People living in villas can easily transform their barren backyard by growing healthy vegetables. We have compiled important tips on growing a vegetable garden in Dubai. Let’s go through the tools needed to grow a vegetable garden, the steps to set up a vegetable garden and the common vegetables that can be grown in Dubai.
Tools Needed to Grow a Vegetable Garden in Dubai
A vegetable garden offers you the freshest produce and makes up for a healthy lifestyle. The following tools are required to grow a vegetable garden in Dubai.
- Garden gloves
- Gumboots
- Garden trowel
- Watering cans
- Shovel or spade
- Hand pruner, shears, or scissors
- Reusable pots
- High-end gardening tools including automatic sprinklers and wheelbarrows, among others
Steps to Grow a Vegetable Garden in Dubai
The following steps are necessary for setting up a vegetable garden in Dubai.
Weather Conditions
The UAE’s summer heat can get a bit too harsh for growing vegetables at home. That said, as the temperature drops down during October, you can start growing a vegetable garden in Dubai as the plants will have a more favourable environment to flourish.
The Right Spot
The area where you want to grow your vegetables needs to have access to a minimum of six hours of sunlight. Avoid patches or shades near the walls of your home because when the position of sun changes, your garden could end up being in a shaded area. Moreover, the area should be near the water source.
Prepare the Soil
To grow vegetables at home, you need to prep the soil to ensure it has the right nutrients to help your plants grow. The sand in the backyard of your home won’t be enough. To condition the soil for plant growth mix compost or natural fertilisers. You can also buy pre-mix soil to be on the safe side. It’s convenient and easily manageable
Choose Your Vegetables
If you are growing a vegetable garden in Dubai from scratch, choose plants that grow in small areas such as lettuce, cucumbers, beans, tomatoes, herbs, carrots and spinach, among others.
Prepare Your Station
Use wooden sticks to divide your backyard space into individual squares. In each of the squares, grow different vegetables. Ensure there is enough distance between the squares, say 20-30 cm to give them enough space to grow.
Staring Planting
Once you are done with all the above-mentioned steps, start planting vegetables in your garden. You can buy plant seeds. Here is a list of shops to buy plants in Dubai.
Common Vegetables to Grow in Dubai
The following vegetables can be grown easily with the leftovers in your home.
Carrots – cut an inch from the head of the carrot and place it in a shallow dish. Add a little water and keep it in a sunny spot indoors, once the roots emerge transfer it to the soil to grow a whole carrot.
Peppers or capsicum – this is also among common vegetables to grow in Dubai. Just place the seeds in a pot filled with soil and place it in a place with lots of sunlight. Once you see the vegetable sprout, transfer the plant to your outdoor vegetable garden.
Potatoes – Take potato seeds, cut them into smaller pieces with more than two buds on each piece and place them in the soil about 3 feet apart.
Garlic – Just plant an entire garlic clove outdoors in the soil and water it regularly.
Things to Consider When Growing a Vegetable Garden in Dubai
Different plants grow at a different pace, don’t worry if you don’t see results instantly. Moreover, when growing an outdoor garden in the backyard for the very first time, use economical items. Avoid investing in high-end equipment as getting in the habit of gardening takes time.
Don’t water the plants several times a day or during evenings. This can create an unfavourable growing environment for the plants. Watering them once in the morning is ideal.
Newly planted seeds and plants need to be watered several times daily. But for full grown plants, watering them once a day is enough to stimulate the growth of the roots.
Similarly, avoid watering potted plants several times a day. Overwatering can result in the accumulation of water at the bottom causing the plant roots to rot.
That is all about growing a vegetable garden. Vegetable gardens are ideal if you own a villa in Dubai. Besides, if you live in an apartment in Dubai, you can grow a vertical garden balcony that takes less space.
Stay tuned to UAE’s top property blog for more on garden décor, home décor and much more.
