Ten Basics of Square Foot Gardening
Would you like a garden filled with beautiful flowers, luscious vegetables, fresh herbs, but NO WEEDS or HARD WORK? Well, that is what Square Foot Gardening is all about. I’ve taken all the hard work out of gardening. No heavy digging, watering, weeding, thinning, or over-flowering harvest. What is left is a productive, well-kept, colorful garden that looks more like a landscaped area than a typical single-row garden.
1 - LAYOUT
Arrange you garden in squares, not rows. Lay it out in 4′ by 4′ areas.
2 - BOXES
Build boxes to hold a new soil mix above ground.
3 - AISLES
Space boxes 3’ apart to form walking aisles.
4 - SOIL
Fill boxes with Mel’s special soil mix: 1/3 compost. 1/3 peat moss, and 1/3 coarse vermiculite.
5 - GRID
Make a square foot grid for the top of each box. A MUST!
6 - CARE
NEVER WALK ON YOUR GROWING SOIL. Tend your garden from the aisles.
7 - SELECT
Plant a different flower, vegetable, or herb crop in each square foot, using 1, 4, 9, or 16 plants per square foot.
8 - PLANT
Conserve seeds. Plant only a pinch (2 or 3 seeds) per hole. Place transplants in a slight saucer-shaped depression.
9 - WATER
Water by hand from a bucket of sun-warmed water.
10 - HARVEST
When you finish harvesting a square foot, add compost and replant it with a new and different crop.
Location:
- Pick an area that gets 6-8 hours of sunshine daily.
- Stay clear of trees and shrubs where roots and shade may interfere.
- Have it close to the house for convenience and protection.
- Existing soil is not really important. You won’t be using it.
- Area must not puddle after a heavy rain.
Read more about Mel Bartholomew’s technique www.squarefootgardening.com or watch a short video below:
Books and DVDs only are available for purchase in Canada.
Permission to copy above content given by Mel’s office.
Visit plot in F3 for a demonstration of planting!