Hello from central Massachusetts!

Hello All,

I'm planning to grow my first vegetable garden next year... yay!  I've been starting to do my research and landed here.  I know I have a lot to learn from everyone.  My brother gave me his copy of the original book from 1981, and I'm thinking about buying the 2nd edition.  

Kim

Welcome Kim from TD in Ottawa, Canada.

You definitely have to buy the Second Edition of the SFG Book. A lot of things have changed since the first edition. There's many people on the forum who will provide good advice. Enjoy!

  Kim  
from Kelejan in British Columbia.

Kim, read the 1981 by all means as it has tons of good information there. Like you, I read the book and got hooked.  the day before I started digging up the lawn, I went on to the Internet and found this site and discovered that I did not had to dig anthing whatsoever.

That was a Godsend to me, as my land is just a mass of rocks laid down after the melting of the glaciers, a bit before my time.

So all I had to do was lay my beds on top of the lawn and away I went. I went  with two 4 x 4 beds the first year, then decided it was better for me to have 6 x 3 beds so that me, being a small person, could reach into the middle of my beds without falling into them.  If you are a six-foot guy or girl, then you will have no trouble.

Please, do get the latest book and you will be up to date.  Meanwhile, if you  cannot start in your garden right now, build some beds and mix yous Mells Mix so that you are ready for spring.

KimW, Welcome to the Forum from California! Yes, definitely read "All New Square Foot Gardening", 1st or 2nd Edition. No more digging!

trolleydriver wrote:You definitely have to buy the Second Edition of the SFG Book. A lot of things have changed since the first edition. There's many people on the forum who will provide good advice. Enjoy!

Sorry, I meant a lot has changed since the first book. The All New Square Foot Gardening Book (ANSFG) is the one I should have mentioned as the one you should get. There are two editions of that ANSFG book. If you are buying it new then go for the Second Edition. I have the First Edition but I read the Second Edition that I borrowed from my local library. I didn't find all that many differences between the two ANSFG editions.

Welcome,, Kim!  You have come to the right place!  These folks are fantastic, very helpful, knowledgeable, and just plain nice!  

I love the planning almost more than the actual gardening!  (Until that first tomato or sugar snap....then, gone!  LOL!). So exciting!  

Tell us about your gardening experience, if any!  You do not need any to be successful with Mel's method.  

Yes, get the ANSFG.  Light years different.  I have done both.  Do the All New.  Saves tons of work to start up.  

Hi Kim. Welcome from Atlanta, GA! We're glad you've joined us.

Also be sure to check the archives for LOTS of hard won, practical advice...

Hi Neighbor!  Welcome to the forum.  Hope you can post photos of your garden some day soon.  Any questions you have are good...and fun for us.
Feel free to pop on over the the New England thread anytime and see what we're all up to.  

CC

Hello All,

I downloaded the latest version of the e-book from the library and I'm already on chapter 6!  I'll pick it up at the bookstore next time I go.  I'm a planner, so I can't wait to start designing my garden for the spring.

It sounds like I should get started composting so I'm ready for the spring.  I'll start to do some research about whether I can compost over the winter.

Thanks again for the warm welcome!

Kim

You can, compost that is, in winter.  Depends on what type compost style you are.  Some of us, me, do the old slow Rodale style pile.  Some do accelerated Berkley piles that cook hot.  How much time, attention, etc is what that is all about!  

I am the lazy gardener and composter!  

I cover my pile in winter so it stays where it is, versus washing away in the spring!  And cooks better!

Kim, good idea to get the physical book when you can. I love my book! It has my notes from the past 5 years written in it all over the place. That, my yearly calendars & grid plans and the monthly New England threads are how I document my progress, successes and failures. But you can start your own thread to blog in if you want. Lots of folks here do it and it's fun to see what they are up to.

Like SR, I'm a lazy gardener, too. I think there might even be a thread that we post in about how we shortcut as much as possible. If there's not, there should be.

Hello again!

I'm definitely picking up an actual book next time I'm near the bookstore!  

My husband has volunteered to take charge of the composting... lucky me!

I'm going to check out all the forums so I can learn as much as I can... especially the New England one.

Thanks for all the tips!

Kim

So much fun!  Wish some person would do my heavy lifting in the compost department!  Lucky!