I started my first vegetable garden 12 years ago after moving to the northern New England. With no hands-on experience, I devoured every gardening magazine I could lay my hands on until my head was spinning. With over an acre available to me I was overwhelmed. Where would the garden go? How large? What to grow? Quite by accident I stumbled upon an article explaining square foot gardening, and it was love at first sight.

The simplicity of the method is what truly grabbed me. A 4' x 4' square yields 16 square feet of growing space. Each square foot becomes its own little garden or a complete square can accommodate a particular crop. And the accessability to everything planted within the 4x4 square is no more than an arm's length away. There is no need for sophisticated equipment, a shovel, trowel and sturdy water bucket is all that's required.

Once you have determined what you want to grow, you can then determine how many squares you will need. Keep in mind that one side of each square can be used for vertical growing which takes up much less space and provides great yields. Buy utilizing 4 square feet you can grow 4 tomato plants vertically. Or 8 cucumber plants or 16 pole beans.

I initially began with 6 squares leaving two foot paths between the squares. Believe me, for this neck of the woods, my method was extremely unconventional for locals who thought I had lost my mind as they watched me tending these little beds. But before long they were more amazed than amused. My first garden, a total of 24 square feet, was filled with everything imaginable from peas to peppers,and everything in between including marigolds. Not only were the yields wonderful, but this tiny garden evolved into a magnificent patchwork of colors and textures, all beautiful and all edible.

Since then the garden has grown to twelve squares, roughly 34' x 10' plus an asparagus bed which will be ready for its first light cutting this year. Maintenance is at most 7 hours per week which is a very minimal amount of time when you consider the end result. I have acquiesced and placed my pumpkin patch down in the field. I am now considering starting a herb garden using the same principles. The possibilities are endless. Vegetables, flowers and herbs. What more could you want!

Find yourself a copy of Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew, then get your soul into the soil!