Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
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Your Garden
One of the first things I thought when we moved to a large city lot was that I wouldn't be able to
have a large, idyllic garden. I had a picture in my head of a big field planted with rows and rows
of crops. What I got was about a quarter-acre total, so our personal home garden is only 20×60.
What can you grow in a small space? As it turns out, you can grow a lot!
My husband Sidney's parents live on 40 acres, and their garden last year was more than 2 acres.
But our small plot out-produced theirs by the end of the 2011 growing season.
In this chapter, we look at all the tools backyard farmers have in their arsenal for maximizing their
garden's potential. Whether you have a few containers on a backyard patio, or a larger garden plot
to work with, you can grow more food than you would think at first glance.
Some of these techniques will be the basic steps that everyone can take right from the start. For
example, vertical gardening is as simple as creating a trellis and tying up your vegetable plants as
they grow. Others might seem more advanced at first, but trust me, if I can do them, so can you!
Increasing Crops Through Intensive Gardening
Planning my garden is the best part of winter for me. I love to doodle in my garden journal, paw
through pretty garden catalogs, and dream of warmer weather. What I've learned is that by plan-
ning your garden wisely you can double the amount of produce you grow each year.
Using crop rotation and planting in succession with multiple plantings in a single year, you'll be
able to grow more produce in less space. Yes, growing more vegetables more often asks a lot of your
land and soil, which is why I've spent the last couple of chapters discussing how to build up your
soil's fertility. Use the techniques in this chapter, combined with what you've learned in the previ-
ous two chapters, and you'll be well on your way to producing more food for your family than you
thought possible.
