Got any tips for saving space in small garden?

[Sally PB]

Ditto on the vertical planting ideas. Look also at what plants are good companions to other plants. One year I planted peas along a fence. Once they were up and climbing, I planted carrots in between them. As the peas got taller, I snipped off a few of the lowest leaves to give the carrots more light.

Double ditto on planting only as much as you will eat. I remember as a kid that the first zucchini was much heralded. The forty-first, um, not so much.

Sequential plantings help "reuse" areas that have plants that are waning, or things that don't need the entire season.

One last idea: if you have a farmer's market nearby, see what you can get there that you like, but may take up too much space. I don't grow sweet corn any more. I can buy it when we want to eat it.

 

[CatsandCrops]

One last idea: if you have a farmer's market nearby, see what you can get there that you like, but may take up too much space. I don't grow sweet corn any more. I can buy it when we want to eat it.

That's great advice too! I tried 3 seasons to grow corn before my husband asked "Why bother? We can go up the street to the farm and get a dozen ears for what you pay in seeds".

 

[Wolfie2]

For those who are using or want to try trellising, I suggest cattle panels vs. wire fencing. They are easier to set up, easier to store in the off season and last a lot longer.

 

[Myrth]

Indeed! I use cattle panels for trellis material, supported by t-posts. They work well, are easy to move around the garden for crop rotation, and they last for years.

Another great trellis material I use for tomatoes is re-mesh. Many years ago I bought a mini-roll of it at a home improvement store and made tomato cages. I cut off one stay and use the ends as stakes to hold the cage up in the garden. They support the huge, indeterminate tomato vines very well, and they last for decades.

 

[21hens-incharge]

I put quick crops in between my things that take longer. Spinach in between bell peppers was very successful last year. It works with a wide variety of plants.

I copied a friend and made a cattle panel arch for green beans. It worked extremely well.

When companion planting or mixing things together I try to get things with similar water and sun needs in the same area.

My only other tip.....don't plant things you and your family don't eat much of. Stick to things you like.

 

[Sally PB]

Another great trellis material I use for tomatoes is re-mesh

Can you post a picture of this? I don't know what it is.

I planted onions (sets, not seeds) in between the potato plants. Normally, there wouldn't be anything there, so it was unused space. Bonus: not a single potato beetle to be found. Best ever harvest of potatoes and onions.

I have cilantro that goes to seed and comes up among the asparagus rows. I planted beets and rutabaga along the fence in the squash bed. I can't plan for any bushy plants, as the squash takes a lot of room, but root crops can fill in some of the unused spaces.

My husband really likes hot peppers. Those things bear gobs of peppers. One plant is plenty, and I grew two different kinds. Sure didn't need five plants of each.

 

[Myrth]

Can you post a picture of this? I don't know what it is.

I don’t seem to have a photo of a cage on my iPad, but a quick Google search brought me this link:

https://www.grit.com/farm-and-garden/garden-do-it-yourself-zm0z13jazgou


Basically, remesh is the steel concrete reinforcing wire mesh that is used when you are pouring concrete, such as a concrete floor, patio, etc. It is sold by the roll. Big rolls for big projects are very expensive, but local home improvement stores also sell small rolls of it in the spring.

What I did was to cut lengths off the roll to make whatever diameter tomato cage I wanted. I folded the wires of the mesh back through the mesh to tie it together in a cylinder. The link has a photo or two that helps explain it. I made those cages ... 20 years ago or so? Still holding up.

 

[Sally PB]

Basically, remesh is the steel concrete reinforcing wire mesh

Oh geez... Remesh, like rebar. Gotcha. Thanks for the link too.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Oh geez... Remesh, like rebar. Gotcha. Thanks for the link too.

More like welded wire fencing but stiffer. It is a grid.

 

[21hens-incharge]

Oh...a tip for carrots.
I have very hard clay here. I could barely get a carrot to sprout so got creative.
I sifted steer manure, top soil and a little of my native soil together. Anything that a 1/4" grid caught did not go in my carrots mix.
I then filled pots measuring 10-12" in diameter and 12-15" deep. I grow carrots in the pots. I plant them 1" apart using a piece of 1/2" hardware cloth as a grid and planting every other hole.
To harvest them I empty the pot into my wheelbarrow. It's amazing how many carrots one can grow in just a few pots. I refresh the dirt by adding compost before planting the next spring.