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Category: Square Foot Gardening

What Doesn’t Belong Here?

I stumbled on a corn plant while maintaining a client’s garden a couple of months ago. Most people would have pulled the plant.

I love it when volunteers show up in the garden! Whether animal or vegetable, it doesn’t matter.

Nature is Random and Ordered

Nature is both random and ordered—certain plants like certain conditions. If conditions are right, those plants will grow.

In nature, plants grow in groups with some overlap. There will be fewer plants on the edge of the group than in the center. Different plants with similar requirements can grow in the same group.

Nature is not neatly sheared balls with perfect spacing and a mulch bed. Nature is quite the contrary.

Parts of a Corn Plant

Corn plants are wind-pollinated. You’ll never see a farmer grow a single row of corn. You’ll see corn growing in blocks so that the wind can spread pollen among the plants.

Wind knocks pollen off of the plant’s tassels, the male part, at the top of a corn plant.

Pollen falls onto the silk, the female part of the corn plant. There is one strand of silk for each kernel of corn.

Corn plants can have more than one ear of corn.

Where Did the Corn Plant Come From?

I would guess one of the neighbors had a bird feeder in their yard; and a raccoon, squirrel, or bird brought the corn to the garden. The animal must have missed a kernel, and it grew.

We’ve had a very wet summer with no drought—excellent conditions for corn.

I asked if it was okay to leave the corn plant when weeding the gardens in June. I forgot about it until my client sent a picture of the mature corn plant.

This photo was taken on June 30.

By August 22, the corn plant had matured.

When I gently rubbed the ears of corn, I could feel the plump, tasty kernels. I look forward to returning with the barbecue and some butter!

September 8, 2023
Early-March Garden Inspiration

I woke early today, I don’t know why, perhaps because of Daylight Savings. Seeing the sunrise inspired me to wander the garden with the Pentax.

The only other flower in bloom this week is Dorothy Wycoff Andromeda (Pieris japonica ‘Dorothy Wycoff’). It’s early-March with little else going on and Dorothy is covered with red buds. Andromeda is a reliable broadleaf evergreen growing 4 to 6 feet tall, the perfect size for the back of a foundation planting. Andromeda prefers partial shade, full sun can leave her foliage yellow and susceptible to lace bugs.

Gladiator Alliums (Allium ‘Gladiator’) are starting to emerge. I bought these on a whim and LOVE how easy they are to grow. Alliums, in general, are easy and deserve to be on the ‘Hard to Kill’ list.

There are several groupings of poppies around the yard. For such a fragile flower they are a ‘Die-Hard’ plant.

I have a funny story about poppies.

When my wife and I moved into the house twenty years ago there was a red oriental poppy by the front door. The previous owners were going for a period garden to match the age of the house.

My wife loved that red poppy. I didn’t realize how much until it was too late.

One day, I asked one of the crew to weed the gardens and, unfortunately, he didn’t know the poppy was a plant, not a weed. That poppy was my wife’s favorite plant in the yard. I’ve tried to replace it at least three times. I can never find a deep enough red.

My wife shows gratitude for the replacements but I can tell they’re not right in her eye. I’ll keep trying.

I bought a few tree peonies at Cricket Hill Garden in Thomaston, CT years ago. If you’re a fan of tree peonies you should visit Cricket Hill Garden when the peonies are in bloom.

The peonies have lingered since I planted them, yet it’s no fault of Cricket Hill Garden. They grow extremely slowly and only have a few flowers every year. Last year I culled two of them. This peony is surviving but only gives 3-4 flowers for a week each spring. The flowers are absolutely GORGEOUS so the plant keeps its place in the garden.

Last spring I was ‘Gung Ho’ about my square foot garden but as the season progressed enthusiasm waned. I cleaned out the weeds and vegetable plants last fall. I guess I missed the red onions. If onions can grow in the fridge why not the garden in the middle of winter?

Onions are biennials. The first year they get established the second year they flower and set seed. I should have a nice crop of onion flowers soon!

That’s it for this post. I’ve got to go move the clocks forward.

March 8, 2020
Sugar Snap Peas First Bloom

Yesterday I spotted the first flower on my Sugar Snap Peas in my Square Foot Garden. I can’t wait to try them out!

After some quick reading on the Burpee website I realized I made a few mistakes on my first try with Sugar Snap Peas.

First, I should have staggered two to three planting times 7-10 days apart to extend the harvest.

Second, I should have given the plants support. Sugar Snap Peas grow six feet tall. Looks like my peas are going to turn into a groundcover.

I’m looking forward to trying Sugar Snap Peas soon.

June 15, 2019
Square Foot Garden Update | Artwork Broccoli

My other Square Foot Garden bed is filling up fast. In this bed, I planted Sugar Snap Peas, Onion Sets, and Artwork Broccoli.

Artwork Broccoli

I stumbled onto Artwork Broccoli at Tractor Supply. Artwprl Broccoli has an upright habit and is quick to grow secondary heads once the main head is harvested. The heads of Artwork Broccoli aren’t as large as traditional Broccoli but there are more of them for a longer time.

Artwork Broccoli has an extremely upright habit.

After taking these pictures I cut off the broccoli heads and steamed them. Delicious!

If you look in the leaf axils you can see new broccoli heads forming. As soon as the main head is cut the secondary heads start growing.

Red Onion Sets

I’m also growing Red Onion Sets. I placed the sets in the soil in mid-April and after six weeks of growth, they have come a long way.

Sugar Snap Peas

Sugar Snap Peas finish out the bed. The Sugar Snap Peas have been growing fast but so far no signs of flowers.

Thanks for joining me on a tour of my Square Foot Garden. I’m looking forward to sharing more updates throughout the year.

June 7, 2019
Square Foot Garden Update | Lettuce Lovers Garden

The wettest spring I remember has my Square Foot Garden growing like, well, a weed. I planted my cool season lettuce in mid-April and it’s taken off since then.

Above is my lettuce bed. I picked four varieties of lettuce at Tractor Supply from Bonnie Plants.

Romaine Lettuce

First I planted Romaine Lettuce. I like how Romaine Lettuce stands upright and the loose habit makes it easy to harvest a few leaves at a time. I also enjoy the taste.

Iceberg Head Lettuce

Next, I planted Iceberg Head Lettuce. Iceberg Head Lettuce is my go to when buying lettuce at the grocery store. The secret, in my humble opinion, is to shred it thinly when cutting for a salad.

When reading about Iceberg Head Lettuce at Bonnie Plants I learned head lettuce grown on the east coast may not have as tight a head as lettuce grown on the west coast. After harvesting one head I agree.

Garden-grown head lettuce is a bear to clean. I watched the video below for lettuce cleaning tips. The best way to clean freshly picked lettuce is to dip it in a large bowl of water and use a salad spinner for drying.

Buttercrunch Lettuce

I’ve read Buttercrunch Lettuce has good taste and is easy to grow. I tried grocery store Buttercrunch Lettuce over the winter and the taste was strong. We’ll see how freshly grown tastes!

Green Leaf Lettuce

The final lettuce I planted is Green Leaf Lettuce. Green Leaf Lettuce resists bolting, when plants go to seed in the summer’s heat.

I find it interesting that the best name anyone could come up with for this plant is “Green Leaf Lettuce.” I wonder if the same person bred a pumpkin called “Orange Pumpkin.”

In my next post, I’ll show you my Square Foot Garden planted with onions, broccoli, and sugar snap peas.

June 6, 2019