Gardening: Grow with it

With food costs rising and the economy still floundering, many people are thinking about planting a garden for the first time to supplement their groceries. The National Gardening Association estimates that 75 percent of the population is engaged in gardening.

TIPS

Dave Goerig, horticulture educator and director of the Ohio State University Extension office, 490 S. Broad St., Canfield, offers these tips:

Pick a site that gets 6 to 8 hours of sunlight a day.

A garden that is 4 feet wide and 6 feet long is a good start for a first-time gardener.

Work the area, turning over the sod.

Get a soil test that costs $9. It will make specific recommendations about what you need to do to amend your soil for the proper fertility.

Think about what you like to eat, and plant those vegetables.

RESOURCES

Use the Extension office as a resource for information and help. The Web site, www.ohioline.osu.edu, offers fact sheets on many vegetables that list climate and soil requirements, fertilizer and recommended varieties. Call (330) 533-5538.

The OSU Extension offers Good Natured Garden Partners, a gardening program for kindergarten through 12th grade in Mahoning County. Teams work a garden plot and compete for prizes in tallest sunflower, best plate of peppers, best tomatoes and melons and largest zucchini. OSU Extension also has the Master Gardener program that provides intensive training in horticulture for gardeners, who then volunteer time with the Extension.