We all love gardens but not many of us plant one. It’s difficult to keep a garden in small apartments and maintain it with our busy schedule. Square foot gardening comes to the rescue. It’s a simple small garden on a raised square bed filled with a soil blend called Mel’s Mix.

The method is nothing new. It’s been around for almost 40 years now. First developed in 1970 by American Author and TV presenter Mel Bartholomew, it rapidly gained popularity in the 1980s. He has also written a couple of books and has a television series on square foot gardening. There are also several companies providing ready-to-assemble SFG gardens. They do not require fertilizers and they’re extremely eco-friendly.

How to build a Square Foot Garden?

It’s too simple.

-First of all, build a box. 4 feet by 4 feet and 6 to 8 inches deep and made from wood, vinyl or cinder.

-Fill it with Mel’s Mix, the special soil mixture containing blended compost, peat moss, and coarse vermiculite.

-Place a permanent grid that divides the box into one-foot squares.

-Plant equally spaced plants per square foot.

For detailed information on the SFG, check out melbartholomew.com.

Benefits of Square Foot Gardens

-Takes less space. SFG reduces 80% of the conventional gardening space.

-Less care and maintenance. You don’t need to step into the garden so the digging required is greatly reduced.

-Weed control. There is very few or no weed at all as there are no rows of crops and only a few seeds are required.

-Overplanting is reduced.

-Variety. A large variety of plants can be planted in SFG like onions, cabbages, peppers, beans, coriander.

-No heavy tools required. It’s pretty easy gardening and doesn’t require much tools and attention as it is restricted to a small area.

-It’s eco-friendly. The gardens not only give a fresh look to small spaces, they also provide homegrown fresh veggies and fruits which do not contain fertilizers.

So get friendly with the eco-friendly trend! Plant your own garden and enjoy the fruits of what you’ve sown.

To get in-depth coverage of square foot gardening, check out an amazing article on Morning Chores here.

Image Credits – squarefootgardening.com