Michelle at Michelle Smiles decided last week that she was going to start a vegetable garden.  Why do you care?  She lives in Tennessee after all.  I care.  I love it when people decide they are going to plant their first vegetable garden.  Secretly because I know if they get at least one edible out of the whole thing they will be addicted for life.  Gardening does that to people.

She posted a list of the plants she wanted to try in her garden and I gave her a little advice on each one.  Then my husband and I got into a discussion about what veg were the best choices for someone who is just starting out and possibly doing so in containers (as Michelle is doing).  We came up with a reasonable little list and I’m going to share it with you.

First and foremost are herbs.  That’s a big fat duh.  You can grow herbs on your kitchen window sill.  I don’t, but you could.

As far as veg goes pick stuff you will eat, but the big ones are carrots, peas, lettuce, zucchini (if you have room) and beans.

Carrots should be planted in a straight sided container and thinned to 1″ apart.  Start them directly in the container.  They don’t transplant at all.

Peas: start them early in the season and look for a bush variety and not a pole variety.  Bush peas, and beans, are stout and well suited for containers with minimal staking.  Don’t be fooled.  They will still need staking, but you can get away with little bamboo stakes and not the elaborate copper pipe system I have.

Lettuce won’t germinate in soil temperatures above 72 degrees.  This will be your spring and fall crop unless you have a partially shady portion of your garden.

Zucchini needs room.  Lots and lots of room.  Also, you won’t need more than two plants if your family only eats a minimal amount of zucchini.  It is prolific.  So prolific that I only grow it every 3 years or so since we eat so much of it that my family begs me not to bring anymore into the house.  I only ever plant 3 bushes.  This year I’m doing a few other squashes to change it up a bit.

Beans and zucchini are susceptible to black aphids.  Or at least in my garden they are.  Ok, maybe it was just the conventional varieties that were.  I switched to an heirloom bean and haven’t had any issues and I haven’t grown zucchini in 2 years so I don’t know.  Either way, have a spraybottle of soapy water on hand to tackle the little buggers before they get out of control.

The key is to start small.  Keep track of what you are purchasing at the farmers market or in the grocery on a regular basis.  Odds are what to plant will right in your basket.