Vegetable Gardening | Straight Talk for People Starting to Grow Food
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- čas přidán 18. 02. 2021
- If you are new to growing food, or are looking to start a vegetable garden then this video is for you. I give my honest and frank advice when it comes to starting a food growing journey, with the hope that it will greatly help you achieve your vegetable growing dreams. The goal with this video is to give you a mental and strategic toolkit to ensure the best possible success from the get go. It also is to help ensure you don't fall into any traps along the way, and that you have a positive and realistic journey forward.
Resources mentioned:
Diversity video (companion planting etc)
• Invaluable PEST CONTRO...
Channels
Liz / @lizzorab
Charles / @charlesdowding1nodig
Composting
Making your first compost • Simple Guide to Compos...
Art of Lazy Compsoting • The Art of Lazy Compos...
With a huge thanks to Sean Tucker for the inspiration behind this video. If you are interested in the deeper meaning of photography and creativity, check out his incredible videos here: / seantuckermerge
Huw's books
Signed copies of my books: huwrichards.shop/
Clothing
Awesome clothing designed for vegetable gardeners: huwrichards.teemill.com/
Online Courses
More Food Less Effort Course: morefoodlesseffort.com/
Planting Plan Short Course: abundanceacademy.online/p/the...
Social
Facebook: / huwrichardsofficial
Instagram: / huwsgarden
#permaculture #regenerative #homegrown - Jak na to + styl
When I was 5 years old (in 1957) my dad gave me a little bit of ground, I planted 4 potatoes and got 28 back. I am now 69 and I think I have got a little better each year as I now have more than 7 H/acres in North Spain. I still love to be out in the garden.
Your father did a good job!
That's a wonderful memory 😊
How long did Dad go to?
Thats just awesome!
That is a LOT of potatoes 🤣
I can't remember where I first heard this but I repeat it often. Don't let perfection get in the way of progress. Laura
A variation on a theme, good is not the enemy of perfect
I think the Flylady uses it
No such thing.
Well Said! I appreciate that!
Garden for the sake of gardening, not for the harvest. The experience of being out in the fresh air, sticking your hands into the soil, listening to the sounds and enjoying the smells - that is what gardening is about for me. The harvest is just a nice bonus (unless of course you rely on it for sustenance, then I guess this entire comment is invalid).
It's a great reason to garden Alexander! Different people have different needs from the garden so your comment is totally valid!!
I'm the other way around. The breathing fresh air, playing in the dirt, hearing nature, and enjoying the fragrances of the outdoors are all wonderful, but I garden mainly for the good health and amazing flavor that the high-quality food provides. Both are good for body and soul.
I garden to put food on the table but everything you've said is still valid. In my old tiny garden in the city I grew a lot of food but I loved just being out there with my morning coffee. I miss that and I'm working toward that now that I'm in the country, adding dedicated flower beds and sitting areas into the vegetable patch. It can absolutely be both.
Even if you rely on it for sustenance, there is that other crop to harvest--the crop of self-satisfaction and feeling connected to the natural world. There is so much peace among plants and soil. It's really a win-win.
Even if you rely on the garden for food, this is a mindset that is still helpful when blended with vigilance of care and guarding.
I’m Catalonian person who ‘s retired now, and I watch all yours vídeos. I Learn a lot of garden vegetables and English too, cause you speack slowly and you put subtitles. For me, both are important. Thanks at all you teach us, specially today. Thanks, Thanks...
I could listen to him talk all day !!!!
In my gardening, there are no failures, just experiments that didn't work. I learn from those experiments.
I dont call them failures. I call them, "Interesting developments".
@@joshjohnson2460 I will make a quote out of this! Thx guys :)
To me it seems that experiments are just for that: does it work, how, and how well---or not at all? So there are no experiments which don't work, only experimenters who don't learn what the results might teach them.
Oh wow! I'll have to make a signboard with this quote for my potting bench! 😄
I'm going yo have to use that quote
I like what you said “Don’t grow just for the harvest. Grow for the experience.” True.
