Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
This is basically the same as the traditional, but the corner posts are the same depth as the
sides, as they do not require to be fixed to the ground.
Additionally you will have to supply a 4 foot square piece of ½” to ¾” plywood for the
base.
When the frame is assembled, simply lay it on a flat surface and fix the plywood to form
the base. Fix the ply into position using rust-resistant screw nails preferably.
When this is done then drill half a dozen or so holes in the base for drainage.
I would only recommend a portable SFG that is no more than 4 inches deep, as any deeper
will make it heavy to move around; even so this is a task that will require two people.
With this in mind then it is obvious that a portable SFG is not suitable for root vegetables,
but is perfectly suitable for most beets or brassica.
Other SFG Constructions:
As mentioned, Square Foot Gardens can be constructed using a variety of different materi-
als; all that you are attempting to do is form a small area 4 foot square that will hold com-
post. I would advise however that you do not use heavily treated timber, as much as this
wouldmakesenseinnormalconditionswhenassemblingwoodinanoutsideenvironment;
to do so in the vicinity of vegetables risks contamination that may kill the plant altogether
or simply contaminate them (and yourself) with chemicals.
Either way it is not a good result! Far better to allow for the fact that your untreated timber
will 'only' last 10 years or so before it has to be replaced. Either that or consider artificial
decking material that never rots and will last you a life-time.
One construction material that I quite like - though it may not be aesthetically pleasing
for everyone - is the hollow cinder block SFG example that I have included at the begin-
ning of this topic. The reason for this is that the hollow blocks can be filled with com-
postandplantedwitheithermicro-crops(onion,scallion,herbsetc)orusedtoplantFrench
Marigold forinstance following thecompanion planting method-
more on this in the fol-
lowing chapters
.
