A Simple system that adapts to all levels of experience, physical ability, and geographical location. Grow all you want and need in only 20% of the space of a conventional row garden. Save time, water, work and money!
Out Produces Every Other Method Known
Requires very little space; 80% less than conventional gardening.
Can be done in as little as 4 feet by 4 feet, -- or as large as you want. Your existing (bad) soil doesn't matter because we don't use it. Start with an ideal soil mix that is weed-free and requires no tilling.
Uses much less water; only about 20% compared to conventional gardening.
No fertilizers or pesticides to handle -- it's all natural
The planting method requires no thinning and very few seeds.
All the hard work has been removed in the Square Foot method - only the enjoyable part remains.
Can be started in any season.
Produces 5 times the harvest of a conventional garden.
Can be done by those with physical or mental limitations. If getting down is a problem, raise the boxes to a wheelchair level.
Makes a great family project, all ages can participate - kids love to garden.
No Weeding! No Thinning! No Heavy Digging
Largest Selling Garden Book In America, - EVER
What Could Be Easier Than This!?
1. Build A Box
2. Fill With Mel's Mix
3. Build A Grid
Would you like a garden filled with beautiful flowers, luscious vegetables, fresh herbs, but NO WEEDS or HARD WORK? Well, that is what Square Foot Gardening is all about. I’ve taken all the hard work out of gardening. No heavy digging, watering, weeding, thinning, or over-flowering harvest. What is left is a productive, well-kept, colorful garden that looks more like a landscaped area than a typical single-row garden
New Method Easy to understand User Friendly Great for beginners Locate Anywhere Close to your house Economical Reduces everything 5 to 1 Efficient Twice as much in half the space Easy to Protect from pests and weather Earth Friendly Reduce Reuse Recycle Very Productive Just enough as you need it
The Ten Basics of Square Foot Gardening:
1 - LAYOUT Arrange you garden in squares, not rows. Lay it out in 4' by 4' areas.
6 - CARE NEVER WALK ON YOUR GROWING SOIL. Tend your garden from the aisles.
2 - BOXES Build boxes to hold a new soil mix above ground.
7 - SELECT Plant a different flower, vegetable, or herb crop in each square foot, using 1, 4, 9, or 16 plants per square foot.
3 - AISLES Space boxes 3’ apart to form walking aisles.
8 - PLANT Conserve seeds. Plant only a pinch (2 or 3 seeds) per hole. Place transplants in a slight saucer-shaped depression.
4 - SOIL Fill boxes with Mel’s special soil mix: 1/3 compost. 1/3 peat moss, and 1/3 coarse vermiculite
9 - WATER Water by hand from a bucket of sun-warmed water.
5 - GRID Make a square foot grid for the top of each box. A MUST!
10 - HARVEST When you finish harvesting a square foot, add compost and replant it with a new and different crop.
Selecting Your Location:
Pick an area that gets 6-8 hours of sunshine daily.
Stay clear of trees and shrubs where roots and shade may interfere.
Have it close to the house for convenience and protection.
Existing soil is not really important. You won’t be using it.
Area must not puddle after a heavy rain.
Terrific Book ! -- A Common-Sense Revolution in Gardening.
I received this book as a gift and it has been my near-constant companion ever since. I can't imagine gardening any other way now.
Mel has a gift for explaining things in a clear and entertaining manner. Join the Square Foot revolution and enjoy more produce with less work!
Reviewer: A reader from Los Angeles, CA -
A Great Book for a Suburban Gardener.
This is one of the 2 books that actually got me into gardening (the other being Christopher O. Bird's "Modern Vegetable Gardening"). Like most suburban dwellers, I have a back yard that does not lend itself to traditional gardening.
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