🚀 go-pugleaf

Dan McLaughlin wrote:
>
>   Anybody using this method for their garden?  This is from the book
> "Square foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew (sp).
>
>                                                                 -D
>
> -- Dan McLaughlin
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi Dan;

	I have a man who lives across the road form me and uses the Square Foot
method in his garden.

	It produces 40-60% more than my gardens did when we had a large garden
in the 1960s to the 1980s, 85 X 300 feet (when my children grew up I had
a small one) it is great and easy to use.

	He uses newspapers between the rows and natural lumber so he does not
add any cemicals to his garden. Grows cucumbers on chicken wire and has
a good mix of vegetables. also grows his own garlic, melons, and other
goodies. try it and let me know how you make out.

	Planing out the placement is very important.

In article <3317326F.247F@mint.net>, Fred Worster <fredw@mint.net> writes:
|> Dan McLaughlin wrote:
|> >
|> >   Anybody using this method for their garden?  This is from the book
|> > "Square foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew (sp).
|> >
|> >                                                                 -D
|> >
|> > -- Dan McLaughlin
|> > -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
|> Hi Dan;
|>
|> 	I have a man who lives across the road form me and uses the Square Foot
|> method in his garden.
|>
|> 	It produces 40-60% more than my gardens did when we had a large garden
|> in the 1960s to the 1980s, 85 X 300 feet (when my children grew up I had
|> a small one) it is great and easy to use.
|>
|> 	He uses newspapers between the rows and natural lumber so he does not
|> add any cemicals to his garden. Grows cucumbers on chicken wire and has
|> a good mix of vegetables. also grows his own garlic, melons, and other
|> goodies. try it and let me know how you make out.
|>
|> 	Planing out the placement is very important.


For those of us who are new to this, would you explain
what a square foot garden is? How big does it have to be?
What the is the concept/thought behind it? How does it
work?


Thanks,

Gudrun
--
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Gudrun Achtenhagen
Princess of Quite Alot
http://reality.sgi.com/employees/gudrun
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

>  Anybody using this method for thier garden?  This is from the book
>"Square foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew (sp).

You can subscribe to the Square Foot Gardening email list.   Send email to
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In the body of the message put
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Best wishes,
Lindy M
gypsy@insync.net

Dan McLaughlin wrote:
>
>   Anybody using this method for thier garden?  This is from the book
> "Square foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew (sp).
>
>                                                                 -D
>
> -- Dan McLaughlin
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------Yes, I've used it most of my gardening life. I read Mel's book in the
late 1970's when it first came out.  I now use an abridged version of
SQ FT.  My beds are 4 X 28-feet and are constructed out of 8X8X18-inch
cider blocks.  I plant herbs, flowers and bunching onions in the block
holes.  The premise of super-building the soil and NEVER walking on it
to compact it works in any application.  I get great yeilds.  In fact,
if I don't get at least 60 lbs. of tomatoes from each plant, for
instance, I know that there is something missing from the soil.  But,
I do get those kinds of yields every year, because I constantly add
compost and manure.  Try it.  I think you will find it easier (after
the inital beds are  built) and much more productive than conventional
veggie gardening.  I even sell some of my lettuces and tomatoes to
gourmet restaurants.  So that  gives you an idea about the yields and
ease--because I'm basically an hour a day gardener.
Doreen Howard

On 28 Feb 1997 16:36:03 GMT, drm@wagner.sr.hp.com (Dan McLaughlin)
wrote:

>  Anybody using this method for thier garden?  This is from the book
>"Square foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew (sp).
>
First welcome to the new group. Key word "Edible". I am changing over
this year to the square foot method. A slow process dividing up a big
plot.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
John Huff
E-mail: jhu554@airmail.net
Personal Web Page: http://web2.airmail.net/jhu554
Tom & Susan Schmidtke
3S Emu Ranch
HC3, Box 1017; Bandara, TX 78003
210-796-7145

What is a Square foot garden?  it sounds good, but I can't quite figure out
what you mean.  I would join with Gudrun and ask for an explanation.  I am
always willing to find new ways to make my garden work better.  I have used
the raised garden Idea, and a few others, but this is one I have never
heard of.

Thanks. :)


--
Paul Smith
honker@lancnews.infi.net
http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Heights/3529

Seek wisdom,
for it is direction.
Seek Beauty,
for it is life.

