Square foot gardening works on the principle that each square foot of a garden can be planted to maximize the output of soil, water and seeds. Easy steps to square foot gardening success the garden glove. Central florida gardening square foot gardening youtube. Square foot gardening sq ft garden box gardens whats square foot gardening. Square foot gardening ufifas extension orange county. A guide to floridafriendly landscaping florida yards. In addition, vegetable gardening offers a good source of exercise, with the added benefits of healthy snacks and food for the table. This comprehensive guide provides recommendations primarily for home gardens.
University of kentucky id128 home vegetable cooperative. If all you are growing is a salad garden, herbs, or. Sfg is gaining in popularity because it makes gardening easier and results in high productivity compared with the space used. Image by a good and simple life here are 7 reasons to have a square foot garden.
Square foot gardening is a method of intensive gardening. Use 2x6 lumber to build a four foot by four foot square frame. Square foot gardening is an excellent way to introduce beginners to vegetable gardening. Ive turned my popular square foot gardening cheat sheets into printable minibooks. He developed a gardening system that produces a great amount of wholesome, edible vegetables. Vegetable gardening in florida vegetable gardening offers fresh air, sunshine, exercise, enjoyment, mental therapy, nutritious fresh vegetables, and economic savings, as well as many other benefits. Because taking your laptop or tablet out to the garden really isnt a good idea. Our mobile and web applications help florida homeowners stay on top of their plants and landscapes. Printable square foot gardening cheat sheets plant and plate. Square foot gardening 4 u sfg4u was established by jerry lupinos and kim roman, both certified instructors of the square foot gardening method. Vegetable gardening in florida university of florida. Welcome to square foot gardening foundation official site.
A healthy square foot gardening cucumber plant has a yield of approximately 5 pounds, and can also be grown vertically with support from a trellis. Square foot gardening is an easy to understand method of planting vegetables which splits a gardeners plot into square foot areas rather than into rows. When he created the square foot gardening method, mel bartholomew, a retired engineer and efficiency expert, found the solution to the frustrations of most gardeners. Plant and harvest more plants with a square foot garden plan. Department of agriculture, cooperative extension service, university of florida, ifas. Square foot gardening is a technique of intensive planting developed by a retired civil engineer, mel bartholomew, in the 1970s. Known as square foot gardening, this technique revolutionized the way that gardeners in all locales can produce their food. It isnt a square foot garden without a grid to help you organize your garden. University of florida, institute of food and agricultural sciences ufifas. Ufifas extension is a federal, state, and county partnership dedicated to developing knowledge in agriculture, human and natural resources, and the life sciences and to making that knowledge accessible to sustain and enhance the quality of human life. Finally, this manual is not a curriculum, but a practical florida gardening guide. In this case a structure similar to a table is built in order to add soil mixture and plant the crops. The aim is to assist the planning and creating of a small but intensively planted vegetable garden. It also contains a false floor 10 inches from the top for root vegetable growth.
Square foot gardens university of kentucky college of. Divide into 16 onefoot squares using a small strips of wood or string as dividers. Learn square foot gardening at the mother earth news fair. The term square foot gardening sfg was coined by an american author, mel bartholomew, who wrote a book under that title. How to start an organic square foot garden home guides sf gate. It does not require much room and it does not seem to mind being a little crowded. A quick and fun way to see whats in the garden each month. Other plants that require ony a quarter of a 1foot square include spinach, swiss chard, turnips, leeks and parsley. Sfg is gaining in popularity because it makes gardening easier and results in high productivity. Actually its almost the opposite, because when you have a sq ft garden layout, its rather easy to sit down on the job. Every time you eat out, you decide on where to go, what to order, whether the bill is correct, how much to tip. Square foot gardening creator mel bartholomew started the square foot gardening foundation in 1996 with the mission to help end world hunger one square foot at a time. The facts of square foot gardeninng north dakota state. We experience satisfaction in planting a seed or transplant, watching it grow to maturity, and harvesting the fruits of our labors.
This system is especially good for beginners as it makes plant spacing much easier and also makes more sense for growing in a small space as most beginners do. Instead of sowing seeds thickly though out a row, you only need 23 seeds per square to grow one plant that doesnt need the thinning that rows require. All the basics of square foot gardening now that youve learned all about this new gardening method called square foot gardening, im now going to show you the. Square foot gardening or box gardening, is, youve guessed it. Ifas communications, university of florida, po box 110810, gainesville, fl. If you havent already noticed, i am all ready for this gardening season. Vegetable gardening offers fresh air, sunshine, exercise, enjoyment, mental therapy, nutritious fresh vegetables, and economic savings, as well as many other benefits. Squarefoot gardening allows you to make your vegetable garden efficient. Because as i have pointed out many times, square foot gardening is the only method where you can have your garden on top of a table. N ow we begin to get into the real square foot garden stuff the plants and their spacings that led to revolutionary and productive methods of backyard farming. Using square foot gardening, you can comfortably grow two cucumber plants per square foot. It results in a simple and orderly gardening system, from which it draws much of its appeal. List of garden plants world war ii garden poster lettuce 45 inches between plants lettuce is my favorite vegetable to grow and eat and is probably the best suited for square foot gardening.
Each square foot is marked with a line of string as a visual. Pictures, easy to follow illustrated instructions, tips and tricks. Plant spacings in traditional row gardens can seem daunting when you are new to vegetable gardening but the square foot system simplifies this making planning your garden a whole lot easier. Mention or display of a trademark, proprietary product or firm in text or figures does not constitute an endorsement and does not imply approval to the exclusion of other suitable products or firms. Once you have your beds built, filled and planted, the next consideration is giving your plants support. Design your florida landscape, on your solution for floridafriendly gardening from the university of floridas center for landscape conservation and ecology.
