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- Mar 3, 2013
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- 21,725
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Square Foot Gardening - How to do a Sq Ft or Box Garden
Square foot gardening or box gardening, is, you've guessed it... all done in small squares or boxes.
This is one of the easiest ways to garden. It's perfect for beginners because it has very specific guidelines.
No need to wade through a lot of information or pile of books... there's nothing new or super cool—just remember, stay square.
It's also great for small garden owners because you can concentrate of lot of plants together and it keeps the garden in little compact spaces.
And finally because it's simple and accessible to work with, it makes gardening a pleasure for those who are less agile, frail or disabled.
But first a teensy bit of strenuous preparation. Build your garden first (the no-dig method naturally) using a solid boundary, such as planks, logs or tyres, around the edges.
Make your square foot garden beds long and narrow, or make a U-shaped bed, allowing for cultivation from either side without having to step on the garden. If your garden is against a wall, make it your arm's reach wide.
There are plenty of ways to mark out your squares or boxes. For example...
On the outside of the planks or edge, knock in short upright stakes. If they get a bit skewed sometimes, sort them out but no need to be too fussy. The inside is then divided by coloured tapes or twine into roughly 12-inch (30cm) squares.
If using tape or twine, it must be strong and thick enough so that it doesn't get lost amongst the plants. Light string tends to sag; strong twine is fine, but needs replacing yearly. Otherwise a little bit of the dreaded plastic in your garden won't hurt, such as vinyl strips, plastic clothes line or nylon rope.
OR...use wooden slats nailed to the edge of your raised box
Build 1ft square boxes or oblong boxes in multiples of 1ft. Then put these boxes side by side or in tiers.
Really these sq ft garden plots mean no wastage, and make it easy to use the minimum of seed, thus a minimum, if any, of thinning. They are concentrated little factories of delicious plants.
What to Plant with Square Foot Gardening
Per square or box (depending on varieties chosen), you can plant:
1 cabbage
or 1 pepper plant
or 1 tomato plant
or 1 broccoli
or 1 corn
or 2 cucumbers
or 3 marigolds
or 4 lettuces
or 4 celery
or 4 chard or silverbeet
or 4 garlic
or 4 parsley
or 8-9 beans
or 16 carrots
or 16 radishes
... and so on.
As with all gardens, planning your square foot garden should take into account the usual rules, like north/south aspect for sun, water availability, and prevailing wind.
And because this neat little box gardening method is so suitable for the less-than-agile gardener, make the site as near the kitchen or living room as possible so you can easily nip out for some garnish, a lettuce leaf, or spot of maintenance.
After harvesting one square, add a trowel of compost, maybe some mulch and rotate with different plants, You can see that sq ft gardening is not at all daunting as you do it square-by-square over time if necessary.
Most work can be done seated, though some people prefer to kneel. You can lean down from an ordinary plastic chair, but don't strain your back. You may find a low bench seat with back support the best. Use an adjacent light chair to help yourself to rise by putting a hand on its seat.
Square foot gardening or box gardening, is, you've guessed it... all done in small squares or boxes.
This is one of the easiest ways to garden. It's perfect for beginners because it has very specific guidelines.
No need to wade through a lot of information or pile of books... there's nothing new or super cool—just remember, stay square.
It's also great for small garden owners because you can concentrate of lot of plants together and it keeps the garden in little compact spaces.
And finally because it's simple and accessible to work with, it makes gardening a pleasure for those who are less agile, frail or disabled.
But first a teensy bit of strenuous preparation. Build your garden first (the no-dig method naturally) using a solid boundary, such as planks, logs or tyres, around the edges.
Make your square foot garden beds long and narrow, or make a U-shaped bed, allowing for cultivation from either side without having to step on the garden. If your garden is against a wall, make it your arm's reach wide.
There are plenty of ways to mark out your squares or boxes. For example...
On the outside of the planks or edge, knock in short upright stakes. If they get a bit skewed sometimes, sort them out but no need to be too fussy. The inside is then divided by coloured tapes or twine into roughly 12-inch (30cm) squares.
If using tape or twine, it must be strong and thick enough so that it doesn't get lost amongst the plants. Light string tends to sag; strong twine is fine, but needs replacing yearly. Otherwise a little bit of the dreaded plastic in your garden won't hurt, such as vinyl strips, plastic clothes line or nylon rope.
OR...use wooden slats nailed to the edge of your raised box
Build 1ft square boxes or oblong boxes in multiples of 1ft. Then put these boxes side by side or in tiers.
Really these sq ft garden plots mean no wastage, and make it easy to use the minimum of seed, thus a minimum, if any, of thinning. They are concentrated little factories of delicious plants.
What to Plant with Square Foot Gardening
Per square or box (depending on varieties chosen), you can plant:
1 cabbage
or 1 pepper plant
or 1 tomato plant
or 1 broccoli
or 1 corn
or 2 cucumbers
or 3 marigolds
or 4 lettuces
or 4 celery
or 4 chard or silverbeet
or 4 garlic
or 4 parsley
or 8-9 beans
or 16 carrots
or 16 radishes
... and so on.
As with all gardens, planning your square foot garden should take into account the usual rules, like north/south aspect for sun, water availability, and prevailing wind.
And because this neat little box gardening method is so suitable for the less-than-agile gardener, make the site as near the kitchen or living room as possible so you can easily nip out for some garnish, a lettuce leaf, or spot of maintenance.
After harvesting one square, add a trowel of compost, maybe some mulch and rotate with different plants, You can see that sq ft gardening is not at all daunting as you do it square-by-square over time if necessary.
Most work can be done seated, though some people prefer to kneel. You can lean down from an ordinary plastic chair, but don't strain your back. You may find a low bench seat with back support the best. Use an adjacent light chair to help yourself to rise by putting a hand on its seat.
