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Re: brand spanking new

Square Foot Gardening List - http://myweb.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html

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Hi Ron,

Thanks for all the great info.

I bid and won the video on E-bay and it just arrived. Looks like Mel B. uses
2 X 6's to plant his beds, his were shown on a brick patio. So it looks like
I can safely use 6" for my planter box instead of building it to 12". We
absolutely don't want to buy wood, we want to use what we have around here,
and of course all of it is 6" deep.

Also about the dirt...the Topsoil places around here have a "garden mix"
that is a mixture of compost, peat moss, sand, loam, etc....seems like all I
would have to do is maybe add a bit of vermiculite and an organic fertilizer
mix. It is around $16.00 for a yard.

Hopefully I can secure one of those new-fangled compost makers so I can have
some quick compost. I don't think I want to wait around for 6 months for
compost :)

Now I just have to watch the video and learn how to make those nifty covers
to protect my newly planted seedlings...we have lots of spring rain coming
down. And we are supposed to be in a drought!!!

Susie
----- Original Message -----
From: souliere <souliere@inetnebr.com>
To: Square Foot Gardening List <sqft@listbot.com>
Sent: Monday, April 09, 2001 6:23 PM
Subject: Re: brand spanking new


> Square Foot Gardening List - http://myweb.flinet.com/~gallus/sqft.html
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>
> >  From: Susie K
> >  Hello,
>
> >  I am waiting for my husband to build me 3 raised 4' by 4' beds as I
want
> >  to buy Garden Loam from my garden center rather than try to amend
> >  my own clay soil. I am figuring my beds should be 12" if I do it this
> way?
> >  It doesn't seem like 6" would be deep enough??
>
> My long beds (4x8 feet) are nine inches tall.  So 12 inches is fine but
> don't
> feel like you have to fill all the way to the top.  Even if you want to
add
> brand new soil on top I would suggest that you at least break up the soil
> that will be underneath, you don't have to go crazy but it will help
> drainage.
>
> Carefull with the garden loam.  Some places have what is called
> pulverized soil.  It is soft and fluffy and looks wonderful, but often
> it is just clay taken from a constuction site and pulverized to make
> if fluffy, the first time it gets wet it packs down.  Even if you go with
> the Garden Loam (Assuming your store has the good stuff) I would
> suggest that you add half a bale of peat and a few buckets of vermiculite
> (strangely enough just like Mel suggests in his book).  When I made
> my beds I shortchanged the last bed on vermiculite and peat moss,
> after comparing how the bed settle, perform and how easy they are
> to maintain, I am redoing the bed I cut corners on.
> (If you buy vermiculite, buy it by the big bag.  I found that a
> 20 gallon bag (I am guessing at this, the bag was 4 feet tall) cost
> twice as much as a 1 gallon bag.  (Peat may or may not be
> a renewable resource, but you only buy it once)
>
> >  Also I am just starting and here it is almost the middle of April
> >  already. Can I still start my Spring crops (lettuce, beets, etc) this
> >  late?? I sure hope so!!
>
> It is worth a try, I don't know how accurate this map is but I like to
> use the weather channel maps as a guide.  For example
>
http://www.weather.com/maps/activity/homeandgarden/usplantingearlyapril_larg
> e.html
> (If this URL splits to multiple lines just cut and paste it back together
> in your browser)
> This map suggests that you may be just in time for the crops you
mentioned.
>
> > Also...It is just my husband and I and I plan on putting in three beds.
> >  Is this a good number for 2 people?
>
> The book suggests starting small to guarantee sucess, if you like it
> you can always add more later.  I had been gardening in my clay
> with a few rows of tomatoes etc, I then had moved to container
> gardening, so when I tried Square foot I jumped in with 4 squares
> (actually two beds 4x8).  The size was perfect.   A year or so ago
> I added another two squares, have used them as a compost pile
> for a year or two and this year I will be adding a few more squares.
> So for 2 adults and a 5 year old I have 5+ active squares plus some
> opportunistic plantings.  (zucchini on the wood pile...)  Veggies
> are a major part of our diet and the five beds will keep us in
> vegatables, salads and the renew our spice supplies for the year.
>
> >  (Wish me luck:)
> >  Susie in Washington State (Western Wa)
>
> Good Luck!  Have fun, take it in small chunks.
> Ron Souliere (Lincoln Nebraska)
>
>
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