Square Foot Gardening Thread

[Peggy-Sue]

Looking through the thread I have a few questions!

HOw close are you planting your corn and sunflowers??? Did they do well? Would like to plant as much as I can in the space we have!!!

Has anyone every planted potatoes in a 55 gallon drum???

 

[wyoDreamer]

I don't have my book handy right now, but I found a site online that has a chart of spacing for squarefoot gardening.

http://faq.gardenweb.com/faq/lists/sqfoot/2003112433023631.html

According to that chart - you would plant 1 corn plant per square. Corn needs a spacing of 12" per plant because it is wind pollunated and if you get it too close, the pollunation will not occur or will be sparce. Without good pollunation you will get ears with alot of missing kernals.

I tried to plant corn closer than that - like 4 per square and it didn't do very well. After a latenight party by the local coon population - the three ears of corn that I got only had about 1/4 of the kernal developed.

Are you going to cut the barrels in 1/2? if not, then I think the sides will be too high for the plants to get enough sunlight. I made some potato bags from landscape fabric and that worked great. The neat thing about the bags is that you roll the sides down when you plant and then as the plant grows taller, you unroll some of the side and bury the stems. Potatoes suposedly grow from the stems so this will give you more potatoes. I like it because it allows me to dump the bag into the wheel barrow for harvest and then the soil goes into a trashcan for the winter to be used the next spring. The bags also hold just enough water that the plant doesn't get root rot, I would have a hard time keeping the soil moist, but not too wet for potatoes in a closed in barrel. But that is just me.

 

[geoaware]

This will be my first year trying out SFG!

Finding vermiculite will be my hardest task I think...the rest is easy!

I already have started off some seeds under lights...and look forward to getting the rest going

 

[danib]

I am going to start mtfirst garden this year..now actually... It'll be a raised bed garden. I am looking into Square Foot Gardening, but I was wondering whether to start my seeds in an egg carton with organic soil..or something else. I've seen them started in eggs and in newspaper "pots". Wanted to start them in an egg crate but I was afraid it would grow moldy or something. Read somewhere that someone's did. I am just very apprehensive about starting the seeds and getting that part right so they'll thrive. Any advice?
Thanks

 

[wyoDreamer]

You can start them in most anything; newspaper pots, the plastic 6 packs from last year, dixie cups, ... biggest thing is to make sure it is sterile. Bake the soil or use store bought soiless seed starter mix. I just figured out too late that I didn't soak my seed starting tray in enough bleach and that is why my seedlings start and then die off right away. The trays must have gotten moldy/infected sitting in the basement all summer and winter, unused until I grabbed them this spring. Now that I bleached it, the seedlings seem to be doing much better, at least they are not dying anymore.

 

[Cherterr]

So happy to see this thread on here. I've been sq.ft. ing for ages.. but NOW.. I have more room and just bought a roto tiller.. lol HOWEVER.. that being said.. after two months of waiting with piled on wood chips, I tilled it, then I did not make 'rows'..
I put walkways between my 4 ft. wide 'bed's. HEY.. I'm no dummy. I'm still gonna plant 'intensively'!

Look forward to getting to know more SF'ers!

*EDIT: You may be wondering WHY I had wood chips sitting for two months. Well; I purchased the place in Early March, was planning on attempting "Back To Eden' method.. (check youtube or Viemo.. lol) and it was too windy, the paper was a 'bust' and when the grass began to take over a couple of dump truck loads of wood chips... well..

The rest is History! lol I probably won't be able to do much til ?? Sept/Octo (S. Texas is nice like that), but I have managed to harvest a Zuchini! (It'll be a fight with the deer and crows, I imagine)

 

[Cherterr]

YES.. SF method using vermeculite IN THE HOLE with the seed is nearly fool proof. Everything sprouts. It's awesome.

I make a little hold w/finger, drop in some Vermeculite, (very fine grade), drop in seed, then a little more Vermeculite, cover w/tiny bit of soil, water and wa la. Green!!

 

[danib]

I ended up planting them in Jiffy pots. Then, I put the jiffy pots on a tray to hold them all. I water them that way, also..from underneath and just mist the tops with a spray bottle. So far..so good. But I need to plant many more, because if it's 16 carrots in a cell, then i need 32 carrot plants and didn't plant that many. I'm mostly worried about the tomato & cucmber plants. I got seeds that are for an indeterminate cheery tomato plant. I'd like 2 plants because my dh is tomato obsessed. lol. Just have to get this sqft spacing decided and also plans for staking them. I read in a few places that vining tomatoes can be trellised, but I think I'll attempt a "florida weave". Maybe. lol. Most of the things I read said that cucmbers should be give 2 sft cells since the grow 3 feet. Does anyone do that or do you plant 1 per sq ft? I also have to figure out the way I want to trellis those. Some people do an actual trellis, which looks right to me, and some people make what looks like a little wooden teepee and they grow them over it. Any suggestions?
Thanks. I think I'm on information over-load from all the blogs and posts I've been on. None of which are from anyone living snywhere near MA

 

[danib]

One more thing, I didn't use vermeculite because I got spooked by the readings I saw on how some contained asbestos. I just used organic dirt. I want an organic garden, and asbestos isn't welcomed. I think some bags say asbestos free. I guess I could use some when I transplant my seedlings outside. I will be using compost, that much I know.

 

[Cherterr]

Ummm....

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&ke...vptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_7jbe8u63iv_b