Thoughts? 2020 Garden Plan with two 4x8 Beds

msomers Wed Apr 15, 2020 6:09 pm

Hello!! Absolutely loving all the great ideas and information everyone is sharing here. After taking notes from a variety of posts I FINALLY have my garden plan. We'll be starting some of our planting this weekend and I would love thoughts from anyone that wants to chime in.

The plants in blue are all that will need supports. I'm planning to use tomato cages that I already have for the tomatoes, and am thinking I'll just stake the peppers and a trellis between column 3 and 4 for the peas and cucumbers.

Thoughts? 2020 Garden Plan with two 4x8 Beds 2020_s10

So my questions:

The summers get hot and dry here in Denver, so my intention with the placement of the taller plants is to use them to provide some shade for some of the less heat loving plantings. Will this work with the orientation of the boxes?
I noticed that the spacing suggested on the seed packets don't always match with Mel's recommendations in the book. Parsley, cilantro, and tomatoes. Looks like a number of folks on this forum give their tomatoes as many as 4 boxes, instead of the suggested 1. I was going to start with 2+. Thoughts here? What about the parsley and cilantro? Should I follow the seed packet or Mel's recommendation?
With the peas and cucumbers maturing at different times does alternating them on the same trellis make sense?
Any other thoughts/suggestions related to where I'm planning to put things?

All feedback and general advise welcome!

Thank you!!

lvanderb Wed Apr 15, 2020 6:36 pm

For your tomatoes, I would suggest string training them. Like training them up a string and trimming to one or 2 main stems. Since you have them all in a line, maybe set up some sort of support structure to hang the strings from. I'll be trying that this year. I've already done the trimming to one or 2 main stems and that works very well for an indeterminate tomato.

Linda

countrynaturals Thu Apr 16, 2020 10:36 am

lvanderb wrote:For your tomatoes, I would suggest string training them. Like training them up a string and trimming to one or 2 main stems. Since you have them all in a line, maybe set up some sort of support structure to hang the strings from. I'll be trying that this year. I've already done the trimming to one or 2 main stems and that works very well for an indeterminate tomato.

Linda

I don't have that kind of discipline, so my maters go in containers, not in the SFG.

countrynaturals Thu Apr 16, 2020 10:37 am

lvanderb wrote:For your tomatoes, I would suggest string training them. Like training them up a string and trimming to one or 2 main stems. Since you have them all in a line, maybe set up some sort of support structure to hang the strings from. I'll be trying that this year. I've already done the trimming to one or 2 main stems and that works very well for an indeterminate tomato.

Linda

I don't have that kind of discipline, so my maters go in containers, not in the SFG.

countrynaturals Thu Apr 16, 2020 10:41 am

lvanderb wrote:For your tomatoes, I would suggest string training them. Like training them up a string and trimming to one or 2 main stems. Since you have them all in a line, maybe set up some sort of support structure to hang the strings from. I'll be trying that this year. I've already done the trimming to one or 2 main stems and that works very well for an indeterminate tomato.

Linda

I don't have that kind of discipline, so my maters go in containers, not in the SFG.

countrynaturals Thu Apr 16, 2020 10:50 am

Also note that there are tomatoes and then there are tomatoes. Cherry toms can be ready to eat in 60 days or less. Some of the big guys -- like brandywine -- won't even think of producing for 3 or 4 months at least.

Then there are the cucumbers. My Armenians (long, skinny guys) love the heat, so mine, planted inside from seed, are already 6" high and ready to go in the ground. OTOH, I won't even start my lemon cucumber seeds until next month, because they won't produce until the temps start cooling off in September.

Sherry G Thu Apr 16, 2020 1:04 pm

Nasturtiums tend to vine, iirc, so I would suggest Marigolds. You can get small flowering ones that don't bush as much and still have the bug control.

markqz Thu Apr 16, 2020 1:52 pm

Sherry G wrote:Nasturtiums tend to vine, iirc, so I would suggest Marigolds. You can get small flowering ones that don't bush as much and still have the bug control.

Do nasturtiums provide bug control? Now that you mention it, I notice that four squares are taken up with them. You can't really cut nasturtiums and put them in a vase. If it was me, I'd want to use those squares for more vegetables, and plant the nasturtiums some place more visible.

That said, I have two boxes in my front yard with nasturtiums planted at the front edge. The idea is that they will be trained to trail off into my bone dry front yard, providing cover and slightly disguising the vegetable greenery behind them.

markqz Thu Apr 16, 2020 2:00 pm

I wonder why Mel's book suggests only one cilantro per square? Unless you're growing seeds, they don't take up as much space as say, carrots.

Here's a picture of four in a square:

Thoughts? 2020 Garden Plan with two 4x8 Beds TA77oKk

Thoughts? 2020 Garden Plan with two 4x8 Beds TA77oKk

Usually once they get a foot and half high, they start to bolt. But of course, maybe there are varieties that are more luxuriant, or maybe I'm not growing them right.

lvanderb Thu Apr 16, 2020 2:06 pm

Some nasturtiums have less of a trailing habit - of course they might break for freedom sometimes...
However, good news, nasturtium flowers, buds and young leaves are edible.

Linda

**sanderson** Sat Apr 18, 2020 4:33 am

Mark, cilantro plants can get huge so I plant them 1/sq ft. Then they bolt and turn into coriander seeds. Very Happy

I grow them most successfully during the winter. I am trying 2 this April that I started indoors on February 25. I also have 2 parsley but I always grow them in the summer. PS: I like your lettuce. I'm trying 4 Seasons this year. So far, they are loving being in the bed and wiggling their toes. One of the herb beds last year.

Thoughts? 2020 Garden Plan with two 4x8 Beds Herb_b12

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