Create a winter vegetable garden using a kiddie pool!

Winter Gardening

It’s March, and although we’ve had a mild winter, you might be daydreaming about warm breezes, sunshine and fresh local produce. What better way to increase your availability to at least one of these by creating a home vegetable garden using a kiddie pool. 

What you will need:

Hard plastic kiddie pool

Electric drill

Loose rocks/gravel

Potting soil

Fertilizer

Seeds of choice

Seedling starter planters

Preparing the pool for planting

1. Drill drainage holes into bottom and sides of the pool about 6 inches apart.
2. Put the pool in a place with adequate sunlight, and access to water
3. Fill the bottom with rocks to about 1.5 inches depth
4. Fill the rest with soil

What to plant and when

You can plant some Vegetables  directly in the soil as early as the second week of March!

Examples include: 

kale, collards, peas, onions, radishes, spinach, lettuce and turnips

In the third to fourth week of March you can plant

beets, carrots, potatoes, Swiss chard and parsnips.

Follow the guidelines on the seed packet when planting. Be careful not to over crowd you seeds, and leave room for indoor transplants. 

Indoor Transplants

Other varieties of early vegetables such as Cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and Brussel sprouts are best started indoors as early as 4-6 weeks before planting them outside. You can plant seeds in a seedling starter tray and transplant them once it is time. 

With a little planning and effort you will be enjoying fresh spring vegetables in no time at all! 

Check out this handy planting schedule from IFA country stores. 

Sources

 https://www.thespruce.com/make-a-kiddie-pool-into-a-garden-planter-848239

https://ifacountrystores.com/2019/gardening/early-spring-gardening/

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• maryland (10)
• gardening (1)
• garden to table (1)
• winter gardening (1)
• kiddie pool garden (1)
• seasonal eating (1)