A newbie needs help planting their first garden bed in Thailand

[R0birt]

Hi,

I live in Prachup Khri khan and I am looking to grow my own food, I am starting with a 200x53x30 cm garden bed.

I plan to grow kale, spinach, tomatoes, basil, baby bok choy, and other leafy greens, anything that takes less than 8 weeks to grow.

If you have any tips about soil, shading, water, fertilizer, how much sun or water they need in Thailand would be most helpful. I'm about t o start in a few days so looking to avoid newbie errors. 

Thank you.

[Excel]

1 minute ago, R0birt said:

I am looking to grow my own food, I am starting with a 200x53x30 cm garden bed

You can not be a big eater growing things in something that tiny ????

[CLW]

First, I would exclude any fruiting vegetable such as tomatoes. Because they take long time to grow and kind of difficult. 

Since your garden bed is relatively small, I would focus on leafy vegetables, that are not available in the market so easily or expensive. Examples: Kale, Chard, Spinach, Genovese/Italian basil, small radish. 

Seeds can be purchased on Lazada or Shopee. 

Another good standalone shop is PP seeds

[Hummin]

17 minutes ago, CLW said:

First, I would exclude any fruiting vegetable such as tomatoes. Because they take long time to grow and kind of difficult. 

Since your garden bed is relatively small, I would focus on leafy vegetables, that are not available in the market so easily or expensive. Examples: Kale, Chard, Spinach, Genovese/Italian basil, small radish. 

Seeds can be purchased on Lazada or Shopee. 

Another good standalone shop is PP seeds

Depending on your soil, but my experience is, tomatoes is easy to grow. 
 

Use youtube for tips, quite a few great channels out there describing in details how to do. 
 

search tip

 

How to grow vegetables thailand

 

[drtreelove]

Welcome to the Farming in Thailand forum!

 

There are many factors to consider and a lot to learn, but in my experience soil preparation is the most important starting point.  

I like the Grow Biointensive method (formerly called Biodynamic-French Intensive method) pioneered by Alan Chadwick,  further developed and popularized worldwide by John Jeavons and his excellent manual:

How to Grow More Vegetables: Than You Ever Thought Possible on Less Land Than You Can Imagine: Jeavons, John: 9780898157673: Amazon.com: Books

(I worked at the research garden in Palo Alto California in 1975 and have used the method since then in the US and Thailand.) 

 

Biointensive Gardening - How To Grow a Biointensive Garden (gardeningknowhow.com)

 

The first step in my opinion would be to order a 20 kilo sack or two of Vermicompost from:

Organic Fertilizer Worm Winner Vermicompost from Thailand (biosurgethailand.com)

 

Mix that up to 50:50 with your native soil along with 1 kilo of a COF (complete organic fertilizer) like the 4-4-4 from Best Garden State, or if they have smaller packaging, the bokashi from Organic Totto. (I've only ordered the 25 kilo sacks) (bokashi is predigested by microbial activity and therefore is less harsh chemistry and more readily available for plants).  

 

Search for info on germinating your seeds and planting them out in your prepared soil.  Mulching and water management are other important factors to consider.  

Bokashi fertilizer.docx

Edited June 16, 2022 by drtreelove

[Gecko123]

My advice is to check around with gardeners in your area about what grows well and what the best season for planting stuff is. Here in central Thailand, the only season I can plant green leafy vegetables (collard, mustard, bok choy) is the cool season. Basil (horapha/ meng rak (lemon basil) and bai grapao do best in cool/wet season, but can turn woody or bolt if temperatures get too high. I would say anywhere in Thailand, planting green leafy vegetables in the hot season is going to be tough, and you will almost certainly need to have a shade canopy or trellis. If I were down in PKK, high on my list of things to plant would be pineapple which I know grows well down there, and can't be grown up here. Green beans, fak tong (pumpkin) do well in wet season. Corn year round.

PS. Caterpillars and aphids love green leafy vegetables, you really need to be vigilant.

 

Here are a few links to threads I started which you might find useful.

 

 

 

[Maybole]

Tomatoes grow happily in large pots, approx 40cm is enough and you can move them around to take advantage of sun or shade.

