Five Steps Towards Starting a Vegetable Garden

What to consider before your shovel meets dirt

By: Richard Melendez

Jan 1, 2026

Choosing the right location for your garden is a vital step to success. Photo courtesy Foodscapes Hawaii
Choosing the right location for your garden is a vital step to success. Photo courtesy Foodscapes Hawaii

Starting a vegetable garden takes some effort to get started and to keep it going.

Unsure on where — or if — to begin? Here are a few items to consider.

1. Decide if a garden is right for you

Starting a vegetable garden can be fun, but it also requires a degree of commitment to make it successful.

Fran Butera, founder and owner of Foodscapes Hawaii, says one question anyone thinking of starting a vegetable garden should ask themselves is whether they “… have time to put into taking care of a vegetable garden? Because it’s not effortless. It does take some time and some care. It’s kind of like adopting a puppy … It needs your attention. It needs nurturing.”

If this sounds intimidating, start small! Don’t over-commit and try to emulate Aloun Farms right out of the gate.

2. Choose the right plants

What should you grow? Begin by asking yourself what you like to eat and start there.

If you know your way around the kitchen, give thought to what herbs and seasonings you use regularly. If you have a penchant for the spicy, maybe consider trying your hand at different pepper plant varieties.

If you’re wondering what’s ideal for a beginner, Butera suggests herbs, especially green onions, ginger or leafy greens, as well as radishes and carrots.

Photo courtesy Foodscapes Hawaii

3. Set the right conditions

Every plant requires different conditions to thrive. Set up your garden where it gets all the sun or shade it desires. If you’re starting a container garden, you’ll have more flexibility when it comes to how and where your plants are situated.

And don’t forget about the soil! The earth that your plants take root in can make or break your garden. Do your research and choose wisely.

4. Care and maintain

Water your plants regularly.

How often will depend on what plants you decide to include in your garden and the environment they’re growing in. Potted plants generally require more watering than those planted in the ground.

5. Enjoy the fruits (and veggies) of your labor

While results may vary depending on conditions and what you’ve chosen to grow, you can usually expect to see some results anywhere from three to four weeks up to three to four months.

And if things don’t work out your way, try and try again.

This story appears in the January/February 2026 print issue of Ku‘u Home magazine.