I love how you speak out against chemicals!! Your work wouldn't be the same if you didn't. Thank you
My pleasure, about time I ramp up that side of things😉
@@HuwRichards I agree that many gardeners especially in the US waist a lot of money on things they don't need but you don't recommend using things like Bt or any Bio insecticides or Bio fungicides?
So simple but so true. You cannot learn much from success. You learn so much more from failure and you learn to pay more attention to the details the next time.
@@matthewking2209 true !! I live in the USA and people talk about how expensive gardening is 🤷🏼♀️
I do my best to explain to as many as I can that it can be expensive or cheap !! I spend very little because I save seeds, mix up my own “pesticide” with onions, garlic, baking soda, vinegar, milk, dish soap and things like that if needed, i scavenge for supplies at the dump and along side the road because people throw away perfectly usable items and I gather up stuff to compost. I did buy some need oil last year because out of the blue I got a terrible infestation of potato beetles on my ground cherries, it didn’t work so I ended up covering them with black plastic and killing the plants and solarizing the soil, worked like a charm :))
@@matthewking2209 Work on improving your soil rather than treating symptoms.
Thank you for watching. Captions are now up and available :)
I'm fairly new to your channel and just want to say how much I appreciate this wisdom put forth here in this video and all others I have watched. These truths are a necessary lesson to learn in all of life. I have learned without the proper foundation there will not be much success. I have resolved to concentrate on the compost, but I have bought a lot of seeds ☺️🌱 I never understood why my skills with flowers and houseplants did not translate into vegetables. I'm excited for the season with the proper knowledge. Blessings from America 🇺🇸 P.S love your book. 💗
OOo I need captions, it helps me to audio process the sounds
Such an important topic. All SO true! Gardeners must hold the record in how many times a person says, "Oh, no!".
My biggest benefit of gardening is the side of mental health. To be in touch with yourself, to be in touch with nature. I have a sign in my garden that says... Gardening is cheaper the Therapy and you get Tomatoes. Cant be more true. Regards from Switzerland
I’m just gutted Huw missed the opportunity (twice) to say ‘throw in the trowel’
Thank you so much. I learned the hard way last year. Rushed into it, the ground was poor, I didn't feed it properly and ended up with nothing except for some peas and potatoes. This year I am going to slow down and try again. Compost heaps have been built. One was started last summer and when I turned it the other day it had the most beautiful worms in it. It will go on one of the beds. The weather was against us too here in N Ireland as we had a wet and cold spell when it needed to be warm. I have learned a lot over the winter months watching yourself, Liz and Charles. Keep up the good work.
Same happened to me 😂 Slow and steady this time round
So glad to hear you didn't give up! Wishing you better success in the coming season!
Thank you for encouraging everyone
If you have the availability, tree crews will gladly deliver wood chips. Let them break down for a season and this makes an awesome layer. Ash from the fireplace, leaves and untreated grass clippings are awesome free layers. In the beginning its okay to buy materials then just start building what you already get from yard waste. Last year we started collecting all of our grass clippings and layering them on top of the soil. Our soil is extremely sandy but after a few seasons of layering leaves, grass, wood chips, compost and ash, our soil is really improving. We used cardboard over the lawn to start new beds and just layered materials in top. No digging!! And its great exercise!!! Good luck!!
Not sure if you will read this but Huw I just want to say thank you! You have been one of the most helpful people when it comes to gardening. I’ve watched my fair share of gardening videos in the past few months but yours are some of the most insightful by far. You’re a passionate garden who loves to help others and this latest video proves that. I’m using the same methods you are and so far have seen great results! Thanks again
I read it 25 seconds after you posted it Ivan! You're so very welcome. Wow that's extremely kind of you to say and I really appreciate it greatly. All I want is for as many people as possible to enjoy that feeling of growing. So glad to hear it's going well and good luck with this next growing season :D
@@HuwRichards crazy to hear you been gardening since the age of 3. My son will be 3 in a few months and loves helping us in the garden. We try to involve him as much as possible helping us out. So he will also know about gardening at a very young age. Have an awesome day Huw and keep up the great work!
