A Few Square Feet

I saw this article yesterday online…

Gardening on the square: Get more produce with less

Excerpt:

Gardening in less space with less water, less work, less digging — sounds almost as easy as going to the grocery store. That is what the Square Foot Gardening method promises. It also promises more yield and easier access.

The topic drew the biggest audience Plant Fair Nursery has had for one of its gardening seminars…

There are only two tools needed to harvest with the Square Foot Gardening method, Ross said.

“You just need scissors and a garden trowel,” he said.

Use the scissors to snip off the produce that is ready to use. When the plant is spent, pull it up, loosen the soil where it was growing (not the entire area) and add a trowel of compost and plant something different.

I am not sure about your reasons for gardening, but i get the impression that recent increases in sales of seeds, gardening supplies, and books about gardening can be linked to the bad economy.

Read this article for more of this rationale:

Bad Economy Spurs Interest in Gardening

Excerpts:

During World War II, when many foods were in short supply, Americans planted victory gardens to keep their families fed.

More than 65 years later, gardening is again in vogue as Americans search for ways to feed their families in a tough economy.

“There’s a lot of people struggling to survive who are planting gardens,” said Chris Becker, regional agent for the Alabama Cooperative Extension System in Florence. “Instead of victory gardens, we can call these survival gardens.”

SPRING MAY ACTUALLY BE ON ITS WAY

Today there is a hint of warmth in the air, and a prediction of nearly 60 degrees (plus a few days in a row of great weather). I am still a couple of weeks away from some of my early spring plantings, but I do plan to get some work done in my beds and around the yard in the coming days.

Hope you get a chance to get out in the coming days…

SQUARE FOOT GARDENING WORKSHOPS

We had 22 attend the February workshop, we have 24 scheduled to attend the March 20th workshop (I had to close registration last weekend), and I can squeeze in one or two more for the April 17th workshop.

I may schedule an extra workshop in May if there is enough interest. So pass the word along to your friends that might be interested. Tell them to send me an email if they would like to attend a workshop and haven’t registered for the Hands-On workshop in April. (afewsquarefeet@gmail.com)

VERMICULITE ORDER(S)

Six families ordered 20 bags of vermiculite on March 12th.  As of today, three families had not picked up their order.

The next order will be March 26th. Send me an email requesting the number of 4 cu.ft. bags you would like to purchase, and I will send the list to David Farmer at Junaluska Feed Center. The cost is $18 dollars per bag + tax. If the order is in by Friday morning, he will have it on Tuesday the following week.

PLANTING CALENDAR

Below is a a link to the NC Cooperative Extension Service Planting Guide.  Note that they suggest waiting 10-20 days if you live in the mountains.  My experience is that the 20 days is closer to correct–maybe even later if we are getting frosts in May:

http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/quickref/vegetable/plantingguide.html

You have plenty of time to get your vegetables in the ground.  Start thinking about starting your seedlings for May plantings soon.

SQUARE FOOT GARDENING FOUNDATION

They have updated their site in the past few weeks and it is quite flashy.  Most of the same material is there, but it may be in a different place than the last time you looked.

Go to>>>http://www.squarefootgardening.com/

STAY IN TOUCH!

Let me know how your gardening projects are going.  Stay in touch by checking out the website (afewsquarefeet.com), by email (afewsquarefeet@gmail.com) or by telephone-my SFG line is: (828) 476-4442

I saw this article online today–take a look:

Gardening so simple you can grow your own

Excerpt:

In All New Square Foot Gardening, Bartholomew breaks gardens down to literal 12″ squares. With proper spacing, that means just four plants per square. Savings to you? Well, by his math, planting in 12″ squares instead of long rows saves you 80% of the garden area. To put it bluntly (and he does): “You can grow 100% of the harvest in only 20% of the space.”

So what does Bartholomew ask of you? Lay out a 4′ by 4′ area, frame it with planks nailed together (and, if you’re so inclined, painted a crisp white). Dig up the top six inches of soil. Mix in peat moss, vermiculite and compost. Now you have a 12″ high growing area. Plant it.

Bartholomew shows you how to do everything. When to do it. How much to do it. What tools you’ll need (few). How much work lies ahead (not so much). Everything important gets a big, clear, color photograph. And, from the testimonials, it really looks as if a few minutes a day can yield a bountiful organic harvest.

I recommend reading the Asheville Citizen-Times every Saturday between now and next fall.

Linda Blue is the County Extension agent for Buncombe County and appears regularly on Almanac Gardener on UNC-TV.

Her article today was timely.  We get so excited about planting in the spring, that we often start too early, and spend lots of time covering our tracks.  Patience is a virtue–especially in the garden.

(Check the soil temperature before starting a vegetable garden) Read more>>>

Excerpt-

If you do not have nice loose, well-drained soil in raised beds it will probably be a bit longer before you can plant. Not only does the soil not warm up as fast on flat ground, it takes longer for the soil to dry out to the point it can be safely worked. If you turn some soil with a shovel, it should break apart easily. If it stays in sticky clumps when you tap the soil ball, it will form clods if you try to till it or even turn it by hand. You will be stuck with those clods the rest of the season, so let it dry a few more days and try again.

When to plant is often one of the most challenging steps for new gardeners — especially in April when some nice weather makes us feel like spring has truly arrived.

The problem is that those warm days still are followed by cold nights. So the soil temperature is still much too cold for most of the warm-season vegetables. And in much of Buncombe County we can still have frost after the first of May. So, tempting as it is, experienced gardeners know it is best to be patient and just wait until after May 5, or when the soil temperature is above 60 degrees.

I went to Asheville this morning with my wife who had to take a real estate exam. I waited around the shopping center for about an hour and looked through some of the discount stores.

I discovered a few great buys at Big Lots that might be of use to you. I realize that every Big Lots is different, and doesn’t carry the same products, but it is a great place to look.

Weed barrier fabric- I use it to cover the bottoms of my boxes, and it also goes down in the the paths before the mulch. It is nearly the same quality that I used last summer for less than half the price (3 feet wide by 50 feet long for $4 dollars per roll)

Hand trowel- It doesn’t take anything special for SFG work.  I bought a sturdy one for $1 dollar.

Scissors- $1 dollar for a nice pair of stainless scissors that should last several seasons (I didn’t buy any–but I recommend you getting a pair or two)

Compost/Potting soil- I saw a couple of different varieties in 2 cu. ft. bags.  The cost was just a little lower than the stuff I have bought at Lowe’s or WalMart.   Based on the ingredients, it looked to be similar in quality.  Remember that Mel’s Mix needs a variety of compost materials to make a good mix.  I am always on the look-out for different materials.

Square Foot Gardening, Mel Bartholomew, Square Foot Gardening Kit: Gardener’s Supply

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