I also was inspired by Square Foot gardening. This is my 4th year. I now have over 600 sq. ft. of garden beds on the property. I used electrical conduit for my hoops. It holds up in my harsh climate.
I prefer alfalfa for my nitrogen. No soy is allowed on the property. We got 4 Buff Orpingtons Wednesday. Next year, free nitrogen from their poop. (laughing) We have to build a movable coop next week. They will go all over are meadow that the furtherest beds are. They have to be caged “free range” up here. Death from above and below is too numerous to thwart any other way.
The ground is no longer frozen. I uncovered 15 feet that has our strawberry plants. They perked right up after I got the beds tended. I get at least 60 pints from them. The outer gardens in the meadow will be uncovered next week, compost forked into them, ready to plant by the end of the month. The tobacco, tomatoes and peppers will be started in a small growing tent in the garage this month, too. My garlic planted last fall is already 8” tall. A few onions I stuck in also came up. I do not know if the artichokes came up in the outer area yet.
This month will be brassicas, spinach, more onions and carrots. Next month will be everything else. After getting each bed planted, I cover them in plastic, making a ton of tunnel greenhouses. It is one way to grow things in the northern regions. Our growing season is very short.
Oh, be sure to go very light on nitrogen wherever you plant carrots and other root crops. Otherwise, your carrots come out like little headless and armless people... Forked. They still taste great, but a booger to peel.
All nightshades get a dose of finely crushed eggshells and pinch of sulfur, blood meal, bone meal and bat poop. That seems to make them happy. Beans and legumes get a pinch of fish emulsion.
I cannot wait to get started. The chickens will be helpful, eating bugs and providing next year’s composted poop fertilizer. A perk- my egg allergy may from what they are normally fed, soy. I found an organic feed that uses lentils and nuts for the plant part of their feed. Soy-free eggs and meat. One can hope. At least the family can enjoy them if it is not the cause, yes? .
Alfalfa meal is a great organic fertilizer. Alfalfa is also something that can be grown at home if you have the space. Makes great feed as well as great fertilizer.
I am not big on soy either, but I am not allergic to it. I did have some edame that was in a container of assorted veggie platter for dipping. It was good in stir fry, but is not something that I would normally buy, nor grow. For beans I like Pintos and Navy or Great Northern as well as green snap beans.
I have a little less than 200 sq. ft, and 96 sq. feet of that is quite close to a walnut tree. I work around that by using containers for the Tomatoes and Peppers at least once every 3 years.
Hubby has about 1000 sq. ft. for regular garden, and then he has his fruit trees, grapes, and berry bushes. We are blessed with several native species: Walnut trees, butternut, hickory and persimmon trees. Blackberry bushes, honey dew bushes, wild roses.
I don’t add high nitrogen materials to the space where I plant those carrots and other root veggies. After the heavy feeders such as tomatoes and peppers, I just add in some compost and plant the root veggies like carrots.
Do you ever grow any winter cover crops?