"I am impatient enough waiting for a pancake to cook"
mood
I'm a perfectionist, I hate it; I never start anything through fear of failure.
I've just started veg gardening this year, and I've already made mistakes, even just today. This time I don't care!! I'm just going for it, and I'm going to learn from my mistakes. I'm enjoying the process, so what if it's perfect?!
Thanks Huw, I love your vids!
I’m at a new beginning of designing a garden in our first country home with my wife and kids, I’m also a photographer and follow/enjoy Sean Tucker and I’m almost more excited about composting than I am making fine art photography and lunch out of our produce! Thanks for the world’s colliding online experience and the learning and inspiration Huw!
Beside patience it needs dedication and devotion. For me gardening is recreation, helps me to calm down, joy, never ending learning and yes, some crops too. :)
So utterly true about embracing failure in gardening! When you successfully grow something, you may have no idea why it worked, you just enjoy the results.
But when a certain crop fails, you go on a learning journey to find out what went wrong, and in that process, learn so much more about the ideal situation for that crop, and become a better gardener.
Hi Richard, I'm 70 and gardening over 50 years and a retired florist.
I've lived in Pennsylvania, Hawaii and Florida. We moved to Florida in 1979 and I've done easy method gardening for the most part. I've been watching online groups and started a CZcams channel in September in hopes of passing on any simple tips I've learned before I forget them 😁.
I certainly enjoyed watching your channel along with Charles, the Master, Dowding! You both have a wonderful approach. Thank you and I hope you have great success.
Hi Peggy, I’ll check out your channel!!
@@imbrudedsoul thanks Chris 👩🌾👍
Omg!!! I’ve been a fan of yours for those 10yrs... and let me say; you’ve been so helpful and inspiring- continue the greatness!!!
when I actually first started with gardening, I only planted tomatoes and eggplants so that if I fail (which I wasn't hoping) i won't get frustrated and also since I don't know anything yet, I don't want to get overwhelmed with the day-to-day caring of the vegetable patch. And now I'm slowly expanding it with onions, garlic, cabbage lol. Good day, y'all!
Thank you Lito! That sounds so fantastic and you're going to love the process of gradually easing in to growing more and more crops! :D
I'm absolutely looking forward to it, Huw! 🥰
I was a silly starter myself. Now i have decided to focus on 1 new type of perennial each year, and 1 type of new veggie each year. It helps to focus and observe.
I really liked the video, I can see myself comming back to watch this more times when I feel a bit down about my beginner garden. Thank you!
Thanks to you I built my first raised bed. I'm so excited to build more from pallets.
As the continuous novice I really needed to hear this. I may have to hear it again... and again... and again... Thank you!
Me too! Just rewatched this video. Hope you are having a good time on your gardening adventures!
I understand that this takes time .I started small and added more and more. My landlord let's me use his backyard. I love it no matter how difficult it can be at times. It's a blessing.
I love this video. I’m a long term, no dig veg gardener. And I still rewatch the video periodically as a reminder of the principles.
Thank you. That's great to hear! :)
Now in my 50s gardening has taught me more patience than perhaps the whole rest of my life. But I love the daily learning curve. It's daily new but attainable and best of all grounding. You have been a key inspiration to me for the last three years. Thank you for this video which is much like your older ones but with new mature wisdom.
As someone who believes in the God who created the heavens and the earth in 6 days, I too learn so many life lessons like patience, planning, gratitude. The science of gardening is so awesome. Literally. Thanks for your channel. Always helpful 😊
I was brought to tears earlier today because I have spent weekels trying to decide on the best place in my garden to build my raised beds. I got so overwhelmed! And I thought this is ridiculous! This is my gardening hobby! And then this video got recommended by YT this evening and it definitely knew!