[Adumbration]

These will grow themselves in pretty much any soil:

 

Krapow (basil)

sweet basil

Pak Boong

Long beans

Lemon grass

watercress

Aloevera

Mulberries

Chilli

 

These all require research if you want results:

Tomatoes

Corriander

Pak Choy

Bok Choy

Kale

 

You have not got enough space for pumpkin, watermelon, or corn.

 

Buy youself a little spray bottle and mix dish soap and cooking oil (Youtube). That will keep the aphids.  As the Gecko guy warns catterpillas are also a big problem.  With such a small plot you can not use chemicals and just check you garded everyday to remove them.  Pineapples are fun but way to much effort for reward ratio.  Same applies for banannas.

 

This is my suggestion for best reward for effort:

Two mulberry cuttings at outer edger of your long thin plot.  They grow tall quickly and then you can train them over and tie them in an arch to increase fruit yield and provide shade over your whole plot.

 The following in pots:

chilli

krapow

basil

Aloe vera

 

Then in the soil the following patches:

Pak boong

watercress

lemongrass (put in very middle of plot will help with bugs)

long beans. (put at base of mulberries and can train up the mature plants to save on using trellis)

Edited June 16, 2022 by Adumbration

[Robin]

Soil quality is most important.  Most hai soild that I have seen have been heavy clay, difficult to work and not good for veg.

consider mixing your own soil as soil bought from 'garden centres' can be variable quality.

Clay need plenty of humus, rotten manure ( ox, buffalo, pig,) or ground up coconut fibre, from your garden centre, and sand to improve drainage.  Sand from local river bed with small stones, <6mm, is ideal, and sieve o remove large stones.

Possibly some lime, (eggshells?) if th soil is acid.  Gren veg will need plenty of fertilizer with high nitrogen content.

Plot needs to be in the sun, but with scope to shade the bed to protect newly planted seedlings.  Slug killing pellets are essential to protect your plants.

Decide if you want to be totally organic or use chemicals. difficult to avoid pests in a concentrated small bed.

[R0birt]

On 6/16/2022 at 8:06 AM, drtreelove said:

Welcome to the Farming in Thailand forum!

 

There are many factors to consider and a lot to learn, but in my experience soil preparation is the most important starting point.  

I like the Grow Biointensive method (formerly called Biodynamic-French Intensive method) pioneered by Alan Chadwick,  further developed and popularized worldwide by John Jeavons and his excellent manual:

How to Grow More Vegetables: Than You Ever Thought Possible on Less Land Than You Can Imagine: Jeavons, John: 9780898157673: Amazon.com: Books

(I worked at the research garden in Palo Alto California in 1975 and have used the method since then in the US and Thailand.) 

 

Biointensive Gardening - How To Grow a Biointensive Garden (gardeningknowhow.com)

 

The first step in my opinion would be to order a 20 kilo sack or two of Vermicompost from:

Organic Fertilizer Worm Winner Vermicompost from Thailand (biosurgethailand.com)

 

Mix that up to 50:50 with your native soil along with 1 kilo of a COF (complete organic fertilizer) like the 4-4-4 from Best Garden State, or if they have smaller packaging, the bokashi from Organic Totto. (I've only ordered the 25 kilo sacks) (bokashi is predigested by microbial activity and therefore is less harsh chemistry and more readily available for plants).  

 

Search for info on germinating your seeds and planting them out in your prepared soil.  Mulching and water management are other important factors to consider.  

Bokashi fertilizer.docx 59.06 kB · 1 download

Thank you so much for your post. I bought 12kg of coconut compost and another 12kg of dirt. Do you still advise on the worm compost, I have been told the coconut is similar to the worm, is that true?

For 4-4-4 fertilizer do you suggest something like this or can I get it cheeaper: https://www.lazada.co.th/products/gaia-green-4-4-4-all-purpose-organic-fertilizer-500g1kg2kg-usa-mrherbman-i3702953901-s14014013642.html?search=1&spm=a2o4m.searchlist.list.i18.14f43597AssOYs 

I see 16-16-16 online and it's quite cheap, but I do not know the difference between them.

Thank you very much for your help
 

[R0birt]

On 6/17/2022 at 1:58 AM, Robin said:

Soil quality is most important.  Most hai soild that I have seen have been heavy clay, difficult to work and not good for veg.

consider mixing your own soil as soil bought from 'garden centres' can be variable quality.

