Home gardens and backyards – suitable area for vegetable production

Vegetable crop production in gardens and yards has often been connected with both open field and greenhouse production of the most significant vegetable crops. Usually one or two crops are grown on one part of the garden, and the rest is less cultivated or covered by weeds. For the purpose of improving vegetable production, the trial was set as an open field and greenhouse production with no added heating, covering an area of 480 m², i.e., 240 m² (8×30 m) of open field, and 240 m² (8×30 m) of greenhouse area (without the added heating). The trial included 14 vegetable crop species: peas, radish, kohlrabi, spinach, lettuce, cabbage, pepper, tomato, beetroot, kale, onion, garlic, cucumber, and chard. The following parameters were monitored during the production: previous crop species, main and succeeding vegetable crops, i.e., rotation of 2-3 vegetable crops on one surface, planting date, harvesting date, production area, inter-row spacing, intra-row spacing, plan population density per m², absolute seed weight, required seed quantity for sowing, yield, and total yield. Annual results provided us an insight into how a well-organized vegetable crop production can offer a possibility of turning small gardens and backyards into a useful vegetable production area, in both open field and greenhouse production. Naturally, production of each vegetable crop requires regular education and specialization of producers in order to be carried out according to production principles and result in safe and health-certified products.