You are wonderful! I have felt discouraged in the past, but learning from great gardeners like you has inspired me to keep trying!
Gardening is part of my therapy.
Been a lifetime gardener....mostly the pretty stuff...just started my food gardening journey around 5 years ago....This video isl very wonderfully thought out....it is like any skill ...it takes time and experience to build your proficiency...never be afraid to ask questions...I have been known to stop randomly if I see something growing and ask the owner about the experience...you would be surprised how open most are about sharing info..sometimes it has even gotten me seeds.
You're 22! So young and so wise. Thanks for sharing this encouraging words, Huw!
I met Sean Tucker in South Africa in 2002 at a camp.We have a mutual friend in SA .wow what a blast from the past.I didn't realise how talented he is .
Me: "Ok, I'll try no dig gardening"
Georgia red clay: "lmao no you won't"
Hugulkulture in raised beds is pretty much all I can do with my resources. It's fun. Last year's soil looks amazing right now.
Huw, appreciate the video. You made a lot of excellent points about getting started to grow your own food and emphasizing that making the effort is most important and to not get discouraged but rather to take things that do not go well as learning not failure. Some of a gardeners best lessons come from both their successes and failures and the combination of the two. Well Done Sir!
May I say, there’s much wisdom and poetry in your words. 👋 from Italy
I learned that the biggest challenge in my garden was my dogs! They love the veggies and my off season task this year was to fence it in. The dogs are only allowed in when I’m there to keep a watchful eye. Love your videos and find myself watching them again and again to reinforce the basics.
Wise words from a true Gardner... Thank you for your continual optimism and realism!
When I began my gardening journey more than 25 years ago, I used the odd fertilizer, but I've been natural for more than 10 years . I've just recently started no dig (2 years) and I'm loving it!
Thank you so much for this video. We moved into a house with existing raised beds and greenhouse a couple of years ago. I did exactly what you describe and became overwhelmed in the first season and gave up half way through. Last year I grew nothing other than planting a few flowers in the flower beds. I'm going to have a more realistic go this year and your channel is going to be so valuable.
I've got 3.5 massive piles of compost going right now. All at different stages. I so looking forward to starting my no dig garden. I'm doing my best to spend little or nothing on my garden (except some seeds to get started). Not always easy but it is so rewarding when you get a great harvest from just hard work. My compost piles will never stop growing and will continue to use chop and drop and use what I have on hand to grow what I need. So far a great success and I am learning more everyday. :) Start with the easy vegetables and the success will motivate you to try more difficult crops. Tomatoes are still a challenge here in the tropics but I am trying 4 different methods to see what works this year. Good luck to everyone.
This is one of the most informative and through gardening presentation I have ever heard. Excellent.
This is brilliant advice Huw, every single thing you've said I completely agree with.
This year will be my first proper year gardening, and I absolutely am EXPECTING failures, hardship, cold, despair... I will treat every single thing I harvest as a bonus, as a miracle, rather than setting any unreasonable objectives.
Thanks Huw, here's wishing you all the very best.
you're so young and so wise. I'm 43, its my second year of having a garden and gardenning. I'm making so many mistakes but it's so amazing when plants just grow or appear out of seemingly nowhere... i thought i had dud seeds this year but now courgette plants have magically appeared in some of my tomato plant beds. it's all such a mystery to me. i love it. :)
So true.
I spent last year clueless and experimenting.
I learnt a lot from my mistakes. I learnt a lot from problems I faced
And I learn a huge amount about pests I never knew even existed.
But this year I'm so much more prepared. I know how to prevent all the things I faced last year that I was clueless to start with
Love your messaging. Changing our world one garden at a time!! Thank you Huw.
Thank you so much! :)
That accent is fantastic, I could listen all day
Ahh thank you😉
Thank you. Last year was my first. I moved to a desert and a cold climate. I experienced a terrible first year. I have few trees and no organic material on my property. Getting started this second spring I feel slightly more confident. I plan to watch more of your videos.
