1. Know thy dirt. Get to know your soil and what changes might need to occur to get the best result.

2. Know thy climate. What is your growing zone? Getting to know what is possible to grow in the climate you are in.

3. Grow what you will eat. Yes. You could grow tons of carrots, squash, etc. but, are you going to eat that… if your family won’t eat certain things don’t grow them.

4. It doesn’t need to cost a fortune. You can do things by making what you need or by getting things used. There are tons of groups and places to obtain low cost or even free supplies to grow your own food.

5. Plants have friends. Understand and research companion planting. Certain plants have benefits that extend to their neighbors. 

6. Plants have enemies. Understand that certain plants cause harm to others and there are also garden pests that hurt plants. Paying attention to your plants reaction to external stimulus. Just like companion plants there are plants that are detrimental to others. 

7. What you do to one happens to all. In the effort to control one pest or one problem you can cause a cascade of problems. You spray for aphids but you end up killing all the other beneficial insects. 

8. It’s a system. There are so many parts and pieces in a garden that make it all work. A monoculture is not healthy. The world is a rich and varied place, your garden shouldn’t be any different. Grow various plants and intertwine areas. 

9. Rotate, rotate, rotate. Move crops around and plant cover crops. If you keep planting the same plants in the same area you’ll strip the specific nutrients needed for those plants to flourish. Sometimes areas need to rest. 

10. You cannot expect perfection. Those images in magazines and other media are carefully edited and staged to look the way they do. Gardening is messy and nothing is going to be perfect. I want you to make sure you are not hard on yourself because you might not be living up to unrealistic expectations of perfection. It’s ok to mess up and you only fail if you stop trying.