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| Click on Image to Enlarge Mel Bartholomew in His Square Foot Garden in Old Field on Long Island Photo Credit: Roger Thurber |
Today, The Hamilton Spectator published my article entitled: "Mel's Square Foot Garden. "It's a tribute to an innovative gardening guru who, "dared to suggest that there might be a better way."
I was surprised to receive a lovely acknowledgment of my article from Steve Bartholomew; Mel's son and the Director of the Square Foot Gardening Foundation. Steve wrote, "Nancy, thank you for your wonderful article about my Dad. [This] Friday will make one year since his passing and he is missed dearly."
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My own battered copy of
Mel Bartholomew's original Square Foot Gardening book |
Special to The Hamilton Spectator
by Nancy Haigh Gordon
Back in the early 1980s, traditional vegetable garden philosophy was shaken up by an enterprising retired engineer who dared to suggest that there might be a better way.
A relative unknown, Mel Bartholomew created the unique and engaging gardening method that became the title of his book, "Square Foot Gardening."
The name and method struck a chord with gardeners around the globe.
A square foot garden, as envisioned by its creator, essentially consisted of any number of 4-foot by 4-foot wooden raised frames filled with growing medium and divided into 16 individual gardening squares. Each of these delineated squares could, with a few exceptions, hold one, two, four, nine or 16 plants, depending on growing space required per plant.
For instance, Bartholomew's plan allowed for one plant each of asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, eggplant, okra or pepper per square; two cucumber plants; four chard, corn, lettuce, potato or strawberry; eight pole bean plants; nine bush bean or spinach plants; 16 small beet, carrot, or onion plants; or one tomato plant (for each of nine squares).
His system allowed even the beginning gardener to mix and match crops, based on their own preference, using the square foot gardening parameters.
No wonder his method was so successful; essentially, Bartholomew predicted that in two months, one 4-foot by 4-foot square foot garden bed could produce at least four heads of romaine, five pounds of peas, nine Japanese turnips, 12 bunches of leaf lettuce, 16 each of scallions and radishes, 18 bunches of spinach and 32 carrots: quite a haul for a garden space of just 16 square feet.
Additionally, Bartholomew advocated vertical frames for climbing support; intermixing vegetables and herbs with annuals for colour as well as disease and pest prevention; and protective features and crop rotation to extend the growing season.
He predicted that his new gardening method would not only eliminate the need for pesticides and all but minimal cultivation, but would also require less watering, thinning and weeding. Simply put, Bartholomew had, "found a better way to garden – one that's more efficient, more manageable, and requires less work."
Immediately taken with the concept, I rushed out to buy "Square Foot Gardening," and convinced my husband to help me put the method into practice in our backyard. It was a great success.
Years later, I incorporated the same principles in another backyard garden, although on a smaller scale and, recently, the square foot gardening method came back to me while I was researching the incorporation of vegetables and herbs into the perennial pollinator garden in my front yard.
Sadly, during this exploration I discovered that Bartholomew passed away last spring, albeit at the respectable age of 84. And though I only knew him through his book and subsequent television show, reading the unexpected news of Bartholomew's death suddenly made me feel I'd lost someone special.
I still have the book, fittingly battered and well read. It continues to be an inspiration, although I haven't recently applied the concepts in true square foot gardening form.
This spring and summer, however, I'm going to employ some of Bartholomew's tried-and-true methods in my front garden. I believe his "better way to garden" will be transferable, even without the raised beds.
It would also be a nice way to honour the memory of a gardening guru I greatly admire.
A relative unknown, Mel Bartholomew created the unique and engaging gardening method that became the title of his book, "Square Foot Gardening."
The name and method struck a chord with gardeners around the globe.
A square foot garden, as envisioned by its creator, essentially consisted of any number of 4-foot by 4-foot wooden raised frames filled with growing medium and divided into 16 individual gardening squares. Each of these delineated squares could, with a few exceptions, hold one, two, four, nine or 16 plants, depending on growing space required per plant.
For instance, Bartholomew's plan allowed for one plant each of asparagus, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, eggplant, okra or pepper per square; two cucumber plants; four chard, corn, lettuce, potato or strawberry; eight pole bean plants; nine bush bean or spinach plants; 16 small beet, carrot, or onion plants; or one tomato plant (for each of nine squares).
His system allowed even the beginning gardener to mix and match crops, based on their own preference, using the square foot gardening parameters.
No wonder his method was so successful; essentially, Bartholomew predicted that in two months, one 4-foot by 4-foot square foot garden bed could produce at least four heads of romaine, five pounds of peas, nine Japanese turnips, 12 bunches of leaf lettuce, 16 each of scallions and radishes, 18 bunches of spinach and 32 carrots: quite a haul for a garden space of just 16 square feet.
Additionally, Bartholomew advocated vertical frames for climbing support; intermixing vegetables and herbs with annuals for colour as well as disease and pest prevention; and protective features and crop rotation to extend the growing season.
He predicted that his new gardening method would not only eliminate the need for pesticides and all but minimal cultivation, but would also require less watering, thinning and weeding. Simply put, Bartholomew had, "found a better way to garden – one that's more efficient, more manageable, and requires less work."
Immediately taken with the concept, I rushed out to buy "Square Foot Gardening," and convinced my husband to help me put the method into practice in our backyard. It was a great success.
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| The Beginning of my own successful square foot garden in the 1980's |
Years later, I incorporated the same principles in another backyard garden, although on a smaller scale and, recently, the square foot gardening method came back to me while I was researching the incorporation of vegetables and herbs into the perennial pollinator garden in my front yard.
Sadly, during this exploration I discovered that Bartholomew passed away last spring, albeit at the respectable age of 84. And though I only knew him through his book and subsequent television show, reading the unexpected news of Bartholomew's death suddenly made me feel I'd lost someone special.
I still have the book, fittingly battered and well read. It continues to be an inspiration, although I haven't recently applied the concepts in true square foot gardening form.
This spring and summer, however, I'm going to employ some of Bartholomew's tried-and-true methods in my front garden. I believe his "better way to garden" will be transferable, even without the raised beds.
It would also be a nice way to honour the memory of a gardening guru I greatly admire.
