- April 14, 2026
- By Sala Levin ’10
The promise of springtime—the season of renewal—may lure you into believing that you, too, can turn a seed or three into a backyard farm. Tomatoes? Easy! Strawberries? No problem. Swiss chard? Sure—heck, you might even turn into a person who likes Swiss chard!
Now is the time for those yearning for a delicious backyard garden to start planning their plantings. The University of Maryland Extension has plenty of resources to help aspiring gardeners maximize their chances for a productive harvest. Principal Agent Associate Ginny Rosenkranz, who specializes in botany and horticulture, gave Maryland Today some pointers on how to achieve your fruit and vegetable dreams.
Before you dig, test your soil.
Knowing if your soil leans acidic or basic will help you grow your produce more fruitfully. The Eastern part of Maryland tends to have acidic soil, which can benefit from a helping of agricultural lime. (The powder is “not the green lime you put in your margarita,” said Rosenkranz.) More basic soil, often found in the state’s Western half, might require some added sulfur.
More importantly if you’re planning on growing an edible harvest, soil labs can test for lead in your soil—a special concern for people living in older homes. If a soil test does show that your soil contains lead, consider building raised beds that you can fill with store-bought soil.
To gather soil for a lead test, dig 10-15 6-inch-deep holes in your yard (the depth of vegetable roots). As you dig up the soil, remove the top half-inch to eliminate leaves, compost and other organic matter that would impact the results of your test. Once you have the samples, place them in a clean plastic bucket and stir, as if you’re making the world’s least appealing cake, said Rosenkranz. Then take out 1 cup, spread it out on a covered surface (try newspaper, if you can find one) and let it dry overnight. The dried soil will be lighter, and therefore less expensive to send by mail, said Rosenkranz.
A list of labs that test soil is available on the University of Maryland Extension’s website. Testing typically costs $11-30, plus mailing.
Grow the rainbow.
Maryland is perfectly located to be a healthy growing environment for lots of fruits and vegetables, said Rosenkranz. “I like to say, grow what you like to eat,” she said. Salad lovers might want to try cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes. Pole beans, broad beans and scarlet runner beans are great options for those looking to expand beyond the canned varieties. Fruit lovers can try growing blueberries and raspberries.
Prune your plants appropriately.
Early spring is a good time to prune raspberry and blueberry bushes. Make sure there are no branches rubbing against each other. “They’ll make a wound, like us getting a rug burn,” said Rosenkranz. Cut back low-hanging branches about a foot off the ground for three reasons: so that fruit isn’t close enough to the ground to get pelted with soil during rain showers, to allow them to get more sunshine and to spare yourself back-breaking bending.
Expect a disappointing second season for tomatoes.
Like too many television shows, tomatoes tend to have a gangbusters first season and a mediocre second year, said Rosenkranz. “Critters and diseases don’t know you’re there” the first year, she said, but have time to plan a full-scale attack in season two. Always move your tomato plants to a new spot in the garden so they get fresh, disease- and pest-free soil. To minimize risk of disease, spread mulch on top of your soil so that dirt (and the diseases that live in it) can’t splash onto the fruit during rainstorms, and keep about a foot of space between the bottom of the tomato plant and the soil.
There’s only one way to keep out squirrels, deer and rabbits.
If you plant it, they will come. Your only shot at enjoying your herbs, berries and peppers before animals do is to build a physical barrier. “Squirrels live to get vegetables,” said Rosenkranz. Surround your raised beds or vegetable gardens with an 8-foot fence, and add mesh coverage on top if you want to ward off birds, too.