What to plant after leasing your bed.

It’s a fact; certain crops are easier to grow. Maybe it’s because they’re faster to go from seed to harvest or maybe they’re bothered by fewer pests and diseases.

Strawberries

Strawberries are a great addition to any organic community garden. It’s easy to get your younger helpers behind this produce item (what child doesn’t love strawberries?) and they simply look great growing in your neighborhood plot. More importantly, strawberries grow well in various climates, especially everbearing (blooming from early summer into the autumn) varieties such as Quinault, Seascape, Tribute and Tristar.

Make sure that seeds are planted in a spot that receives 8 to 10 hours of daylight/sunlight with one inch of watering per week at the root zone. Within one month of blooming, ripe strawberries begin to appear. You can harvest them from your garden once a lush red color is evident and your taste buds validate them for picking.

Kale

This nutritious green is perfect for cooler climates and has been popping up in many community gardens of late. That being said, kale can still be grown successfully in most climates and is easy enough to manage for any community garden project. Because this annual plant can handle the cold season (in as temperatures as low as 20 °F / -6 °C) you can get started in nearly any season and have it ready for harvesting a year later. If planting in the cold season, select a community garden plot that will receive the most sunlight. If planting in the warm season, select a spot that receives partial shade. No matter the temperature, kale responds well to moisture so ensure that the soil is watered frequently – the more moist the soil the sweeter and crisper the leaves produced for harvesting. Once the leaves are approximately 8 to 10 inches above the soil you can begin picking. Kale is also quite good at resisting disease and insect infestation, thus, the only real precautions that you need to take there are to make sure that you pick up any weathered leaves surrounding the soil.

 Radishes

Radishes are among the easiest plants/vegetables to grow, and are very popular for those community gardens maintained in-part by children/students because they grow fast and can be harvested within three to six weeks. When planted during a cool season you will want to ensure maximum exposure to the sun. When planted in the summer months select a partially shaded area is recommended. Soil should remain moist and thus frequent watering is required.