The saying "You are what your forefathers ate" is also true. Glad to hear him talking about the importance of Organic Gardening, slightly surprised I didn't hear the word 'Salvestrol' being mentioned, ahwell.
What an epic video, thank you so much Huw!
I wish to add an item to your list of fantastic tips! :-) It works so well for me and might help others too.
Before doing anything else in a new garden, first of all install a simple but comfy little bench in a lovely spot of the garden :-) where you can sit and take rests and enjoy just being in your garden, looking around, having a cuppa tea, listening to the birds, observing and receiving inspirations, looking at the things you just did and appreciating and enjoying it.
That way even if your crops don‘t all grow perfectly you still have that beautiful spot and that lovely enjoyable connection, and time to observe and inspiration to start again. And, the garden is less focussed on just doing, achieving, results - it‘s more about the connection, the receiving, and the doing and the results naturally follow.
That’s how I felt about my failures last year.. but this is exactly what I said.. atleast I learned a lot of what not to do. But I’m trying again.. because I was told the meaning of failure was the opportunity to begin again with increased intelligence ❤‼️💯
you inspired me to go all in into gardening. I have 22acres of land ready to be converted into a food forest
freeangel378, are you planning on having animals as well? Do you know how you are going to start - an acre or two or are you planting trees first? Curious as 22 acres is a lot of land! Good luck and I hope everything works out for you.
Oh you lucky duck, that's a lot of land to play with. I only have 0.5 acre so very limited in what I can do but I'm still establishing a small food forest. Best of luck to you 😊
@@thisorthat7626 hello.... I live in a hilly area somewhere deep in the Himalayas. Im conserving the upper half of the land (about 10 acres) for water source and you know, a little tropical forest in it's natural form. The bottom half has already been cleared for cultivation. I'm planting bamboos on all the slopes to prevent soil erosion. Still, lots of trees. My cultivation area in total is actually confined to about 6-8 acres. I am not particularly interested in raising livestock. We have lots of earthworms so we're doing vermicomposting already. Thanks for the interest!
@@theclumsyprepper hey there, I wish I could send you an acre or two 😊 will try to do my absolute best with all the land I've been blessed with. Good luck to you too!
@@freeangel378 Sounds like you have a great plan. Bamboo is very useful along with stabilizing soil. Good luck to you!
Hi Huw and anybody else that happens to read this message. This video was made for me, I have literally just started a garden. This will be a long message because the background, before the question, is very important in understanding my dilemma. I moved into a home where the previous owner had put down Astro turf, not a plant in sight. For years I just looed at this ugly back garden and did nothing with it. 2 Months ago I happened to receive a recommended CZcams video about container gardening and this sparked something in me. By this time the back garden had 5 years worth of brambles growing out of control, so much so that the Astro turf was almost invisible. 5 Days later we had cleared all of the brambles. There is no soil on my property as all, it breaks my heart. I am having to buy bags of compost and topsoil galore. Fast forward, I have planted lots of flowers in fence baskets and pots and invested in a small plastic green house for now. I bought a few grow bags and have planted onions and potatoes, both of which have taken and are growing well. There is no water and so, for now, I am using 4 10litre plastic camping bags that I fill almost every day. I bought a compost bin. Here comes the question, after all of that sorry. Can I place the compost bin on a tarpaulin, on the Astro turf? Under the Astro turf is nothing but builders rubble. Can I use all the brambles that I have now cut into small pieces as a base layer? Any advise, suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If I am going to do this I want to do it organically as best as I can with what this garden has to offer me. Thank you for taking the time to read this very long message I appreciate it.
Brambles would be a great base layer for your compost bin as they will create air pockets that help the bacteria break down the material. Ideally it should be onto of soil even if it's bad quality so that worms can get access to the bin. I hope this helps.
