You definitely should be worried, but how worried you should be depends on the siting of the garden. If it is close to the house or outbuildings, you should get some blocking from them. And, it also depends on whether you're high on a hill or otherwise exposed site, or if you're in a more sheltered area--perhaps one that has trees that will block the wind.

If you have a garden fence, you could plant vines to grow on that fence and they will give you a surprising amount of wind-blocking once they are tall enough. I usually plant morning glories, cypress vine, cardinal climber, black-eyed susan vine, hyacinth bean and moonflower vine on my fence.

A double or triple row of sunflowers will make a pretty dense hedge too and will give you good windblocking in the summer, but they are too small in the spring to help much. I've also used a thick hedge of hollyhocks, although you are at the mercy of the weather there because in years or high humidity, hollyhock rust can defoliate them which leaves them worthless as a windbreak. I've also used Lion's Tail and grain-type amaranths (from Seeds of Change) that get 5 to 8' tall together in dense rows as a windblock, and sometimes broom corn and ornamental corns as well, although the corns sometimes get knocked over by a severe thunderstorm.

Another quick and easy way, if you already have a woven wire fence, is to go to the store and buy a roll of 6 mm plastic. Wrap that plastic around the outside of your fence, using duct tape or zip ties to hold it, and it will help block a lot of wind. I've used sheets of corrugated metal the same way, attaching them to the fence with wire, but a lot of heat will reflect off of them.

Is there a specific type of vegetable you're worried about? Some can handle a lot of wind and others can't. Sometimes, new tomato and pepper plants, for example, can suffer enough wind burn to die.

Dawn

How you have your beds situated makes a difference as well.

If they are north south, plant short crops at the southern end, and plant stuff that gets taller, in the middle area, and the taller stuff at the northern end. That way, the plants themselves make somewhat of a wind break.

Of course, things you really worry about wind, could go at the very northern edge, where the wind block would be strongest.

I planted like that for years, when I lived in northern Oklahoma without any other wind block area around.

Moni

Thanks. That is helpful information. I guess my plants struggled through somehow last year, but I didn't really plant all that much. Certainly not like I will this year.

It is a fully exposed area. You really notice it when you are out there working in the wind like we had yesterday. Here's my idea. On the north and south sides of the garden, put up posts at 8 feet then 4 feet apart, with 2X4s connecting the 8 foot spans, with a skip at the 4 foot spans. Then screw lattices to the posts and 2X4s to a height of 6 feet using latices 4X8 and 2X8 feet. This allows some wind through (I've read if you try to completely block it, it will come up and over and down on top of your plants), but at least slows it down and gives me 4 foot spaces to let me get through them. I will then plant something that will grow up and through the lattices.

Do you think it will work?
...

Buster,

It sounds nice and I think it will work just fine.

And, of course, being a veggie lover, I assume you're planning on planting something edible on the lattice.....pole beans, cucumbers, malabar spinach, mini-pumpkins, etc.

I plant flowers on my fence because the deer eat the veggies if I put them on the fence but they seldom eat the flowers.

Dawn