Year after year you can rotate crops around the beds to ensure that there. If youd like to experiment with squarefoot gardening, mel bartholomews book is excellent. Another great plant for square foot gardening is the cucumber. Square foot gardening was created in 1975 by mel bartholomew with his first book being published in 1981 called square foot gardening.
This year we have moved our garden location, and i have decided that i am going to attempt my first square foot garden. Southern peas are legumes and include crowder, cream, and blackeyed peas, on your solution for floridafriendly gardening from the university of floridas center for landscape conservation and ecology. With simple and well defined instructions, sfg is a great way to start growing your own food quickly, and with. Our allinone, everything your need to know, plant spacing chart and planting guide. Square foot gardening why use square foot gardening. Those with basic woodworking skills can easily build their own frames for the garden, or if tools and skill are not available, the frames can be purchased at a variety of places. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading square foot gardening. Square foot gardening the ten basics of sfg 1 head of cabbage 1 head of broccoli 1 head of cauliflower 4 heads of romaine 4 heads of red lettuce 4 heads of salad lettuce 5 pounds sugar snap peas 8 bunches of swiss chard 9 bunches of spinach 16 small ball carrots 16 beets 4 bunches beet greens 16 long carrots. An introduction to squarefoot gardening get rich slowly. Southern peas gardening solutions university of florida. This beauty is surprisingly lowmaintenance, as long as theres sun. Landscape and garden festivals, workshops, and more. The gardening calendar gives florida gardeners a monthly guide for what to plant and do in their gardens and includes links to useful gardening websites, all based on university of florida research and expertise. Squarefoot garden plans layouts the old farmers almanac.
Many of you have been around long enough to remember mel bartholomews square foot gardening program on pbs channels in the 70s and 80s. Central florida gardening square foot gardening ifascdistrict. The gardening portal at nc state university provides access to a wealth of information, events and resources for gardeners in north carolina. Generally square foot gardens are created in a 4 x 4 planting area. Each of these raised, framed garden beds is planted using the squarefoot gardening technique. For those who dont want to design their garden, at least one prominent mail order catalog offers a sfg package. This gardening practice is ideal for residential areas. Mel describes the technique in his book, square foot gardening, as a system of laying out, planting, and maintaining a productive, attractive garden in any amount of space. All the basics of square foot gardening mel bartholomew. For further information on home vegetable gardening, contact richard durham, department of horticulture, university of kentucky. The idea of square foot gardening has become popular over the last few years and some of the underlying concepts of the this gardening technique make sense.
Last year, are garden was so massive in size that it would have been impossible to attempt it. Not only that, but also they tend to have less weeds and conserve water by being planted densely. Jerry and kim met while attending the residence course in eden, utah, and were surprised to learn that they lived less than five miles from each other in glen burnie, maryland. Interim county extension director a graduate of the university of florida with a degree in horticulture, ed is a ufifas extension orange county agent and a florida nursery growers and landscapers florida certified horticulture professional. As you can see from an actual picture of my lettuce plot to the left. He developed a gardening system that produces a great amount of wholesome, edible vegetables in a raised bed that is only 4 feet by 4 feet.
In southwest florida our growing seasons are not the same as most of the united states. You can grow a lot more in a much smaller space with this intensive planting method. But you can also find info online at the squarefoot gardening forum and this terrific tutorial from journey to forever. If you dont have the time or space to construct raised beds, consider starting a container garden. Good news for everyone whos been procrastinating on the garden planting. Square foot gardening northern neck master gardeners. The smaller footprint of squarefoot gardening makes it an ideal choice for beginners, those with smaller landscapes, and gardeners who might find bending down to ground level difficult. The university of florida uf is a topranked public research university located in gainesville. It became very popular because of the pbs public broadcasting station television series. I was at an industry gardening show recently and spotted a plastic box for square foot gardening.
Small space gardeners tend to get good yield and lot of variety with a square foot garden. Square foot gardening in raised beds, spacing, seasonal crops. Beginners guide mel bartholomew square foot gardening. Vegetable gardening is becoming more popularboth as a pastime and a food source. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Vegetables can be grown yearround in florida if attention is paid to the appropriate planting dates. Square foot gardening is the practice of dividing the growing area into small square sections, typically 1 foot 30 cm on a side, hence the name.
Includes photos of our own garden mel bartholomew is famous for his square foot gardens, and in all new square foot gardening, he gives us the tools we need to have the garden of our dreams. Now entering its third decade in operation, the foundation continues mels mission by introducing new. Square foot gardening commonly referred to as sfg is a planting method that was developed by american author and tv presenter mel bartholomew in the 1970s. Imagine having your own little organic garden right outside your door complete. Square foot gardening how to grow healthy organic vegetables the easy way. He is the recipient of the 2010 master gardener professorship award. Dont tell me you cant handle a small parttime business. Gardening solutions university of florida, institute of. There are really three different structures that you will probably find useful in your garden. Square foot gardening gardening solutions university of florida.
This booklet was funded in part by a section 319 nonpoint source. Square foot gardening got its start when people in small spaces challenged the idea that seeds had to be planted in a large area with lots of unused space between each row. Certified instructor wayne schirner will be giving a presentation at 11. North florida is notorious for having sandy, nutrient.
Its a simple way to create easytomanage gardens with raised beds that need a minimum of time spent. University cooperative extension program, and boards. Well be at the mother earth news fair in belton, texas on saturday, february 15th. See more ideas about outdoor gardens, vegetable garden and square foot gardening. This dream can be a reality when you build and plan a organic squarefoot garden.