NATCHEZ — In a limited space or with plenty of room to grow, vegetable gardens can flourish with the right balance of sun, water and attention.

Scott Kimbrell and family friend Joe Hartley have transformed Kimbrell’s patio area into an urban garden in downtown Natchez. This summer, cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, string beans, butterbeans, squash and zucchini have made their way onto dinner plates at the Kimbrells’ table and are fresh gifts for neighbors and friends.

Kimbrell credits Hartley with maintaining the urban garden.

“Joe has the green thumb, and I do the grunt work,” Kimbrell said.

Hartley said he has had his hands in the soil since he was just a youngster on his grandfather’s farm. He said Doug Hosford, a godson of the Kimbrells, originally dug the urban garden to supply his catering business, High Cotton. Hosford has since moved on in the culinary world, and Kimbrell and Hartley wanted to continue utilizing the small area.

“So we plowed it back up and planted vegetables,” Hartley said. “I wouldn’t say it’s a fantastic garden, but it does everything we need.”

Hartley said his advice to new gardeners is to start small.

“I would just start with a few tomato plants, a few bell pepper plants and maybe two or three squash plants,” Hartley said.

He said a backyard gardening space of 10-by-10-feet or more is enough space to start an urban garden. In a tight space, Hartley said some folks will even combine vegetables and flowers.

“A lot of people grow peppers and tomatoes, and mix them in with their flower bed,” Hartley said. “If there’s not much room at all, you can use pots on your patio for things like basil and oregano. Herbs grow really well in pots.”

Hartley said most vegetables need six hours of sunlight and water two times a week — an inch deep of water.

Hartley said not to take home gardening too seriously.

“Most people I know just do it for leisure or to have fresh produce in the summer time,” he said.

Natchez chef Van Hawkins keeps a close eye on his traditional garden on Reynolds Street in Natchez. Herbs and melons soak up sun at the front of his house, while beans and peas climb and hang from a long trellis in his backyard, lined by rows of cabbage.

Hawkins said his neighbor, Charles Harris, looks after the backyard garden while Hawkins focuses on the front.

The gardens cultivated by Kimbrell and Hawkins vary in setting, but both gardeners are still battling the same issue — drought.

Hawkins said he uses hay around his melons to keep moisture from evaporating into the sunlight, and he waters his garden in the morning and again in the early evening. He also advised that gardeners avoid watering plants in the middle of the day.

“If you water plants in the middle of the day, the sun will fry them,” Hawkins said. “Also, this season is very dry, so pick veggies in the morning while they are at their peak.”

Hawkins said picking produce in the morning is a better guarantee of flavor, nutrients and turgidity — a pressure component that gives the plant rigidity.

Hawkins also has advice for new gardeners who are dealing with the dry conditions.

“Due to the heat factor, it’s best to start your garden indoors for it to have a good germination cycle,” Hawkins said.

To achieve this, Hawkins recommended investing in small sod pots for seedlings, and placing them in a well-lit area of the house.

For fall crops, both Hartley and Hawkins said leafy greens are the way to go.

“Turnip greens, mustard greens, spinach, lettuce — and you can have a second crop of tomatoes in the fall if you plant in August or early September,” Hartley said.

Hawkins said gardening blunders should be taken lightly.

“At times your garden will fail,” Hawkins said.

“Dust yourself off and start again. It’s an imperfect world.”

Hawkins said his best advice for new gardeners is to start studying.

“There are a lot of resources available to learn how to garden,” Hawkins said.

“Go to a bookstore, get online or ask someone who has a nice garden.”

Ultimately for Hawkins, who is a disabled veteran, the act of gardening serves an assortment of important purposes.

“Gardening helps me elude myself from a mad world,” Hawkins said.

“I can live a frugal lifestyle, but also eat healthily. The serenity plus therapy that (gardening) provides me helps me deal with my disability. It’s medicine to me.”