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jodikay_gw

square foot gardening

jodikay
11 years ago

Last year I convinced my hubby to make me boxes. We bought the wood and then nothing happened. This spring, I got a bit (just a bit) demanding and he finally put them together. I am very happy and so far mostly so good. I already have ideas to change things around. And he promised to build me one more box. All of my boxes are 4x4x12. Because it is next to the house, it had to look good, He was adamant about that :-).



asparagus 25 crowns were planted, probably have about 20 spears or so up. there is a bare spot if you look close enough



2 kinds of potatoes, yukon gold and a red (i think). i was so late getting my boxes that they were really picked over. not sure that 2 kinds in a box is a good idea.



june and everbearing strawberries. today i noticed runners so they need to go. the box isn't full so i might keep some of the runners for extra plants. is this a good or bad idea? Lucy is watching. thankfully, my cats, have not used the boxes for bathrooms



broccoli and cabbage. they are huge but now something is eating my cabbage. bought some BT but i read i probably should have covered them. is it too late to try and cover them? i guess i have more reading to do! 4 squares not used. what a waste of space



peppers, celery and beets. not happy about this box at all. can't seem to grow beets no matter which garden they are in. i wanted beet pickles but i think i will only have enough to eat. should have planted more peppers and no celery (cheaper to buy it i think).



3 kinds of onions, carrots, kale, radishes, spinach and lettuce mix. oh year, one egg plant. thought it was worth a try. i was reading somewhere about a lettuce bowl. i sort of like that idea better than this. i have 4 squares not used. not sure what i was thinking



here is an overall pictures. my husband and i spent a full weekend on just the boxes and then a full week working on our backyard. it sure looks better than the dirt that was there!

thanks for looking. any input is welcome since this is my first foray in sfg. i also have a big garden out in our front yard , not sfg, that has corn, tomotoes, cukes, and squash. i would serioudly like to do sfg out there and trellising. i am not handy so need the hubby's help (lod). i have been canning more these last couple of years so i am not sure how much canning i can get from sfg, especially with the carrots and the beets. the cabbage is for sauerkraut.

Is anyone else in MN doing SFG? I have also been looking into container gardening for blueberries? Is anyone else doing it in MN? pros or cons? Even though I have a big yard, it would be a lot of work to dig up sod to extend my garden so that is why the sfg and looking into container gardening.

happy gardening!

Jodi

Comments (4)

  • soilent_green
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Your stuff really looks great - plants, landscaping, lounging cat, etc. :)

    I do not do sfg or raised beds so I will not pretend to be an expert on the subject. But I do have a few observations.

    1.) Appears that you have one inch thick dimensional lumber. Will one inch thick dimensional lumber hold up to outward pressure of twelve inches of wet soil or will sidewalls eventually bow outwards? One inch thick boards will also tend to warp/curl outward when the inside surface stays wet and expands and the outside surface stays dry and contracted. What about soil expansion when the soil freezes in winter - will expansion wreck your boxes?

    2.) Every sf garden I have ever seen personally, the owner has planted transplants and/or seeded too closely because they are trying to get as much out of the space as possible. This impacts quality of produce obtained. Be sure to follow guidelines on plant labels and seed packages regarding plant spacing to achieve the best results. With your nice beds you should be trying to achieve quality over quantity.

    3.) Cabbage for example: Of course it depends on which varieties one plants, but mine can easily take up four square feet (2 foot by 2 foot square) per cabbage plant. Brocs and caulies do not need as much as cabbage but they can still use a lot of space. In the future you may want to go back to planting cabbage, etc. in the main garden to save space. Try bok choi/pak choi in your sfg instead.

    4.) Taters look great. I see no problem mixing varieties. They do seem a bit tight regarding plant spacing. Remember to acquire your seed potatoes early and simply store them yourself if need be until you are ready to plant them out.

    5.) Regarding celery: All veggies are cheaper to buy, that really is not the point. Celery, like all your homegrown veggies, tastes much better and stronger when grown in your own garden and picked at the proper time. Store-bought celery is almost tasteless, so you will be in for a pleasant surprise when you harvest your own. Plus yours will not be harvested when still immature, and will not be bathed in chemicals and preservatives. The celery is great for canning, and the leaves are great for drying.

    6.) Eggplant is great but it is an acquired taste - look for wonderful recipes on the web. Did not like it as a kid, has never been a favorite of mine as an adult, but it has grown on me and I keep planting more and more each year. This year I planted 24 plants consisting of six different varieties.

    7.) Do not forget green/bunching onions. They would do great in your sfg. A few kohlrabi as well, if you like them. Trellis cukes and grow pole beans in main garden to save space - go vertical when you can. You could even put in a trellis or two in the back of some of your sfg beds, but they may ruin the nice clean appearance you have.

    8.) Watch the watering - do not overwater the raised beds. Let surface dry between waterings and if you are, DO NOT use lawn sprinkling system to water the raised beds - that is too much water for veggies plus constantly getting foliage wet will foster disease/pest problems.

    9.) Take notes about your observations and your successes and failures. This can take discipline and may seem silly at first but you will not regret it next winter when you are planning your layouts for next season. You do not need to write a novel - just some quick notes will be good enough. Your photos can be a great reference as well.

    10.) Your last picture showing all the beds is a wonderful picture! Take pictures from the same position several times over the season to see the changes that take place.

    Nice work! Good luck and happy gardening.
    -Tom

  • icekream
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Love your pictures of the sqft gardening! Where in the twin cities are you? I'm in the west metro and have built up some boxes for sqft gardening. (Actually, my hubby built them.) I grew a variety of vegetables in them (tomatoes, eggplant, beets, carrots, cukes, zuchinni, thai basil, sweet basil, chives, lettuce, arugula, etc... I like the neatness of having the boxes, but find that they don't work too well for large plants like tomatoes and zuchinni and cukes.

    This is the 4th summer and I've made some changes. I have 3 boxes (4x10). The first 2 boxes has peppers (both hot and sweet), onions, herbs, celery, chard. The 2nd box is completely devoted to asparagus. I have tomatoes on the ground in a much larger spot. Basically, I only grow vegetables in the sqft gardening that I can control the plant size by harvesting the leaves to eat (e.g. lettuce, basil, chard). Otherwise, the bed gets way too overgrown and I can't reach to the middle!

  • jodikay
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi, i am in north branch. So far very happy except for the cabbage. Way too big (much bigger than this picture) and now I think I have cabbage worms chewing the leaves so it really needs a net over it. Same for the strawberries. From what I have read, it would be one tomato per 4x4 bed. and cukes etc would need to be trellised with other plants in front. My brother is also doing some sfg but in bigger boxes, i think like yours. I am eager to see his and compare. Would like very much to see a picture of yours. I am hoping to add more boxes for next year.

    thanks for the compliment.

    stay dry and happy gardening

    Jodi

  • Admit1
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    soilent_green, love your ideas about taking multiple pictures AND the note taking. I am a bit of a statistics and trends enthusiast when it comes to stuff like this.

    The beds look great! I also think there could be a moisture problem when it comes to the 1inch board, could you possibly use a bit of plastic sheeting as a barrier inbetween the moist soil and the wood surface?

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