# square foot garden



## sgtrunningfool (Dec 8, 2012)

Has anyone ever used the square foot garden method? What did you think and was it successful?


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## Startingout-Blair (Aug 28, 2012)

I am planning in using this method this spring. Haven't tried it yet


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## sgtrunningfool (Dec 8, 2012)

I have the wood for the bed ready to go. Just need to go get the soil stuff


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

I like the look of square foot gardening but I tend to plant more intensively than that in my horse trough containers. I have homemade tomato cages that are about 16 inches in diameter and 4 feet tall. I'll plant 2 or 3 tomatoes in each cage and plant mixed salad greens all around them and inside the cage. Using those same cages I'll plant beans (Blue Lake pole, purple pod pole, scarlet runner) at each upright wire then plant carrots in and around the bean plants. The same for cucumbers and melons with salad greens and/or radishes.


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## sgtrunningfool (Dec 8, 2012)

Aurora I would love to see pics of the garden in horse troughs. I would not switch if you have something that already works. I am actually doing some stuff in containers, some stuff in rows and a square foot bed that is 7x3. I am pcsing in October so I do not wanna waste too much money on beds


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

Only one of those horse troughs has anything growing (big enough to actually see in a picture) in it and it has white soft-neck garlic and elephant garlic growing in it. I'll try to remember take a picture of it tomorrow when there is decent light again. I'll have to take more pictures once they are planted and growing green again.


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## OldCootHillbilly (Jul 9, 2010)

I use it an like it. Them raised beds be nice an weedin be lots easier cause ya ain't walkin on the soil.

Easy ta care fer. Also, ya can tuck em in here an there.


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## mtexplorer (Dec 14, 2012)

I'm planning on converting to this method this spring. I like it because the water I use stays in the area where the roots are and need it most. Last year I built berms around everything to minimize water usage but I was continually maintaining them due to erosion from storms and wind. 

Also going to use the pvc hoops this year to protect from hail storms and such


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## kejmack (May 17, 2011)

I use raised beds with "intensive planting". It is not the square foot layout exactly, but densely planting in a way that he lays out in the book. The yields are great. I will never use anything else.


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## PreparedRifleman73 (Nov 2, 2012)

Startingout-Blair said:


> I am planning in using this method this spring. Haven't tried it yet


Same here. Good luck to you


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## goatlady (Nov 7, 2011)

Been using that basic raised bed method since he first came out with it 20 years ago. will never use any other method. I use his spacing measurements but do not mix crops in the same bed, that gives me lots for canning and drying for winter. A good trick is to staple weed barrier on the bottom of those beds before you fill them with whatever. Guarantee you will not spend any time weeding! I use PVC or flexible black water pipe for hoops and have both shade cloth and Remay to cover the beds entirely depending on what is needed during the season. Keeps most all bug infestations out of the veggies and extends the growing season at both the start and end of the regular seasons. I use all compost in the beds to start with and then add several inches more each year to perk up the nutrients in the beds. I have that black seepy hose laid in each bed, all beds connected and can water my 12 beds all at once just by turning on 1 faucet. The hose is buried so there is no or very littel water loss and it all goes to the root systems. I can plant 144 bush bean seeds in one 4x4 bed and harvest at least 35 pounds of beans from that bed while sitting on my upturned bucket with no strain on the back or knees. LOVE the system.


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

sgtrunningfool said:


> Aurora I would love to see pics of the garden in horse troughs. I would not switch if you have something that already works. I am actually doing some stuff in containers, some stuff in rows and a square foot bed that is 7x3. I am pcsing in October so I do not wanna waste too much money on beds


These are 40 gallon horse water troughs from Tractor Supply Company. Davis likes red so we painted one red and painted the others silver (to cut down on heat from the sun).

This one had muskmelon in one cage and mixed salad greens seeds scattered in and outside of the cage. The melons outgrew the cage and climbed binder twine to a run line/cable we have stretched from the garage to the fence so I would have someplace to hang bird feeders.










The red trough had a tomato cage with 2 Black Cherry tomato plants and 2 grape tomato plants. Carrots were planted inside the cage and radishes were planted outside it. I planted some late fall greens in it but I think all of the green things growing in there now are weeds.










Brandywine and Rainbow heirloom tomatoes, 2 of each, were planted in the cage that was in this trough. Northern Lights Swiss Chard was planted outside the cage and carrots were planted inside.










