New Member from Las Vegas

[LovelyLizzie]

Hello everyone (˶˙ - ˙ )ﾉﾞ
I'm a fairly new gardener, but the desert heat has proven to be pretty tricky here. I've tried to start up some basic foods and flowers, so far Morning Glories, Marigolds and Celosias are the only three I've gotten to muscle through our blazing sun. But I'm really motivated, and I'm having a lot of fun with it. I don't have much knowledge to share at the moment, but I'll be happy to update with any new findings as I keep working at this.

I'm currently in a suburban rental, so I don't have a whole lot of space... once I've got better property, I'd love to start a large fruit and vegetable garden. Any advice for growing foods in a climate like this (in raised beds) would be greatly appreciated⋆˚✿˖°

 

[Meadowlark]

Welcome @LovelyLizzie. Motivation is more than half the battle.

Suggest you observe what the locals grow and how they set up for the local environment. The varieties that work and don't work. A lot of knowledge can be obtained that way which can really help you later on.

 

[Oliver Buckle]

Hello lovely, good choice to start off with. I always advise beginners to go for cheap plants, they work easily. Expensive plants are expensive because they are hard to grow, not because they are better like most expensive things are.

Meadowlark's advice about seeing what others in the area grow is good, but we do have people with desert gardens here, Arizona I believe.

Edit, just tried the search function top right for 'desert' seems there are people in California and Australia with desert gardens too. It's a good place to start if you have questions.

 

[Sheal]

Welcome LovelyLizzie.

 

[Sluggy]

Welcome LovelyLizzie. It sounds like water might be your main problem growing fruit and veg. So dig in any type of compost that can hold water. If the heat forms a crust do not break it as this also helps to retain water in your beds. Good luck with your gardening.

 

[Logan]

Hello and welcome to the forum @LovelyLizzie

 

[Oliver Buckle]

I am also slightly impressed by someone who has the confidence to call themselves 'Lovely' Liizzie. I feel a bit the same about the singer/songwriter Emma Lee Moss, AKA Emmy the Great. She is good mind.

 

[LovelyLizzie]

I am also slightly impressed by someone who has the confidence to call themselves 'Lovely' Liizzie. I feel a bit the same about the singer/songwriter Emma Lee Moss, AKA Emmy the Great. She is good mind.

Lol... I was originally going to have my username be "Lizziebug" on everything, but I guess there must be a creator out there with that tag already, because it was already claimed on almost every website I tried to sign up on. Oddly enough, the more common-sounding "LovelyLizzie" wasn't, so I've just gone with that ╮(ᵕꈍᴗꈍ)╭

 

[oneeye]

Hello and welcome, friend.

 

[Esther Knapicius]

Hello and welcome. So you say you're in a rental. That makes me think you new to the general area. Have you noted anyone about that raises veggies etc. and what success they have had. Good thinking for a raised bed as that soil would be difficult.

About 4 years ago, flew to Las Vegas for a wedding,. Got to first time see the "strip" and the casinos. Was interesting. Did discover a good Jewish type restaurant about 40 min drive called The Bagel Cafe, really yummy stuff.

 

[LovelyLizzie]

So you say you're in a rental. That makes me think you new to the general area. Have you noted anyone about that raises veggies etc. and what success they have had. Good thinking for a raised bed as that soil would be difficult.

I've actually lived here my whole life, my dad moved to Vegas in late 1997. We wanted to buy property in the mid 2010's, but I had a lot of trouble with school when I was younger, so it wouldn't have been a good idea to lock ourselves down to a specific district. Now that I've graduated, we're looking at possible neighborhoods ദ്ദി ( ᵔ _ ᵔ ˶)

Unfortunately, nobody around my area tends to anything outside of flowers and bushes, so it's hard to really get reference on tips-and-tricks for this climate. I'm going to start heading to farmer's markets soon though, so I have my hopes up that I'll meet a few gardening buddies there

 

[Sluggy]

If you use your computer search engine you could search for gardening clubs in your area to see if any are worth joining.

 

[GFTL]

Welcome to the group. I'm not growing veggies in a real hot climate but I know for you water is a premium in Vegas. My favorite way to grow are wicking beds. They have a water reservoir and uses less water while giving plants all they want. My 4x4 beds hold about 75 gallons of water which last quite a while. Just check "wicking beds" in youtube and you'll get all the info you need. I made mine from IBC tanks.