Qué gusto verte otra vez! Muchas gracias.😃
An Excellent explanation to why we all need to learn how to Garden! Getting in touch with ourselves! 🍅🥕🍇😀
Man... Can't say enough ''thank you'' for this honest speech. You trully kept me up right now, and this is a charisma. ./hi5
Thank you for this. You brought to mind Fred Armisen's line that "People on the internet seem to be having more fun than they actually are." I am into gardening after a lifetime of apartment dwelling. I have a small advantage in that my late father was an avid lifelong gardener- and I was able to take in a bit of it.
Chemical free gardening! Yes! We have a duty to our sacred land and our sacred selves to be in harmony with the natural state of both 🌏
thank you for this video! i've been gardening for a number years but from a more traditional (tilling, weeding, etc) approach and with a ton of frustration and little actual success. i've taken this off season to learn as much as i can about permaculture and no dig gardening and am looking forward to starting this year as a novice having thrown out most of what i thought i knew!
Hugh , I've followed you for so many years now and I really cant fault you and your presentation skills. I started when I was 10 y.old and grew peas, now Im seventy and find gardening difficult through aches and pains and a variety of health issues, But I still enjoy the challenge of germinating my seeds and nurturing them on to fruition. BUT the key thing as you said is the health of the soil..... . That cant happen if your soil is sick. the father of medicine said "let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food . The WHO in 2006 reported that the worlds growing soils have lost 76% of its mineral structure. The minerals and trace elements are the transportation devices for the vitamins that the plant needs to give us. If the plant is deficient then we will be also .. i JUST LOVED YOUR RECENT VID.
Thank you Huw! This video is just the thing a new gardener needs to keep on going! Now that my youngest kid is getting at 1,5 y/o (my first born a bit over 3, he's "helping" in the garden), I have set a chalenge to manage 7m² plot this year and hope to expand every year. First broad beans are ripening (I'm too eager and harvested them too soon, but hey, it's a learning process)
Thanks for all your time and effort in sharing your gardening experience...you are an absolute AWESOME speaker!
At age 70 I was enjoying successes and failures over the years. I've never had my own property, so I've only gardened in very small areas and containers. Everything was more or less going great until last spring and summer. I experienced animals...mostly chipmunks...destroying everything I tried to grow. As I get older and fight bad health, I realize each garden I try to put in may be my last. So, this past growing season ended in heartbreak and tears. I didn't want to try again until a very few weeks ago. If you or anyone else has any ideas to handle this problem I would be very grateful for any advice offered. Thank you. Your channel is amazing. I love looking at garden channels from the UK. I live in Kentucky, USA.
Hi there @lindacano437
I hope you are doing really O.K, as we will not be alone in this way of thinking 'As I get older and fight bad health, I realize each garden I try to put in may be my last'.
As I am approaching 77 in a few weeks time and found that this winter has been one of the hardest I have ever had, because of the cost of living increased so much
and in particular the cost of trying to afford greater increased costs for internet and the energy bills along with greatly increased vet insurance for my lovely cat, that has encouraged me to try and get out
there into garden, more in hope to form/grow more including memories to share with my two disabled adult son's, along with produce for the table, is where our good health is needed.
The fact that Huw Richards, has made this video face what life throws at us becomes more realistic from other then financial point of view but by becoming greatly more
important is gaining food growing knowlege
and has highlighted the fact that there is so much more out there that can help to produce increased crops that has not got to cost us anymore than than becoming knowledgable of how to obtain this by our own efforts and by making use of his wise and very helpful information, so staying physical fit and healthy for us is
our first port of call and having CZcams alongside us and internet with people like Huw Richards and Charles Dowding has made this all more accessible/available
that was never available to our parents.
Also the fact that we are still with our piece of land/home, means a great deal has actually been achieved whether containers or other, and needs to be remembered
for giving us so much more than our parents ever had and we have to be greatly thankfull for this being achieved.
Thankyou very much Huw for being there for us, Maureen Englan/UK
Thank you for these videos. My family and I are starting our first vegetable garden here in Ontario Canada. We'll be checking in for regular videos to keep us right.
How are you getting on? ❤️🇳🇿
Thanks Huw, as always a pleasure to listen to you.
