It's a strange thing when growing a square foot crop: The last thing you need is a runaway success!
To go back to the start. What better plan for a school garden than to show how vegetables can be available for harvesting the whole year around? Space of course is limited so the square foot gardening concept is ideally suited. A four metre by one metre bed was duly divided into 4 one metre square beds and slate labels made up accordingly. The idea is that each 1 metre bed is divided into 9 square foot beds. This can be done permanently with wood or slate. Alternatively a wooden 'noughts and crosses' or hash frame can be temporarily deployed to help with the spacing when sowing or planting.
Of course the real challenge is the sowing/planting plan - and the timing. One year in and here is a season by season report.
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| Spring - Photographed 18/9/19 |
Spring sowing plan
| Winter Purslane | Celeriac | Kohlrabi | ||||||
| Swiss Chard | PSB (Rudolph) | Beetroot | ||||||
| Swede | Leeks | Parsnip | ||||||
Spring has suffered from being raided in December for the School Christmas Bazaar. The celeriac, kohlrabi, swede and celeriac were just too tempting when you knew you had a ready market for these crops which might not survive the cold temperatures or the predations of pigeons or soil borne pests. Not surprising as nearly all of the crops for spring harvesting are already mature before the year end but are left to hang on until the target date of 15 March.The PSB was not planted out because it was realised that it would bully all 8 of the surrounding crops and deprive them of light. Parsnips were the real surprise as they thrived in the limited space given to them. The downside was that their leaves flopped languidly over the neighbouring Spring and even Summer squares. The beetroot and leeks in particular suffered. The winter purslane seed failed to make any headway or got eaten before getting established. Swiss Chard is a real asset to any seasons planting. Cropping is the only issue as it is harvested a bit at a time and the soft leaves and fleshy stems are not easily transportable. There is a reason why supermarkets don't supply Swiss Chard and this is it.
Summer planting plan
| Lettuce | Broad Bean | Onions | ||||||
| Peas | Elephant Garlic | Strawberry | ||||||
| Radish | Spinach | Rocket | ||||||
Despite appearances from the late season photo Summer was very successful. The broadbeans cropped well but then had to be removed so as not to shadow out the rest. Lettuce grew and then bolted. Peas rocket and radish all did the same. The Strawberry is the only perennial in the whole 4 beds and is of course a dwarf variety. Both onions (from sets) and elephant garlic were the surprise winners for the Summer bed, yielding respectable quantities for the minimal space given to them (see below )
Autumn planting plan
| Fennel | Cucumber | Lettuce | ||||||
| Beetroot | Tomato | Peas | ||||||
| Leeks | Dwarf French Beans | Carrots | ||||||
Tomato (Totem) was the runaway winner in the Autumn bed. Despite its "dwarf" label it had to be restrained. Neither cucumber nor peas could compete. On the plus side it fruited well. Carrots were the surprise success here (although they would have been better if thinned more) Fennel was a no show replaced by a late sowing of coriander.
Winter planting plan:
| Leek | Coriander | Kohlrabi | ||||||
| Beetroot | Swiss Chard | Swede | ||||||
| Carrots | Mooli | Parsley | ||||||
Brassicas are great winter vegetables but given the space they need the leafy ones are not suitable for square foot gardening. (We do have a separate brassica only bed next to the 4 seasons bed). Root and stem brassicas like mooli, Swede and kohlrabi are good for this purpose, although the mooli was sown too late to reach a respectable size. Some crops (Swiss chard, beetroot) seem to suit nearly all seasons. Leeks might be another candidate for that accolade - except that this year they failed to perform wherever they were planted.
So many lessons learned this year. We plan to run the experiment for another year with the possibility of building on our experience. Seasonal greetings to you all.
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| 4 Seasons Beds on site |
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| A Square Foot of Onions |
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| Elephant Garlic |
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| Swede |
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| Kohlrabi |
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| Beetroot |
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| Celeriac |
| 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mal, this is all very interesting to me. How deep are your beds? How often do you have to water them? How much seed is planted in each square? Do you start the plant elsewhere and then transplant them in the square? My lettuce and beets grow and bolt, too. I wonder if I could place these squares randomly wherever I find a flat place? My UK English word for the day is mooli.I plant chard where ever I can. Love the stuff.
ReplyDeleteHi Jane. Maybe you know mooli as Daikon radish? The topsoil at the school is about 6 inches before you meet a compacted layer of builders rubble. (We are making it deeper with each year's mulch.) Planting is a mixture of direct sown and plug plants started at home. Parsnip, carrot, coriander, Swede to name a few, hate to be transplanted so are sown direct. One version of the square foot system just has pots bunched together but there is no reason for this arrangement other than space saving. You could locate them wherever you want (and avoid them competing for light in the process). As for watering there has not been any necessary here in Edinburgh since last June!
DeleteNo two years are the same are they ? This year has been one of the worst harvesting years that I remember
ReplyDeleteDefinitely not a good year for sweetcorn!
DeleteThanks for the idea!
ReplyDeleteGlad you like it!
DeleteHi Mal...so how did you end up in the school garden?? Maybe you can talk them into getting beehives?? Im trying to talk our headmaster into it...doesn't help that he's terrified of bees!!
ReplyDeleteOur school garden wasn't the best last year....but the year prior to that it was great!! We actually are getting more space this year...a little polytunnel and a raised bed. We grow with a purpose to supply as much produce as possible to the year 6 bisto so don't have as much free reign as you on what to grow as we are planting for a strict menu...the kids do love to see the chard bright lights grow though!!
Hi Tany - Long time. Hope you are impressed with the celeriac. I would be happy to be set a strict target like yours for the school garden. In the absence of direction we currently try to be all things to all interested parties. The Health and Safety considerations rule out some things, bees being one. What we have succeeded in doing is to be self financing with garden gate sales of seasonal produce being the main fundraiser. We also aim to be a circular economy ecologically as well!
DeleteYou must tell me what you are planning to grow (for the bistro) this year. (Herbs perhaps?)