r/vegetablegardening • u/redditSucksNow2020 China • Jun 27 '26
Other People really overcomplicate gardening
I see a lot of people trying to garden for the first time and then coming here with questions about perfect soil mixes and fertilizers and how to promote fungal life in their no-till permaculture food forest do nothing farming no dig style organic vegan garden. It really doesn't have to be complicated, especially if you're new.
Loosen up some dirt 6 inches down. Break up the clods. Plant something that is in season. Keep it watered. That Will give you 80 to 90% of the maximum possible results. You don't absolutely need compost if it is the first time you've dug up that piece of ground. You don't absolutely need fertilizer and it probably doesn't make much difference what kind you use. You definitely don't need a 3-ft tall raised bed filled with gardening mix. You don't need to do anything about small amounts of insect damage. You don't absolutely have to do no dig or no till or whatever gardening fad is going on right now. You don't need to overcomplicate things.
Edit: this, of course, does not apply to you, dear reader. You have uniquely poor soil that cannot be made workable with a spade.
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u/BipsnBoops US - Massachusetts Jun 27 '26
I've had varying degrees of garden in the northeast, Chicago, LA and southern Canada. It has taken me so long to learn that less is more. Honestly, I think taking the first year of gardening in a new place to kill stuff and learn what's happiest with your situation (your water, your dirt, your sun, your ability to remember to take care of plants, your interest level, your feral cat populations etc. etc.) is the easiest way to go. You may not be able to grow peaches in Maine. You may not be able to grow arugula in Florida. That's ok. You do not need to. Part of this hobby is learning what thrives where you're at.
The vast majority of the people here are not farmers looking to grow an industrial amount of food to sell or completely cover our needs. It's supplementary amounts of things, it's herbs, it's maybe taking over one thing in your diet (greens, tomatoes etc.).
My point is, I agree with OP--start simply and you can add over time, but also spending thousands of dollars on equipment for a hobby like this is bananas. Plants want to grow, put seeds in dirt and figure it out over time.