"Paul R.B.Smith" <Honker@lancnews.infi.net> wrote:

:-) What is a Square foot garden?  it sounds good, but I can't quite figure out
:-) what you mean.  I would join with Gudrun and ask for an explanation.  I am
:-) always willing to find new ways to make my garden work better.  I have used
:-) the raised garden Idea, and a few others, but this is one I have never
:-) heard of.

:-) Paul Smith

Square foot gardening is based on the premise that it's inefficient to
grow in long rows with walkways between each row.  Carrots for example
want to be spaced a couple inches apart in the row right? So
conventional row planting gives us 2 or 3 rows of carrots in approx 4
feet.  If you had 15 rows of carrots with the rows spaced 2 inches
apart and a walkway on each side, you would use the same 4 feet of
garden.  Hmmm, 15 rows of properly spaced, healthy carrots.... or 2-3
rows.. grown in the same number of **square feet**.

Other benefits of square foot or what some call "intensive" planting
are that there is less root damage caused by walking up and down the
rows.  Once the crown of the closely planted veggies shade the ground,
the weeds will stop sprouting and those that do will suffer from the
lack of light at soil level.  And the increases in yield is huge.

I think 'ol Mel also is a big believer in trellising everything
possible.  I have probably 450 feet of 6 foot high permanent trellis
in my garden. In addition to the usual beans and peas, I run the cukes
and pickles up, smaller pumpkins, cantelopes, cherry tomatoes. I even
tried watermelon once.  Again, the same theory. cucumbers on the
ground need to be spaced about 4 feet apart. I space mine about 4-6
inches apart.  Gobs-O-Pickles.



Jim Crahan
Stevens point, WI
** Do what you want to the girl but leave me alone **

In article <01bc2680$616f8860$80a798ce@honker>,
Paul R.B.Smith <Honker@lancnews.infi.net> wrote:
>What is a Square foot garden?  it sounds good, but I can't quite figure out
>what you mean.  I would join with Gudrun and ask for an explanation.  I am
>always willing to find new ways to make my garden work better.  I have used
>the raised garden Idea, and a few others, but this is one I have never
>heard of.

It is an intensive method of planting that yields more per square foot
of garden than the traditional row method.  The basic planting area is
a square foot of soil.  These are grouped together in 4 x 4 blocks with
paths between (to reach for watering or weeding).  The planting spacing
is done based on the requirements for each plant.  For instance, radishes
are planted 3 inches apart, for 16 in a one foot square.  Vining crops
are grown vertically.  Blocks for plants that require more than 12 inch
spacing are modified to 18, 24, 36 or 48 inch spacing.  Planting is
normally done in succession style (so not everything comes ripe at
once), and patchwork style, which is visually interesting, and tends
to help avoid problems with build up of particular diseases or pests.

It tends to be both more and less labor intensive than row gardening.
Because the soil is never walked on, it never needs to be turned or
tilled except between plantings, when compost and/or fertilizer is
added.  No thinning of seedlings is needed, and once the plants grow
big enough to shade their area, weeding is much lessened.  But it is
important to go out and visually look over your plots nearly every
day, because pests can nail a large percentage of your garden if they
go unchecked, both because the garden is shrunk in space, and becuase
you're not planting extra seeds that later need to be thinned.  Mel
Bartholomew (the author of Square Foot Gardening) suggests hand
watering your plants since that will force you to check on them often.
So the overall amount of labor is lessened, but what there is to do,
you have to do almost every day.

Your local library likely has the book, so if you're interested in
reading up on it more, check there.



--
Mary Conner
trif@serv.net

LikeDan McLaughlin wrote:
>
>   Anybody using this method for thier garden?  This is from the book
> "Square foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew (sp).
>
>                                                                 -D
>
> -- Dan McLaughlin
> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Doreen, I have used a modification of this method for a long time.  I
first started it in New Orleans after reading the book, and it was quite
successful.  But it really came into its own in this garden in Arizona,
Scottsdale.  I have three raised beds, 4x8, never walk on the soil, it is
under continuous enrichment/amendment, and we raise more than we can ea.
 The limitation for us is that we cannot grow enough variety yet, with
only three beds, so there are plans for making more.  In this area, water
conservation is important, and this type of cultivation is excellent for
that, because the soil is so little exposed, and if you deliver water
only to th root zone, the saving are considerable.  Mary I