I'm following your Veg In One Bed book this year in my very first garden! My seeds arrived yesterday - I'm excited and a little apprehensive, but trying to remember that the learning experience is going to be more valuable than the result this year. Thanks for the frank and honest chat at the perfect time ☺️
Absolutely the learning experience is everything! The good thing about Veg in One Bed is you only have a few things to focus on every month which will help make it nice and manageable 😊 Best of luck!
@@HuwRichards we are also following your book as a guide - very much as new Gardeners’ with our L plates on!
I used this book last year for my first vegetable garden. It was brilliant, so structured, instructive and nicely paced so you never feel overwhelmed. I'll be following it again this year with a few adaptations to try different crops. I did have some failures but I had so many successes and learnt so much. Good luck 🌱
@@lindseybush2775 really encouraging to hear this - thanks - it’s good to have something positive to focus on just now - just built our first raised bed and also dug out our first pond with a view to encouraging wildlife into the garden - exciting times!
I got really motivated and inspired to get into veg gardening after bamboo invaded my property from a neighbours yard, which literally destroyed my yard and all existing garden beds that have been used for flowers... it has been a big learning curve but my garden is really starting to be productive, your tips have really helped me simple tips like a plank of wood for a snail trap or a seedling cover have helped greatly, but the biggest tip has been not to be disheartened by failure, and I did very nearly threw in the towel after aphids and rats did what they do. Thank you Huw, keep posting video.
Yoda said "failure the greatest teacher is"
Great message! And even years into my gardening journey I needed to hear it. Even seeing that each year my garden is getting bigger and better I still get disheartened and let down that I’m not at the scale that I want to be. Patience and tenacity is a really important lesson that I need to continue to lean into.
Thank you, Huw! I'm about to make my first raised beds from pallets (inspired by your video that I watched last year!!). This video comes at a perfect time :) I've been reviving my front garden for the last year - I bought a house and the front garden was just grass patches and very old building rubble soil, now it's full of worms and budding plants. As you say, small steps and don't overstretch and overwhelm yourself :D
Thank You ! During lock down, watching your show, helps me relax. A diversion from my job as a covid nurse. I started my no dig garden, replacing my lawn one inch at a time. Thanks again for the positive vibrations.
I came to gardening fairly late, planted a single tub of spuds which tasted incredible! the year after, i made a couple of raised beds and did garlic, and rosemary. Two more seasons in and I've added a cheap greenhouse, compost bins, 4 decent sized raised beds and I'm loving it! I had bumper onion crops, spuds, salads, beetroot and sprouts for the winter. Wish I had started 10 years ago! The best therapy, excercise and rewards all coming from gardening, not to mention the sheer pleasure of getting your hands stuck in the muck :)
One of the best videos you've done, Huw! So very encouraging to so many people.
I'm a first-time gardener and I have been building up a small compost pile for two or three months. No bin, just a pile. I move the pile over using a rake to "turn" it. I notice that the earthworms really like to hang out at the bottom, but hardly any are actually in the rotten material. They are really gathering in large numbers underground, underneath the compost heap. So I have an idea. When I start a garden at my new house, I'm going to use one of my raised beds as a compost bin. That way when I actually prepare it for plants the following year, the ground underneath the raised bed will be the same ground that was underneath the compost pile, all soft and fertile and wormy. Not using the spot where the compost pile was as a planting bed really seems like a waste now!
My love in life is the garden I have a level 5 cert in gardening .I found your (you tube ) a few weeks ago,And just love them,You put thing,s so beautifully,I have become addictive to watching your work, no ego, such a gent,
I believe you,r work is done in Wales is this correct,Looking forward to each and every video you put out.Many thanks and best wishes to you.
So right. I feel that the thing that helps me along in gardening is how much I enjoy seeing things sprout, and then seeing that first set of true leaves, then seeing things get bushy, then seeing things set bud, then enjoying the bloom, then finally harvesting, and then most critical of all - using the harvest and enjoying cooking. The real key seems to be enjoying the observation process and not just focusing on the harvest.
