How many square is too many squares?

I think the only limiting factor to "how many squares is too many" is money. A simple suggestion would be to add a 4'x4' bed each season so you know when you're at your limit, although 3-4x4 beds per person is probably a good starting point(or Mel wouldn't have suggested it otherwise!).

If you start small and add small, I don't think you'll go wrong and end up with too much work. Just make sure you have some storage space for leftovers of vermiculite and peat moss(30gallon garbage cans with lids are great for this).

Last year I started a "salad" bed. Just 2 2x4s on the south side of my house. After it started producing I was worried it was too much. I am the only one that eats salads very often at my house. Hubby will eat a chef salad sometimes lol..

As it was growing, I actually had people that were walking by asking if I had extra! Including my mail carrier! So any extra I had was spoken for before I picked it! Just a phone call to pick up!

I had also added two more 4x4s in the back so had three of them. Still had to build a 4x6 for my garlic!
I know...sounds like a lot of garlic lol but my children and friends all love garlic so this is something I can grow to share without it costing more than the startup!

This year hubby is helping to put in two more 4x6s. My oldest daughter now lives a block away and has a part time job. The extra veggies will be for her and the grandmonsters!

Although I will pick the strawberries when the 2yr old is NOT around! The little bird mouth followed me as I harvested last year lol...

So the total squares I have are 88 at present (I plant tomatoes, zucchini, and squash in 5 gal buckets of MM) with another 48 planned. So the total for the end of year will be 136 for me and my hubby with sharing and some canning.

Time wise, after the making of the beds and the main planting, is mainly planting/watering/weeding/harvesting, will be about a half hour to an hour a day on days I have to water. I water by hand from rainbarrels. This time will be less at times with grandchildren and children helping.

I am not going to call that my last total on squares! Never say Never lol....

I say +1 to the auto watering idea here in sunny florida that is the most labor I do water,water,and more water. Last year we had a record drought, during the hottest part of the summer I watered twice a day, even with the MM . If you can install an automatic drip system you could have more squares with less work. My garden is tiny, hope to expand this spring. It is in the front yard so my neighbors kid me that all I do is sit there and watch the veggies grow. That is just because I get the chores done early before the sun gets too hot then kick back and enjoy.

If my husband has his way we will end up with about 960 squares.

I keep trying to tell him let's wait on that but he's so insistant, lol

We too have big plans for our land. It's only 3 acres and it's rocky and uneven as all get out but .. it's what we have and we're gonna work with it!

I am expanding from 80 to 240. I had 1 long bed last year 20' long. I am rebuilding to nothing longer than 4x8. 20' was to long.