Hello from the Canadian Maritimes!

[Britesea]

I have 18 raised beds- 3' x 9', with 3' paths so I can get the garden cart through. Sometimes I've planted too much of one thing and not enough of another (never again will I plant an entire bed to kale!) but each year, things come into balance better. I'm hoping to flutter my eyelashes at DH and get him to make me some more raised beds, because I still don't have enough room to grow enough tomatoes and onions. We also have a small unheated greenhouse (8'x12') and I hope to get my act together this year to grow some cold hardy veggies in there (a la Four Season Garden). In the meantime, I start seeds indoors in March, move them into the greenhouse in April/May, and then into the garden in June. Most of the time this will garner me something to harvest, although our area has historically seen snow in all 12 months of the year, so fingers crossed.

Have you tried pressure canning yet? You can get a small pressure canner for quite reasonable, and it really expands what you can put on the shelves. We just went through a family-wide flu epidemic, and I was soooo happy to have cans of homemade pozole and chile verde and chicken soup, ready to open and heat up.

 

[tortoise]

I agree with the Lasagna Gardening book suggestion. I think square foot gardening is a waste of space.


The Market Gardener is my favorite gardening book ever. It discusses intensive planting. The garden is in Canada, but I think it's in a colder area than you are in? Internet says Nova Scotia is zone 5 - 7. I'm in Wisconsin, right between zones 3-4.

The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower's Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming: Severine Von Tscharner Fleming, Jean-Martin Fortier, Marie Bilodeau: 8601400881958: Books

The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower's Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming [Severine Von Tscharner Fleming, Jean-Martin Fortier, Marie Bilodeau] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower's Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming

www.amazon.com

 

[Swampduck]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I will definitely look into some of these things.

 

[Lazy Gardener]

I agree with the Lasagna Gardening book suggestion. I think square foot gardening is a waste of space.

The Market Gardener is my favorite gardening book ever. It discusses intensive planting. The garden is in Canada, but I think it's in a colder area than you are in? Internet says Nova Scotia is zone 5 - 7. I'm in Wisconsin, right between zones 3-4.

The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower's Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming: Severine Von Tscharner Fleming, Jean-Martin Fortier, Marie Bilodeau: 8601400881958: Books

The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower's Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming [Severine Von Tscharner Fleming, Jean-Martin Fortier, Marie Bilodeau] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Market Gardener: A Successful Grower's Handbook for Small-Scale Organic Farming

www.amazon.com

Re: sq. foot gardening: One thing I've noticed: all of the pics show YOUNG plants. They don't ever show plants in full sprawl/mature mode. IMO, What can be gleaned from sq. foot gardening method: the concept of intensive planting and successive planting. I would not go through all of the theatrics of sq. foot gardening: placing individual seeds into carefully mapped out squares. But... I can agree with the concept... kind of... Except that plants require much more room than Sq. ft. gardening indicates.

 

[WildBird]

Welcome! I want to get bees too, so maybe we can learn together! Good luck on your garden and have a great day!

 

[CrealCritter]

My thoughts when it comes to gardens. If you can't run with the big dogs, then stay on the porch. Otherwise go BIG or go home.

 

[YourRabbitGirl]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I will definitely look into some of these things.

Welcome to the forums!!! you're from Canada you say!!! I have family in Canada, they are into farming too... I miss them so much... have a great day!!!

 

[Hinotori]

Welcome from western Washington!

 

[Lazy Gardener]

My thoughts when it comes to gardens. If you can't run with the big dogs, then stay on the porch. Otherwise go BIG or go home.

That opinion is valid if you have the space, land, and equipment. A large garden can produce tons of food. On the flip side, that would negate the bounty that can be grown on a postage stamp. Case in point: I have more salad greens growing on a single shelf, under 4' shop lights, in my office than hubby and I can keep up with. (4' x 18") will provide an impressive amount of food. I say, use what you have. And... even if it's just a couple large pots or window boxes on a back deck... something is better than nothing.

Sometimes, less is more. I'm keeping the same size fenced foot print in my garden. But cutting back on the sq. ft. of veggie plantings in favor of turning a good portion of it into chicken/duck coop with rotating paddocks/green manure planting. Will be making up for a bit of that loss by planting ornamental veggies in flower beds, HK, and sheet composting areas.

A large garden that is poorly managed, perhaps because the size is overwhelming to the gardener, will not produce as much as a smaller, well managed garden. The smaller garden may be easier to harvest and process at peak nutrient levels.

 

[flowerbug]

hello and welcome from mid-Michigan.

with smaller spaces it can be harder to manage some plants that like to vine (tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, etc.) so it is important to find the varieties work within your space.