Three cheers for spring. Last week here in California it was in the 90's - too hot! - but the nice thing about the sun was the push it gave us to get going on our big summer project: a square foot garden, much inspired by the success of our friend Liz. The idea is to build a very simple raised bed and fill it with good soil (by far the most expensive but important part of the project) then divide it into square foot sections, thereby maximizing every inch of that nice earth you put in there. The square foot gardening book has good charts which map out exactly how many of each different plant/vegetable you can put per square, which is great if you are like me and sometimes need to be told exactly how to make gardens work. In ours (we ended up making it 3' by 8', so that gave us 24 squares to fill) we have about 9 different vegetables, plus some melons and flowers. I'm so hoping we haven't already killed our poor little seeds.
24 comments:
I love it! We did a similar garden at our last house and it was very successful! So much easier to maintain- and it looks pretty too!
What fun! And please do keep us posted on the garden's progress!
What a cute garden! Here is a site that you also might find helpful.
http://www.gardeners.com/Kitchen-Garden-Planner/kgp_home,default,pg.html
One thing to remember, instead of the soil at the store check with th elocal dump. Ours can fill the bed of a pickup for far less money than buying all of those bags.
We've also (loosely!) done a square foot garden. I'm amazed at how much you can grow in a small place. Also have the same confederate Jasmine vines growing on our deck--don't they smell lovely!
I am in the process of planting my first garden too, in beds my husband made. It's a lot of fun but a lot of work. I'm not used to remembering to water...:)
Just stumbled across your blog. I'm planting a Square Foot Garden too - first time. I built four 4x4s and have 3 of them planted. I write about it all the time on my blog. Good luck to both of us!
We're container/box gardeners, too! And we love it!
Here's one for the reading list: Food not Lawns by Heather C. Flores
my kids love put their hands in the garden... and in the summer we're eating our vegetables... a real pleasure...
Lynne, did you make the beds? That is such a fabulous idea! The only place at our home that gets enough sn is the front yard. How could we make a garden look pretty in the front of the house?
oooh such good timing. we were about to build a raised bed garden on the side of the house. I'm stealing this idea ;-)
xo
Thanks for the inspiration, Lynne. I need to get going on mine next week!
Hi there! had to post after I saw your raised beds. I live in Northern Ca. and the warm weather made our plants just shoot out of the ground! We had to water many times! Did you actually find vermiculite? We couldn't find any and had to just go with soil and compost. Good luck!
yes, we do have plans of this kind! 5-going-on-6-year-old plans! good for you to get out and do it. Hopefully you will recoup your dirt cost on all the yummy produce you will produce. :)
Also, to melissa- I would not put a garden in our front yard, fearing the big dogs around here would get to it. maybe your neighborhood is more tame!
looks great! i love the stepping stones in front and those cute trellis things. i'm glad you found the bigger wood for the sides. i wish i would have done that but know for next time!
melissa -
i saw your comment. i think a square foot garden would be great in your front yard! mine is in my backyard, but i found the paint that matches the trim on my house and used it to paint the OUTSIDE wood of the bed. (just the outside).
a garden can be beautiful for sure! my cousins have a neighbor across the street from them that have their raised beds in the front yard and lets everyone in the neighborhood pick from it. very fun!
of course. . . you DO have your hands full this growing season ;)
Looks good! We've been using the square foot garden technique for the past few years. It has been working out real well for us! In the fall we add in a bunch of rabbit poop and the soil just keeps getting better!
That is so cool! I want to do this so bad!
♥ Jen
Thanks for the link for the book, I was too intimidated this year to start a garden, but this looks managable!
Susannah
Hello. We too have been carrying out this concept...it looks so great when things start to sprout...plus it looks tidy and organised...and easier to know what is a weed and what isn't (for novices, such as my family!) Yours looks fantastic. I've been enjoying your blog for a while now, so thought I would finally leave a comment.
Have a very lovely day
Kerry.
Liz: I like your idea of painting the wood the same color as the house. Thanks!
I can't wait to see your garden. Such a great thing to do with little kids to make them appreciate the earth. It reminds me of mom - I love her gardening:)
We planted some strawberries and peppers this weekend. I really hope they survive my black thumb. Last year the only thing that grew were a couple of funky looking carrots. Isn't Spring a hopeful time?
Nice to be here and see this post!
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