Creating the New Garden(s)
May 1, 2008
It’s official - I have garden fever. My symptoms include creating a satellite vegetable garden (even bigger than my own) in my in-law’s backyard and helping a relative to create a flower AND vegetable garden. Not only that, I’m growing vegetable and flower seedlings for all three new gardens and also flower seedlings for my partner’s grandmother. Ack! On top of that I’ve offered to take care of a fellow Ottawa blogger’s garden during her vacation and am thinking about taking part in the Kemptville Farmer’s Market opening at the beginning of June. That’s it, I think my case is terminal.
In preparation for this bigger-than-my-own satellite vegetable garden, I’ve come up with a basic layout that I’d like to share. I’m working with a 16 foot by 32 foot space where 2′-wide mulched paths divide the space into six 4′ x 15′ rectangular beds. This way you only have to reach 2′ into the bed at any point to do weeding and harvesting.
What do you think? I haven’t included the location of any of the vegetables yet and am just trying to finalize the overall layout. Looking at this plan, I’m wondering if I should go to 6′-wide beds instead of 4′.
May 1, 2008 at 4:00 pm
YAY GARDENING FEVER!!! And you’re doing all that on top of what I assume is a full-time job? Suddenly my work load feels lighter.
We just finished building two 4′ x 8′ beds and I think the 4′ width is perfect. I experimented with reaching in to the middle of the bed before we actually nailed the boards together and it was comfortable. I think 6′ wide might be too much.
May 1, 2008 at 4:18 pm
Hi Gillian,
I think 6′ is too wide as well, however, I had to consider it when I was told that it was “too small”. When you’re standing in the stringed perimeter it does seem small, however, once you envision filling it up with soil, mulch and plants producing lots of fruits and veggies you can start to feel how big it’ll be. Especially when you factor in weeds and watering. This will be the space that I put a lot of the larger vegetables like potatoes, corn, pumpkin, squash, rutabaga and watermelon. It’s a test area as well where I hope to plant some sweet potato slips if they ever start growing from the tubers.
Yes, I’m a little bit overwhelmed right now but I hope that it’ll settle down soon. Hopefully after I plant the gladiola corms, pot up the seedlings, sow the melons and squash in peat pots and direct sow the radish, beets, onion bulbs, spinach, lettuce and carrots. That and more.
May 12, 2008 at 4:34 pm
[...] in a bit and then we started creating the pathways. Instead of doing the “H” in the initial design, we decided that two pathways would be enough. After four hours of work we finally had the garden [...]