Creating a brand-new garden or reclaiming an existing one is not a difficult task although, let’s be honest, it does involve a heavy dose of hard labour. The task is not free of cost either, but expenses can be kept down by recycling whatever material is possible.

Whether the new garden is primarily meant for growing ornamentals and flowers, fruits, vegetables and herbs or a combination of all of the aforementioned, the basics are the same.

The area must be totally cleared of any building debris, other rubbish and weeds, especially tough, often deep-rooted, perennial weeds, which will need to be dug out entirely. Once the selected area is nice and clean, you need to decide on the location, design and size of the planting areas. It is the layout of beds and borders where beginners often go wrong.

Whilst a border is just an area usually edging footpaths and boundary walls, a bed is something entirely different, so you can select both its location and its orientation. Whether it is a bed for flowers or vegetables, it is important to place it in a north to south direction if possible.

This means that the length of the bed runs from north to south and the width (which is usually less than the length) runs east to west. The reason for this is simply that if you plan to grow vegetables, you can plant them in rows. All plants need sunlight for healthy growth and vegetables are no exception. When you plant your vegetables in rows running north to south, the east side of the row is exposed to morning sun, the entire row gets midday sun, and the western side of the row gets afternoon and evening sun.

Whether you are planting flowers or vegetables, dig into your new garden adventure by breaking down your project into basic steps

Hence the plants benefit from equal sun exposure on all sides which, when it comes down to ripening fruits such as tomatoes, both growth (for balance) and fruit development are equal on either side of the row. If, on the other hand, the rows run east to west, the northern side of the plants hardly receives any sunlight at all and, for obvious reasons, has debilitating consequences as far as cropping is concerned.

The length of a bed or border isn’t really important, but the width is. A border should be no wider than a metre or thereabouts. You should be able to reach to the other side without having to walk on the soil. Walking/standing on soil compacts it, thus making it more difficult for plant roots to breathe, for water to percolate downwards and for seeds to germinate. Wet soil must never be walked on as the wetness renders it more compactable than ever. A bed should be no more than two metres or so in width, so that it can be weeded/planted from either side without being walked on.

The most important part of making and maintaining any garden is the soil and its ongoing health. Existing soil may be clay, sandy, loamy or otherwise. If the selected garden area is prone to waterlogging during rains/ the monsoon season, before sorting out the soil, you must install some kind of drainage, aimed at preventing waterlogging at any time of year. Waterlogging/over-watering is the most common killer of plants.

If laying lined drains is out of budget, digging a system of drainage channels to lead the water away to an area that it will not damage, or so that it runs off into an actual drain-hole close by, is a solution, as long as it is regularly cleaned out for weeds and other debris. This done, beds and borders laid out and, if preferred, edged with bricks or stones etc., it is time to sort out the soil.

Thoroughly dig over whatever soil there is, breaking up lumps, removing stones and weed roots as you go. Once this is done, buy enough sweet earth to cover the bed/border to a depth of at least five to seven centimetres. Rake it to level and remove any debris before adding a two-to-five centimetres deep layer of old, well-rotted, preferably organic, manure. Water well, leave to sit for two to three weeks, watering heavily twice a week. Then, using a spade or fork, dig/mix the manure into the sweet earth, finishing off by raking it level.

The bed/border is now ready for planting and will need no further feeding — although mulching is still recommended before the onset of hot/dry weather — until your first growing and harvesting season is over. Remember that forward planning and thorough soil preparation make for successful gardening.

Please continue sending your gardening queries to zahrahnasir@hotmail.com. Remember to include your location. The writer does not respond directly by email. Emails with attachments will not be opened

Published in Dawn, EOS, May 23rd, 2021