Huw, thank you ,thank you for the time you take to bring such great info. Always spot on. I am in zone 6b in the mountains of Virginia. Already starting seeds in greenhouse. Each year more exciting than the last in the garden. New gardeners don’t be afraid to try. It’s worth it.
Thank you so much for your wise, helpful words. It is so good to remember patience and not perfection. There is so much to learn it can feel overwhelming but it is so good to hear from someone like you about failure and learning. Thanks.
I’ve been watching all your videos the past few days and I’m loving them all
I agree with all of this except "no dig" at the beginning. If native soil is poor quality like most of us have (clay) you need to amend that first with gypsum and compost. Then after you have a decent base, then no dig is good.
I'm not a beginner, Huw, but it's always good to be reminded of the fundamentals! That said, I'm still learning, from you and Liz and Charles and the other great CZcamsrs out there.
The only "chemical" I use in my garden is a bit of organic seaweed-based feed for my container-grown crops that don't have the benefit of a soil ecosystem. I'm looking forward to the soil in my new raised beds becoming properly established, but in the meantime the only thing I'll be feeding them is home-made worm compost 😀
You are an inspiration an such a lovely young gentleman.
Most natural way of gardening and motivational video I have seen in years.
I agree 1.000%! I started my garden in 1989 without any chemicals and after more than 30 years the soil is healthy, well balanced and wildlife is plentiful. I am still learning new things every day and also I still encounter failures every now and again! Keep up your good work!
Thank you Huw for at damn good video. What really inspired med was the talk about nature being the learning room and how important it is to understand that it is a journey. Something else got me. And it was the five advise you gave. I finally felt like I’ve taken some of all my learning to heart because it was so natural for me to do those five things. Even if I’m in kindergarten regarding gardening. I’m just starting my year two now. And have never been growing vegetables before last year. To me it means that I’m ready for a new year with new learning.
So important film.All you need ,all I needed.Thank you Huw
Great vid! I have been using organic methods for 5 years now and things are getting better and better. I totally agree with all your info dependence on chemicals will always let you and your ecosystem down. The age of agriculture is gone and dead and needs a revive ty for your vid.
Beat gardening video ever!! Sage words! Ty
Garden for the sake of experience... best words.
You’ve just inspired me to start a backyard garden. Way to go young man! You inspire lots of people these days.
This is a great video and I agree about failure being essential for personal growth. I’m a teacher and I regularly tell my students this. I’m excited for spring in my vegetable garden because I want to see lots of lush new growth but oddly, each year, I also have a little smile to myself at this time of year wondering what new little pests and problems I’ll see this time. It’s something different every year and it definitely helps me to learn. I think that’s one of the joys of gardening - every year is different.
Thank you! This has become one of our favorite gardening channels. Great job!
2:49 A beautiful view!
How encouraging! 🌽🌸🌻
Wonderful video Huw, thank-you 😊
You have such a wise head on young shoulders.
I am certain this video is going to help many, many people, unexperienced and experienced alike, to make the most of their gardens this year in a more enjoyable and less stressful way x
I really love your videos - your words and messages really go straight to my heart!!!! Thank you for your work 🌞
Love that this video applies to new and established gardeners. I've moved to a new property and had to learn the garden all over. We have quack grass that had killed the first 3 years of gardens. I hope to eventually go to raised beds but since that's not happening this growing season, we will be using woven plastic mulch. Planting in rows is going to be much different than dropping seeds on a string line this year. Thank you for bringing me back to the roots of why I garden, the quiet with challenges to create something beautiful and delicious.
Honest & frank chat!!!! Thank you!!!!! I love your videos!!!!
I feel grateful to have found your channel. It's my first year gardening and I am excited to start out organic. I am applying the advice on feeding the soil to my lawn as well, which is on compacted clay, by top dressing. It will be a lovely lesson in patience to achieve good results later on.
So we’ll explained , makes complete sense.😊