We are working with a small space for our garden this year, which is always a fun challenge. I have plans to plant potatoes, summer and winter squash, onions and more in flower beds next to the house. The garden beds are reserved for everything else and I felt like we needed a plan to make sure we maximized that space.
I did an inventory and I currently have almost one hundred packets of seeds. How does this happen? Well… I have lots of friends that I swap seeds with, I get “garden fever” in plant stores and make impulse buys, and I travel to amazing gardens that have fun seeds in their gift shops. The first step to making the garden plan was deciding which varieties from all these options to plant this year.
The next step was deciding what should get planted where. Here are some considerations to ponder:
- companion planting – which plants would benefit each other by being close together?
- protection from the backyard livestock – which ones can stand the chickens or ducks walking over them and which ones are hardier?
- sun and shade – which plants don’t mind a little shade from a taller plant, which ones will get big and shade others out, which ones want full shade
I made a scaled plan because I’m anal. The circles are all based on the plants’ mature size and I moved them around until I found a combination that worked well. I grouped heirloom vegetables from Thomas Jefferson’s estate together to make a little Monticello garden and I’m really excited to see how these historic plants turn out.
In addition, I put together a spreadsheet to get an idea of when we will be reaping the harvest on these veggies. It helps me plan for a continual harvest and to consider which plants can be re-planted mid-summer for a fall harvest. It takes careful planning to stretch the harvest through the winter.
I would love to hear how you put your garden together. Is it random or planned? Do you tend to stick to a plan if you have one? It’s always fun to trade stories about how we all tend our homesteads.
What did you use to make your charts? Getting creative with Excel, or are you using something gardening specific?
I am using Adobe InDesign. It’s an easy program to make shapes, move things around, and do layouts for presentations/books/etc. I just make the shapes a specific size, so they are all to scale.
Nice plan! I tend to start with a plan…but once I get to planting, things never seem to quite go as I anticipate, so the plans get “modified”!
OMG!! Nay-Nay, how did you ever get so anal about the garden?? Just a quick note to let you know Vintage Station will be at the Monticello Mall Spring Garden Show in case you are in Portland in April or May. We have lots of fun garden stuff!
I love the Monticello seed theme. I’m a fellow urban homesteader- but in the cold clime of Minneapolis. I posted all of the varieties we’re planting this spring, but wasn’t ambitious enough to create a planting plan. Not yet at least.
My seed selection is at: http://eighthacrefarm.blogspot.com/2011/03/ready-for-thaw.html if you’re interested.
Cheers!
Jeff
I love your scaled plan! I’m equally anal and do something similar, with colored squares instead of circles. I also track seed-starting, growth, and seasonal highlights (weather, yields, etc.) for my primary summer crops (tomatoes, peppers and eggplants) in a spreadsheet – It’s super helpful as a reference for future years.
In terms of which plants go where, the decision is largely made for us, at least in terms of our sun-loving summer veggies. We only have so much sun, and our heat-seekers get the lion’s share. I tuck radishes in under plants wherever I can until it gets too hot – makes for a nice double harvest in a single space.
One thing I’ve found helpful: using pots for my smaller pepper plants – this saves space in our main raised bed for larger plants. And the pots get really hot in a full day of sun – my fruits ripen quickly (relatively, anyway; it’s Portland). Pepper plants are really pretty too; anyone looking for a potted ornamental edible would likely be happy.
My goal this year is to improve the 4-season aspect of our garden. I’m still getting my head around seed-starting in July but I really love the idea of a continual harvest. I like your spreadsheet that puts everything on a timeline… I think I’d benefit from doing something similar.