In all of these pictures you should be able to see lots of pecan husks, a few pecans and the mini-sprinklers/drip heads we installed so we wouldn't have to use the hose to water the plants every day. What I forgot to mention was that we planted 2 sweet potato vines in each tub and enjoyed the view as well as the baked sweet potatoes.

We planted late and had a hot spell that lasted for two months, or more. Tomatoes won't set fruit when the daytime temperature is above 93-94 degrees so we didn't see many tomatoes until the growing season was almost over. The heat stressed the heirloom plants so much that we didn't think they would set fruit. This year we will be planting much earlier AND the herbs which were in pots on the patio table will be planted in this:










This packing crate measures 10'6"x5'3" and is about 14 inches deep. I want to put it on cinder blocks so I don't have to do so much bending when I'm working on it. I will probably have to contact a landscape company to have 1 yard each, organic garden soil, composted manure, and peat, delivered AFTER I get whatever stuff is used to treat decks and treat the wood so it won't rot out in 2 years.

Those cylinders of rewire are our homemade tomato cages. These were made from re-mesh/rewire panels purchased at Lowe's. This year we will need several more so I am going to purchase a 100 foot roll of re-mesh rather than the panels. Pole/runner beans, mini-muskmelon, mini-watermelon, cucumbers and tomatoes will be growing up rather than out. Perhaps next year the planting list for the cages will include squash, pumpkin and gourds.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

I read Mel's book and adapted his practices to fit our situation. We plant too much to be able to afford making raised bed structures, so instead we have raised bed rows (no edging, but it works fine) that are 4 feet wide and 60 to 80 feet long. We also don't use Mel's Mix for the same reason (we plant too much, can't afford it). But we amend the soil as best we can by adding partially composted material each year (we should have a well established compost system in place this year).

This will be our fourth season gardening, and this method has worked well for us.


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## sgtrunningfool (Dec 8, 2012)

I am gonna build my box this weekend if it doesn't snow. It will be 7 foot long by 3 ft wide. Only because that is the space I have to put One. I got all of the wood from large pallets I got for free. I even managed to salvage the nails to reuse


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## tsrwivey (Dec 31, 2010)

I read & have the book but got hung up on what to build the beds out of. Untreated wood will rot in a few years & treated wood will contaminate the soil. Haven't come up with an economical substitute. I thought about hardiboard but still wonder about the contamination issue. We raise our rows about 10 inches & make them about 3 ft wide.


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## sgtrunningfool (Dec 8, 2012)

I understand the which wood to use issue. I figured if I got the wood for free it would not be a big deal to replace it. I also thought about use pressure treated wood and then line the inside with thick plastic


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## PackerBacker (Dec 13, 2012)

Treated isn't going to contaminate the soil as much as it kills the life in the soil that is in contact with it.


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## goshengirl (Dec 18, 2010)

To edge something with wood I use the cedar fence planks used for privacy fences. I don't have them in the veggie garden, but I've used them elsewhere and they hold up well - better than pine, anyway. They're six feet by about 5.5 inches - dog eared at one end, but that can be cut off if it's a problem. They run about $2 at Home Depot and Lowes.


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## Locutus (Apr 24, 2012)

I've heard that leftover pallets are available for free from Lowes and Home Depot. Haven't checked it out personally yet but will soon...I plan to use them to construct stacking potato frames and maybe raised bed frames.

AuroraHawk: Be careful treating wood for raised garden beds. Make sure what you use for treatment is non-toxic. For that crate you might want to consider lining it with plastic sheet instead, but make some allowance for drainage if you do.


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## Meerkat (May 31, 2011)

OldCootHillbilly said:


> I use it an like it. Them raised beds be nice an weedin be lots easier cause ya ain't walkin on the soil.
> 
> Easy ta care fer. Also, ya can tuck em in here an there.


Also you can put up hoops around them in case of cold snap.We have 8 raised beds.We built 4 closer to the house.I just leave the hoops up then I can throw plastic sheeting over them if needed.


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## PackerBacker (Dec 13, 2012)

Meerkat said:


> Also you can put up hoops around them in case of cold snap.We have 8 raised beds.We built 4 closer to the house.I just leave the hoops up then I can throw plastic sheeting over them if needed.


How is that unique to a raised bed?


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## AuroraHawk (Sep 12, 2012)

Locutus said:


> AuroraHawk: Be careful treating wood for raised garden beds. Make sure what you use for treatment is non-toxic. For that crate you might want to consider lining it with plastic sheet instead, but make some allowance for drainage if you do.


Not to worry, Locutus. I'll be using Penofin Verde or something similar with low VOC. I'll be researching more before I start working on it.


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