--- title: Six Tips to Prepare and Maintain Your Vegetable Garden description: Wickline Insurance shares six tips to prepare and maintain your garden this spring in Beckley, WV. --- # Six Tips to Prepare and Maintain Your Vegetable Garden ## Six Tips to Prepare and Maintain Your Vegetable Garden - Posted on Thursday, April 14, 2016 Spring season can bring so much joy to garden lovers. Growing your own garden saves money on groceries each week, plus can give you the personal satisfaction of growing your own food. It’s fun when you can involve your kids and teach them a few of your favorite tricks! Many people feel like their garden vegetables taste better. Whether you’re a seasoned pro at gardening or you’re just a beginner, use the tips below to ensure success. **Pick Your Favorite Things** First, decide what you want to plant. If you are new to gardening, start small. You can grow herbs and vegetables in pots. **Find a Location** If you want to plant a vegetable garden, find a location that gets at least six hours of sunlight each day. Also, keep the size of the mature plants in mind. The taller plants should be placed on the north or west side of the garden so they do not shade the other plants. As for watering your garden, it helps to keep it close to your water spigot so you aren’t stuck dragging it across your yard. Crops need enough spacing between each other. When placing your vegetables in rows, allow at least 18 inches between them. **Give the Soil a Boost** First, test your soil. Soak it with a hose then wait a day to see what it looks like. The next day, grab a handful and see how the soil holds up. If water streams out, add two to three inches of organic matter (manure, compost, decayed leaves, dry grass clippings). When you pick up a handful and the soil does not form a ball, it’s too dry. Add organic matter. You know the soil is ideal when you grab it and it forms a ball and then slightly breaks apart when you drop it. **Water** For most vegetable plants, one inch of water per week is enough. It’s best to water in the morning to retain moisture. When you water, deliver water slowly so the roots absorb the moisture the soil stays hydrated. **Add Mulch** Mulch insulates your soil. It also helps retain moisture, decrease the amount of weeds and protects plants from diseases. Place about two to three inches on organic mulch around your plants. **Use Just Enough Fertilizer** By using organic compost (about 20% of the total makeup of the soil), you will keep it fertile enough so it thrives naturally. Using too much fertilizer can hinder results by decreasing the amount of harvest. While we can’t tend to your vegetables, we can tend to all of your insurance needs. Wickline Insurance was founded in 1991 and is a leader in West Virginia with providing quality protection to hundreds of families across the state. Our Beckley, WV office can issue policies over the phone, so even if you’re not in the area, our knowledgeable, licensed insurance agents can help. We offer insurance products including [auto](/auto-insurance), [home](/homeowner-insurance), [health](/health-insurance), [business](/business-insurance) and [life](/life-insurance) in West Virginia. We make sure that you're covered today as well as in the future so that you can focus on what is important to you and your family. At Wickline Insurance, our #1 job is to assist you in identifying your needs and problems, while putting together a customized plan that's simple and easy to understand. ## Insurance Quotes Give us some info and we'll help you find the best coverage options. 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[View Testimonials](/testimonials) **Start your quote online or contact our office to find out how we can help you find a policy that fits your needs.** [Start Your Quote](/quotes) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/blog/2016/six-tips-to-prepare-and-maintain-your-vegetable-garden#blogposting","url":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/blog/2016/six-tips-to-prepare-and-maintain-your-vegetable-garden","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/blog/2016/six-tips-to-prepare-and-maintain-your-vegetable-garden#webpage"},"headline":"Six Tips to Prepare and Maintain Your Vegetable Garden","datePublished":"2016-04-14T22:27:00Z","dateModified":"2025-03-27T13:46:38Z","description":"Wickline Insurance shares six tips to prepare and maintain your garden this spring in Beckley, WV.","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/#organization","name":"Wickline Insurance"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/#organization","name":"Wickline Insurance"}},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/#organization","url":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/","name":"Wickline Insurance"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/#webpage","url":"https://www.wicklineinsurance.com/","name":"Six Tips to Prepare and Maintain Your Vegetable Garden","description":"Wickline Insurance shares six tips to prepare and maintain your garden this spring in Beckley, WV."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/blog","name":"Blog"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/blog/2016/six-tips-to-prepare-and-maintain-your-vegetable-garden","name":"Six Tips to Prepare and Maintain Your Vegetable Garden"}}]}]} ```