Anyone have a square foot garden?

[NanaKat]

Intensive gardening like SFG works well in 4 x 16 foot beds as well.
You can divide the 16 foot length into 4x4 sections for planting or run a 16 foot cattle panel hung on three t-posts down the length for tying up those vertical vines or tomatoes.

We have 16 4x16 foot beds and 7 beds that are 5 feet wide by lengths going from 8 feet to 25 feet because the fence runs at a diagonal.

The five foot wide beds will handle three rows of corn nicely.

Soaker hoses work well to water the beds. a 50 foot hose will loop nicely in a 16 foot bed.

Soil(red clay and sandy loam mix) is amended with compost, shredded leaves and chicken manure from the hen house, and all beds are mulched with clean straw to retain moisture and restrict weeds.

Even with a bad back, bad neck and replacement to a knee and a shoulder reconstruction....and the help of a great hubby, we have a great garden every year.

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Quote:
I've got that book!! Forget the kids, I love that book for me!! My dream is to someday build a little potting shed/greenhouse in the middle of a whimsical flower and veggie garden. I have started on my willow arches and tunnels, thinking of turning one of the tunnels into a GIANT catterpillar!! I want to learn to weld so I can build mythical and whacky creatures out of old metal objects!

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Quote:
Hey Nana! Never thought of making them that long but that would be a good project for my new chickens this summer. Build me some 5x16 foot beds. I could drop their chicken tractor right on top of it at the end of planting season! Take care of one end for a month or 2 then on to the other end. By the time planting season roles around again. The bed they build this year should be broken down and ready to plant!!!

 

[dkvart1]

It's been years since I have been able to have a garden (but in June we are moving to our new home and I'll be back at it!!

. I grew just about everything organically in raised beds, with the exception of corn, as it pollinates better when grown in a larger area as others have noted. I used the outer rows of corn to support my sugar snap peas or beans to save having to install a trellis for them and it worked out well, especially with the peas being a spring crop.

I never did use boards to frame my beds, as I was always concerned about what could potentially be in the wood. Instead I just angled the sides slightly and used a long board to tamp them into place. Since they were only 4-6 inches above the surrounding soil I didn't have any problems with erosion.

I found about 3 1/2 ft width most comfortable for lower growing crops like lettuce, spinach, radishes and the like as I have lower back trouble and bending over or kneeling and reaching in would cause strain. For taller crops 4 to 4 1/2 feet worked well.

I would definatley check out a book on companion planting, as that utilizes space to the fullest and often aids in pest control. I would be careful with mulch in your beds as I found it had a tendancy to give stink bugs and a couple of other pests a great place to congregate. Instead opt for low growing companion plants or plants that will help shade the ground and topdress lightly with well aged compost.

Good luck!

 

[Wildlife]

If by square-foot-gardening you mean raised beds,than YES!YES!YES!Raised beds are definately the way to go.I've been planting raised beds for years while enjoying the many benefits.Lack of soil compaction is only one.Being able to control soil content and fertility is another.You can really concentrate nutrients (organically prefered)to get the most out of a small space.your beds don't have to be square either.Try long rectangular beds no more than 5 feet accross .The length is only limited by your space.You will be pleasantly surprised with how close you can plant and how much more you can grow compared to the old roto-tiller in-ground garden model.
For your health and the health of your family,I would hope you would consider going all organic in your garden.Compost is organic,Lime is organic, 10-10-10 is NOT! There are a FEW organic pesticides if you must...
There's just something about picking something grown with your own hand,and then just popping it right into your mouth right there in your garden!It gets no FRESHER than that!!! It gets no BETTER than that!!!GO ORGANIC!

I just today prepared one of my RAISED BEDS with the help of my chickens.I've posted it all in this "Hobbies" forum!PIC HEAVY! Check out my post--"IF YOU BUILD IT-THEY WILL COME!"
((Earthworms))

HAPPY GARDENING CHICKEN-PEOPLE!!!

 

[CoyoteMagic]

Quote:
Yes they will!!! When I start my beds, I put down a layer of cardboard, leaves, etc like in lasagna gardening. It just seems to pull the in the worms from the hard packed clay earth below.

As for pests, I've heard that Ducks and Geese are good for taking care of bugs in a garden without tearing up your plants. Wondering it this may soon be in my future, lol

 

[Zookeeper9000]

Don't forget winter sowing of seeds, it is easy fun and and the starts are so much stronger. Just do a google and loads of stuff comes up on it. I am going to try this square foot this year if I get to get in the garden at all LOL

 

[Amy Chickie]

I used square foot gardening back home in California and loved it! I don't have any photos of it because they're packed up from my move

. But I'll tell you that it was 12x12feet divided into 4x4 sections using 2x4's that we laid on top of the soil and walked on them. I used soaker hoses spaced one foot apart to help me with my spacing, and I also used a 1 foot trowel that I marked with inches. Both in California and here in Idaho I deal with weeds by top dressing the soil with straw hay in mid-summer. Yes, I did get some straw sprouts from the hay but they were easily pulled out.

Here in Idaho, the garden that bed that came with the house has curved lines so I can't exactly do square foot gardening but I'm incorporating as many principles as possible. This winter we parked our chicken tractor on top of the bed and we'll take it off this weekend. I would post photos but I'm new here and I'm not sure how? I see the image tag, but do I need an url? Or can I upload directly from my computer? Can I post from my FB page or my blog?

 

[Amy Chickie]

OK, I think I figured out how to do images?

This is a detail of my garden last summer. You can see that it's intensively planted but not square foot because of the garden bed's curves. In the middle of the veggie garden I placed a green-blue painted cement leaf that holds water to attract beneficial insects, and around it I've planted some flowering herbs also to attract beneficials. Above in on a Shepard's hook I've hung a hummingbird feeder because they love to eat aphids! And on the Shepard's hook I grew scarlet runner beans.

You can see tomato spirals that are placed one foot apart, plus a wooden support that has a roma tomato on each leg and it's interplanted with snow peas which died out about the time that the tomatoes needed the room. Behind all that I have squash, and a rose bush that was already in the bed and is too huge to move so it stays. Who says you can't grow roses with veggies and herbs? You can see my straw mulch which does a great job suppressing weeds as well as holding water, underneath the straw I laid down soaker hoses one foot apart to help me measure square feet. And you can kind of see some stepping stones that I used to prevent soil compaction.

***
For the winter we parked the chicken tractor on top of the bed.

We insulated the hen hen house by placing a water heater blanket on top, placing clear garden plastic over it and part of the run to keep it dry, and then filled the space at the bottom of the run with straw hay bales. I used the stepping stones to help weight down the plastic. Inside the hen house we have a heat lamp as well as a radio thermometer/hygrometer so we can keep track of the temperature and humidity from the convenience of our kitchen.

If your interested in my tractor, which we designed and built ourselves, please check out my BYC page.

 

[FarmerVal]

Has anyone had any luck square foot gardening without using Mel's Mix? The math of trying to fivure out how many cubic feet of each different size bag is really confusing me... and getting costly.