Square Foot Gardening

I'm just curious where the idea came from and when. The square foot gardening method seems like a hot thing right now. This is the first season I've seen a lot of people trying it. My sister has never grown vegetables before and she sent me a text with a photo of a few raised beds in her backyard divided up with string.

I've seen those too, I'd like to see a squash stay in a sq foot or a watermelon.

I've got the book and some of it works but I've got two beds of melons and squash that ain't studying on staying in a square. I do use some of the formula for the soil. 1/3 of vermiculite, sphagnum moss and top soil.

I'm not knocking the theory behind it. This just happens to be my first time seeing it done or seems that is grown in popularity...from people on here and my sister and some of her neighbors.

Yep, squash and melons take up alot more space. I anticipate some over crowding in my garden this season. Planted squash 3 ft rows/plants 15" apart. I tightened up some of the spacing to accomodate some more vegetables.

Like so many things in the backyard garden horticulture world it was started by pot-heads trying to grow the perfect strain of weed. I've seen High-Times magazines from the 80's that show them growing in squares to create hybrids. It probably started that way because most bedroom closets are square.

There used to be a show on APT (I think )called "Square Foot Gardening". I used to watch it alot when I was younger.

The only square foot gardening I used was just so I had a blue print of what exactly was in my garden especially gestation times and knowing what was where when it was all still in the dirt as a seed

I did melons and cantaloupes in my SFG last year, but I trellised them and supported the fruit in pantyhose hammocks. It worked pretty well. My squash pretty much took over the bed I put it in though.

We have been doing square foot gardening for several years now and have really expanded it this year. We have snake beans , butter beans, black beans, tomatos, peppers, articoke, asparagus,watermelon, zucchini,sweet potatoes and a really nice herb garden.....It is so much easier to care for!!!!!