A Wild Child Garden in April

April is here, Easter has come and gone, the pecan trees have budded, we have (fingers crossed) had our last frost, and most of us have SOMETHING planted in our garden!  If you are in the Wild Child Garden Club most likely you have A LOT of things planted in your garden!  You can read all about what I planted last month here.  As always in the Wild Child Garden we are always planning, planting, and picking!  And April is no different!  This month we are focusing on planting cucumbers, beans, herbs and one of our favorites FLOWERS!!!  

Growing Great Cucumbers

Now you may be wondering why we didn’t plant cucumbers last month when we took a gamble and planted the rest of our garden early.  Well, what we have discovered over the years of planting early is some vegetables are just more dramatic when it comes to a sudden drop in temperature, and cucumbers are one of those veggies.   They do not appreciate the late frost that we are prone to here in South Louisiana, so we hold off just a little bit.  Since we also grow cucumbers vertically in the Wild Child Garden it makes covering them difficult since they are on a trellis or arch.  So, we just wait!  If you are new to growing cucumbers, or if you want to take your under producing cucumbers to over producers, we have a phenomenal course that is brand new to our library called Growing Great Cucumbers, check it out!  It dives into the science behind the different varieties of cucumbers, gives you a succession plan based on varieties, and talks about common pests!  It’s a good one!!  

Grow A Rainbow of Beans

What about beans? Have we talked you into growing beans with us yet?  Or, are you still thinking that you aren't sure if you want to devote space to your beans in your garden? Well, I am here to tell you that YOU WANT TO GROW BEANS!  And, you don't necessarily have to have a ton of space to have plenty of beans on your table all summer.  First, in the Wild Child Garden we typically focus on growing bush beans.  Bush beans are great for a lot of reasons but, but we love them in the Wild Child Garden because they give us a lot of "bang for our buck"! They can be planted as companions to many things without any problem, they don't need a trellis, and they are true overproducers!  You can plant 9 seed per square foot. Whaaat??  They can also be planted right up until fall.  Last fall we even did our very own Rainbow of Beans challenge!  It was so much fun! You can read all about our favorite varieties to grow here.  April is a fantastic month to get those seeds in the ground, one word of wisdom, don't ever try to transplant beans.  All you need to do is drop that seed right in the garden after the soil has warmed up a bit!  

Flowers Are The Cherry On Top

If you have been around for a bit, then you know that we LOVE to fill in all the empty places in our garden plan with herbs and flowers!  And April is the perfect month to do that.  You can direct sow zinnias, sunflowers, marigolds, and strawflower just to name a few!  All of these flowers make fantastic companions to the vegetable garden!  Do you want the full list of companions that are must grows in the wild child garden?  You can get it HERE.  Each season I am absolutely blown away to see how beautiful the gardens are that belong to the gardeners I coach in the Wild Child Garden Club!  No Wild Child Garden is complete without flowers, so make sure you plant some this month!

Now don't forget, if you have not planted your spring veggies yet, it is not too late!  April is a great month to get them in the ground, but don't wait too much longer.  The heat will be coming and along with the heat we will begin to see some pests.  You want to have those veggies planted and producing before they show up!  If you are still struggling with how to design your garden, check out my class Vegetable Garden Design 101, I will give you some great options to get those plants in the ground this weekend! You will never regret planting a garden, I promise!