To grow fruits, herbs, spices and vegetables, you need seeds. Most grocery stores sell a basic selection of seeds. Garden centres, nurseries, hardware and specialised seed companies are also great ways to get seeds in South Africa.
If you have friends that grow their own, ask them to share a seed or two. We have learned gardeners are super generous.
Seeds can also feel overwhelming, and that is ok; many garden centres will also sell seedlings. These make everything go a bit faster as you don’t need to baby the seeds.
Knowledge and Lessons
There is so much information out there in fellow gardeners, YouTube videos, websites, podcasts, books, and so much more. We recommend finding resources that share information related to South Africa and the Southern Hemisphere. You may even have some luck following Australian gardeners who have the same season patterns as us.
It is essential to understand what is needed to be a successful gardener. From growing requirements, soil and nutrients, companion planting and more. The key is to start slowly and learn as much as you can simultaneously. We recommend selecting two to three vegetables and learning everything about them before taking on more. Garden overwhelm is a thing, but it can be helped.
Here are some pointers on learning about growing your own.
- Select a fruit or vegetable.
- List its growing requirements.
- Learn about the pests that could affect your plant.
- Collect all the tools, soil and nutrients that a plant would need throughout its lifetime.
- Run into any issues? Troubleshoot using all the resources above.
If you do this each year, before long, you will know how to grow enough fruit and vegetables to feed your family and maybe even your neighbours.
Find a Community
Community is everything in gardening. In South Africa, several Facebook groups offer the community feel for gardening. We are joined to most of these, so take a look below and select which ones work for you.
- Livingseeds Veggie Gardeners
- Self Sufficiency & Sustainable Living (South Africa)
- Self Sufficient Homesteading and Gardening
- Slow Food Community Seed Savers of South Africa
- Composting SA
- Urban Homestead South Africa
So what can you do now?
- Go into your garden or balcony and select an area where you will garden. It needs to get a decent amount of sunshine, a minimum of 6 hours a day.
- If you have grass in the area, put down cardboard to kill it off.
- Decide if you will do raised beds or in-ground beds. If raised, start the process of building those up.
- Collect your seeds as per your seasonal research.
- Fill your garden bed(s) with good compost and topsoil.
- Start planting.
- While you wait for the first things to grow, learn and learn some more.
- Engage with your selected community, ask questions and learn some more.
Have more questions? Pop them in the comment section, and we will try to answer them, but joining the groups above will be your best bet! Happy growing!
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