Garden Basics (Thoughts From the Garden Episode 1)

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Every week we’ll be releasing a bonus feature on Wednesdays with useful garden tips. This week is about garden basics.

My Garden Basics Philosophy

Gardening isn’t farming. It’s entirely different. My two goals of gardening are: 

  1. Have a continuous harvest of fresh veggies 
  1. Keep us in veggies all winter long 

To do this, I follow the gardening basics. The gardening basics are: 

  1. Permanent Beds 
  1. Permanent Pathways 
  1. Perfect Soil 
  1. Grid Planting 
  1. Using a trellis as much as possible 

By using these simple techniques, we can grow a lot more in a lot less space with a lot less work. With these you’ll never have to break out the heavy equipment. This method of gardening began in Paris over a century ago and is known as the French Intensive Method.

There are lots of books you can refer to on this method. My favorites are: 

  1. The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible by Ed Smith 
  1. Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew 
  1. How Grow More Vegetables by John Jeavons