Clay need plenty of humus, rotten manure ( ox, buffalo, pig,) or ground up coconut fibre, from your garden centre, and sand to improve drainage.  Sand from local river bed with small stones, <6mm, is ideal, and sieve o remove large stones.

Possibly some lime, (eggshells?) if th soil is acid.  Gren veg will need plenty of fertilizer with high nitrogen content.

Plot needs to be in the sun, but with scope to shade the bed to protect newly planted seedlings.  Slug killing pellets are essential to protect your plants.

Decide if you want to be totally organic or use chemicals. difficult to avoid pests in a concentrated small bed.

I have a large balcony where I can put 5-6 beds, I was thinking to do it  on the, but the logistics may be hard of moving the soil. I would like to be organic so I was thinking of buying a clear-tarp like covering or manually check myself. This is a small project to feed 2 people so I am hoping organic is possible. 
 

On 6/17/2022 at 12:22 AM, Adumbration said:

These will grow themselves in pretty much any soil:

 

Krapow (basil)

sweet basil

Pak Boong

Long beans

Lemon grass

watercress

Aloevera

Mulberries

Chilli

 

These all require research if you want results:

Tomatoes

Corriander

Pak Choy

Bok Choy

Kale

 

You have not got enough space for pumpkin, watermelon, or corn.

 

Buy youself a little spray bottle and mix dish soap and cooking oil (Youtube). That will keep the aphids.  As the Gecko guy warns catterpillas are also a big problem.  With such a small plot you can not use chemicals and just check you garded everyday to remove them.  Pineapples are fun but way to much effort for reward ratio.  Same applies for banannas.

 

This is my suggestion for best reward for effort:

Two mulberry cuttings at outer edger of your long thin plot.  They grow tall quickly and then you can train them over and tie them in an arch to increase fruit yield and provide shade over your whole plot.

 The following in pots:

chilli

krapow

basil

Aloe vera

 

Then in the soil the following patches:

Pak boong

watercress

lemongrass (put in very middle of plot will help with bugs)

long beans. (put at base of mulberries and can train up the mature plants to save on using trellis)

Thank you, I was going to start with kale and spinach but I think that may be the wrong time to grow? I will go ahead and start with what you have mentioned.

[drtreelove]

22 hours ago, R0birt said:

Thank you so much for your post. I bought 12kg of coconut compost and another 12kg of dirt. Do you still advise on the worm compost, I have been told the coconut is similar to the worm, is that true?

For 4-4-4 fertilizer do you suggest something like this or can I get it cheeaper: https://www.lazada.co.th/products/gaia-green-4-4-4-all-purpose-organic-fertilizer-500g1kg2kg-usa-mrherbman-i3702953901-s14014013642.html?search=1&spm=a2o4m.searchlist.list.i18.14f43597AssOYs 

I see 16-16-16 online and it's quite cheap, but I do not know the difference between them.

Thank you very much for your help
 

Yes on the vermicompost, it has some very good properties.  You can search and read all about it. It's not the same as "coconut compost" but you can use both when making your own container soil blend. The only problem with anything labeled as "compost", is that it may not really be composted (decomposed/digested by soil micro-organisms, and may be composed of raw organic matter. This would be okay for mulch (soil surface covering), but not for a potting soil/container planting mix.  

 

As for a fertilizer product, the Gaia Green 4-4-4 from Canada looks good as a COF. It has some excellent ingredients:

• Feather meal, alfalfa meal, bone meal, blood meal, natural phosphate rock Mineral Phosphate Potassium sulfate, insect slag, basalt dust, humic acid, gypsum, seaweed, oyster shell, green sand.
• GAIA GREEN All Purpose is approved for use in organic agriculture by Ecocert Canada (according to the General Principles of the Canadian Organic Production System).

 

Avoid the 16-16-16 or any high-salt-index chemical fertilizer.  Yes it's cheap, and you get what you pay for.  It's imbalanced and only provides certain mineral nutrients, at the expense of complete plant nutrition and high nutrient density food production, and reduces resistance to pests and diseases.  High NPK chemical fertilizers are too harsh and are detrimental to the beneficial soil microbiome, dessicates roots, and creates conditions for a plant to become a pest magnet.  

Edited June 19, 2022 by drtreelove