# Our 2014 Backyard Produce Garden multimarkdown=yes In early May, I decided to change our garden a bit by switching to a raised-bed, square-foot garden, even though we have little knowledge on the subject. We need to study more about the compatibility of plants, watering, planting times, etc. Based upon what grows this season, we'll make better plans and learn more during the winter. more. Maybe this fall or next spring, we can try adding plastic over the garden to extend the growing season for some plants. Maybe we should stagger the planting time for each bed. Anyway, that's thoughts for the off-season. On Sat, May 24, 2014, we shopped for plants at Bench's farm/greenhouse, located along Route 2, a little west of Metzger Marsh Wildlife Area. On Sun, May 25, we bought more plants and seeds at The Andersons on Talmadge Rd. On Mon, May 26, we planted everything in our raised-bed, square-foot garden. * I built three framed beds. Each bed measures 9-feet by 4-feet. * The boards that I used to build the frame are 1-inch by 8-inch untreated pine. * I bought 6-foot boards from Home Depot. I connected the boards with straight and right-angle brackets and screws.The brackets are thin and small. It's not exactly sturdy construction, but I wanted to go cheap this first time out. This setup should last a few seasons. * The soil within the framed beds consists of our own yard soil, along with bags of Holy Cow manure compost, mushroom compost, and peat moss. I bought these items from The Andersons and Titgemeier's. Maybe next year, I'll add a mix of equal parts peat moss, compost, and vermiculite. * I did not bury in the beds the landscape cloth that prevents weed growth. We'll see how it goes this year without the cloth. * I used twine to define the grids. * I removed soil between the frames and added it to the beds. This caused the aisles to get muddy after a rain. I bought straw from Titgemeier's and placed it on the aisles. This helped a lot. ## Plan ### Frame Layout Original plan to be replicated across all three beds.
northwest | ||||
A | B | C | D | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Peas (8) | Tomato (1) | Tomato (1) | Tomato (1) |
2 | Carrots (16) | Bush Beans (9) | Spinach (9) | Beets (16) |
3 | Radishes (16) | Cucumbers (2) | Egg Plant (1) | Broccoli (1) |
4 | Pepper (1) | Carrots (16) | Peas (8) | Bush Beans (9) |
5 | Pepper (1) | Cucumber (2) | Bush Beans (9) | Peas (8) |
6 | Pepper (1) | Celery (1) | Celery (1) | Celery (1) |
7 | Okra (1) | Egg Plant (1) | Okra (1) | Egg Plant (1) |
8 | Cucumber (2) | Lettuce (4) | Lettuce (4) | Pepper (1) |
9 | Tomato (1) | Carrots (16) | Red Onions (16) | Green Onions (32) |
southeast |
Plant | Sqrs Per Frame | Plants per Sqr | Total Plants Per Frame | Grand Total Sqrs | Grand Total Num Plants |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tomato | 4 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 12 |
Egg Plant | 3 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 9 |
Pepper | 4 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 12 |
Radish | 1 | 16 | 16 | 3 | 48 |
Cucumber | 3 | 2 | 6 | 9 | 18 |
Celery | 3 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 9 |
Okra | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 6 |
Spinach | 1 | 9 | 9 | 3 | 27 |
Beets | 1 | 16 | 16 | 3 | 48 |
Lettuce | 2 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 24 |
Beans | 3 | 9 | 27 | 9 | 81 |
Peas | 3 | 8 | 24 | 9 | 72 |
Carrot | 3 | 16 | 48 | 9 | 144 |
Green Onion | 1 | 32 | 32 | 3 | 96 |
Red Onion | 1 | 16 | 16 | 3 | 48 |
Broccoli | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
Grand Total | 36 | - | 219 | 108 | 657 |
northwest | ||||
A | B | C | D | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Peas (8) S-A | Health Kick Tomato (1) P-B Jun 9 replaced broken tomato |
? Tomato (1) P-? | San Marzano Plum Tomato (1) P-B |
2 | Carrots (16) S-A plus 4-5 bean seeds |
Bush Beans (9) S-A | Spinach (9) P-? | Beets (16) P-? |
3 | Radishes (16) P-? | Cucumbers (2) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? | Broccoli (1) P-? |
4 | Pepper (1) P-? | Carrots (16) P-? | Strawberries (2) P-A | Bush Beans (9) S-A |
5 | Pepper (1) P-? | Cucumber (2) P-? | Bush Beans (9) S-A | Broccoli (1) P-? |
6 | Cucumber (2) P-? | Celery (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? |
7 | Okra (1) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? | Okra (1) P-? | New Egg Plant (1) P-B Jun 9 replaced broken egg plant |
8 | -Strawberries (2) P-? | Lettuce (4) P-? | Lettuce (3) P-? | Sorel (1) P-? |
9 | White Onions (32) P-? | Carrots (16) P-? | White Onions (32) P-? | White Onions ? (32) P-? |
southeast |
northwest | ||||
A | B | C | D | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Peas (8) S-A | ? Tomato (1) P-? | ? Tomato (1) P-? | Amish Paste Plum Tomato (1) P-A |
2 | Carrots (16) S-A | Bush Beans (1) P-? | Spinach (9) P-? | Bush Beans (9) S-A |
3 | Radishes (16) P-? | Cucumbers (2) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? | Broccoli (1) P-? |
4 | Pepper (1) P-? | Carrots (16) P-? | Strawberries (2) P-A | Bush Beans (9) S-A |
5 | Pepper (1) P-? | Cucumber (2) P-? | Bush Beans (9) S-A | Broccoli (1) P-? |
6 | Pepper (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? |
7 | Okra (1) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? | Okra (1) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? |
8 | Strawberries (2) P-? | Lettuce (3) P-? | Lettuce (3) P-? | Sorel (1) P-? |
9 | Cherry Tomato (1) P-? | Carrots (16) P-? | Onions ? (32) P-? | Onions ? (32) P-? |
southeast |
northwest | ||||
A | B | C | D | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Peas (8) S-A | San Marzano Plum Tomato (1) P-B | Health Kick Tomato(1) P-B |
Amish Paste Plum Tomato (1) P-A |
2 | Carrots (16) S-A 4-5 bean seeds |
Bush Beans (1) P-? | Spinach (9) P-? | Beets (16) P-? |
3 | Radishes (16) P-? | Cucumbers (2) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-B |
4 | Pepper (1) P-? | Carrots (16) P-? | Pepper (1) P-B |
Bush Beans (9) S-A |
5 | Pepper (1) P-? | Cucumber (2) P-? | Bush Beans (9) S-A | Egg Plant (1) P-B |
6 | Pepper (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? | Celery (1) P-? |
7 | Okra (1) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? | Okra (1) P-? | Egg Plant (1) P-? |
8 | Red Onion (16) P-? | Lettuce (3) P-? | Lettuce (3) P-? | Sorel (1) P-? |
9 | Cherry Tomato (1) P-? | Carrots (16) P-? | Red Onions (16) P-? | Red Onion (16) P-? |
southeast |