Simply Gardening: Planning Part 1
We have roughly 3 to 4 weeks until our last frost, so over the past few weeks we have been planting seeds to give them a head start.To get to this point I had to make a plan. In years past I have not had a garden plan and in the end it cost me extra time and money.
My first step has been to get organized and do some research. I have had a garden for years but this will be the first year that we use succession gardening to prolong our gardening season. To organize my thoughts and research on each plant I created a spreadsheet that provides valuable information.
My plant facts I included are:
Start Indoors or Direct Sow?
Time Frame to put in ground
Soil Temp
Plants that they are compatible with / allies to the plant
Plants not compatible with
Other Helpful Facts (direct or indirect sun, dry or wet soil…)
In the past I have tried to memorize all these facts which led me to plant my tomatoes next to the broccoli. Both stunt each others growth. I have also planted all my seeds the same week even though some work better in cooler soil while others like peppers grow better when the temperatures are higher.
Two things that I keep in mind when I planned my shopping for both veggie seeds and flowers are : What Gardening Zone I am in? and Will my garden be in the Shade (Less than 3 hours of sun), Part Sun (4-6 hours of sun), Full Sun (6-8 hours per day).
For the first question I just googled “what garden zone is Rockford, IL”. There were some conflicting answers. Some sites said we are in Zone 5A and another said Zone 5B. I am just a hobby gardener so I am not going to split grass hairs over this. We are in the Northern part of Illinois right near WI. I plan thinking it will be a little cooler but know that we do get some crazy hot weather.
For the second question, our corner lot gets quite a bit of sun with a couple areas that are shaded in the late afternoon. Over all anything I plan to plant needs to be able to tolerate 4-8 hours a day of direct sun.
This winter I spent a fair share of time thinking about Annuals vs Perennials. As this yard is so much bigger I want my budget to stretch. While I have a handle full of annual seeds the bulk of my money went towards perennials that will grow year after year.
There are a number of places I like to order from. This year I ordered from American Meadows and Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds. I also purchase seeds packs from our local store. I also order my husbands Carolina Reaper Peppers from Etsy.
What we going to plant this year:
From Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
Sugar Snap Peas
Lemon Drop Pepper
Kohlrabi
Purpurea Echinacea (Perennial)
Teddy Bear Sunflower (Annual)
From American Meadows
Early Sunflower Seeds (Perennial)
*Hummingbird and Butterfly Garden Jumbo Packet (Mostly Perennial)
Bee Balm or Wild Bergamot Seeds (Perennial)
Evening Primrose Seeds (Perennial)
**All perennial Wildflower Seed Mix (Perennial)
Etsy
Carolina Reaper
Burpee Seeds
Sweet Pepper
Hot Pepper Anaheim Chili
Mammoth Sunflower (Annual)
Lemonade Cosmos (Annual)
Watermellon
Best Bot Tomato
Roma Tomato
Chives
Valley Green Seeds
Parsley
Dill
Garden Green Beans
Cucumber
Pumpkin
Radish
Pinks
*Forget Me Not, Morning Glory, Pink Cosmos, Coneflower, Crimson Clover, Wild Lupine, Red Poppy, Rose Mallow, Baby Snap Dragon, Babies Breath, Lemon Mint, Scarlet Sage, Black Eyed Susan, None So Pretty, Nasturtium, Dames Rocket
** Sweet Williams, Fox Glove, Blue Flax, Blazing Star, Clasping Coneflower, Black-eyed Susan, Gloriosa Daisy, Yellow Prairie Coneflower, Mexican Hat, Maltese Cross, Rocky Mt Penstemon, Wild Lupne, Candyluft, Blanket Flower, California Poppy, Lance Leaf Coreopsis, Shasta Daisy, Siberian Wallflower
Happy to find your blog. I lived in Rockford for several years, on Morningside Dr. and then later on St. Charles. Two of my children were born there. I loved that town! That is where I began growing tea herbs and fragrant herbs, and the St. Charles house had belonged prior to us to a lady that worked in a garden center, so it had the most amazing perennial border along the backyard fence (partial shade to deep shade.) I learned about growing perennials from watching that border and reading. Best of luck in your garden journey! You must have a much bigger yard than ours to be able to grow so many things.
We have a double lot on a corner. It gives large front and side yard as well as back yard. Our first two houses had small yards so when this house came for sale I was so excited for all the possibilities!