Planting Tools and Techniques

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• When to Water Vegetables
• When is Soil Ready for Planting?

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For a successful planting season, here are some tips on planting tools and proper techniques from The Old Farmer's Almanac.

Must-Have Garden Tools

As you get ready for your planting season, make sure you have these basic garden tools on hand!

• Garden gloves
• Spading fork
• Rake
• Hoe
• Hand cultivator or trowel
• Garden hose
• Shovel
• Wheelbarrow or garden cart

Planting Techniques

• As soon as your soil can be worked, stir it well and let it sit for several days.
• Then top-dress the soil with a 1-inch-thick layer of compost over the entire garden area.
• Using a spading fork, loosen the soil in the bed. Mix in compost.
• Smooth out the soil with a rake, getting rid of stones and debris.
• A good-size vegetable garden for a beginner is 10x16 feet.
• Check your seed packets for the best time to plant. Some vegetables are best planted in cool weather, and others in warm weather.
• Make rows for vegetable seeds with a hoe.
• Transplant seedlings using a hand cultivator or trowel.

Here's advice on how deep to plant your seeds:

• The depth of your fingernail on your index finger for lettuce, Spanish onions, and radishes.
• The depth of your first knuckle for cabbage, carrots, beets, cucumbers, and squash.
• The depth of your second knuckle for bush or pole beans and corn.
• For tomatoes, plant deeper, as they root along the stem.

After you sow, lightly press the soil around the seedlings. Water well!

To see how much water your plants really need, check out our "When to Water" guide.

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The 2012 Gardening Calendar features how-to garden advice, tips, secrets, folklore, plant illustrations. Learn more about the 2012 Gardening Calendar.