Can we Practice “Square Foot” Gardening in Greenhouse Environment?
The concept represents a system of intensive farming in limited spaces. While growing in a greenhouse, we unintentionally follow the same cultivation method where every “square foot” counts regarding watering and plant’s inputs requirement.
The most common difference is that square foot gardening allows cultivating several vegetables at a time and instead of growing them in linear rows. The growers take full control over planting vegetables, microgreens, and Cannabis in assorted blocks and could easily grow companion plants along with the mainstream plantations. This combination allows the gardeners to take advantage of growing plants that make an environment sustainable for all types of species in one place. In order to minimize the grower’s efforts best practice shows us the using an environmental controller will greatly improve the total yield.
Beds Design for “Square Foot” Gardening
Specially designed raised beds with outer frames developed from a superior wood like cedar is the best solution for holding 8 to 12 inches deep-planting material. An ideal height for the raised beds is kept between the said range while some gardeners plant vegetables in even 6 inches’ deep beds. More deep beds mean planting tubers, Cannabis, and root crops become possible. The raised beds frame according to the needs and the space available within a greenhouse. The ideal size is somewhere between 4×4 feet that provides 16 squares to plant 16 different species of your choosing. Square foot partitioning is also possible using the wood already utilized for making frames. Easy accessibility is the only priority when making beds of different sizes, i.e., 2×4 Feet, 4×8 feet, or 4×12 feet, etc. A walkway is mandatory when adjusting raised beds in the greenhouse, which is often 2 feet between the beds.
Soil or Planting Mixture for Raised Beds
If the fertility level of the available soil is satisfactory, utilize it as this is the most convenient for filling raised beds to the desired level. Mixing 1/3rd compost or completely rotten farmyard manure with 2/3rd available fertilize soil makes an excellent growing media. Drainage of the raised beds could increase with the addition of sandy loan to the soil media.
Planting Density and Layout
If required, trellises on the outer squares would allow you to grow Beans, Squash, Peas, Tomato, Bell Pepper, and Cucumber. Bushy and erect plants like Cannabis will take their place in inner squares, smaller in the 3rd, and microgreens in the outermost squares.
Plant Space “Square Foot” Guide
It guides on how many plants you can grow per “square foot” of available space.
Cannabis 1 Beans 1 Garlic 9
Bell Peppers 1 Thyme 4 Parsley 4
Cucumbers 2 Mint 1 Cilantro 8
Eggplants 1 Sage 1 Tarragon 1
Green Onions 16 Basil 2 Squash 1
Kale 1 Lettuces 2 Carrots 16
Peas 9 Broccoli 1 Spanish 9
Tomato 1 Asparagus 1 Turnips 9
Zucchini 1