Grow vegetables all year in 4x4 feet boxes

A square foot garden will help you enjoy the benefits of growing vegetables all year round in a limited space.

According to Ronnie Atuhereza  Amooti,  a gardener with Go green Uganda in Muyenga, a Kampala suburb, square foot gardening simply means,  condensing a  big vegetable garden into a 4x4 feet box.

"This garden is also an outdoor decorative piece which enhances home beauty if neatly maintained," he explains.

However, Moses Busingye, another gardener advises that to make the square foot garden more effective, grid it into a series of well-manicured smaller but raised boxes.

He adds that in each box you can uniformly grow different kinds of vegetables taking into mind to crowd out weed growth.    

How square foot garden is set

Atuhereza says that like everything in life, it's wise to take location into special consideration.  Figure out where best to set your garden.

The foot square gardens enhance home beauty

"Look out for areas that receive 4-6 hours of sunlight and try to position the garden close to your house or kitchen for easy watering and harvesting," he elaborates.

When planting, consider an eye catching layout with square boxes measuring 3x3 foot to 4x4 foot.  However make sure the boxes are of the same uniform size and avoid placing them near disruptions like trees.

For a durable and neat box frame, use materials like wood, bricks, sheets among others and secure corners with desk screws to achieve a firm garden.

According to Businge,   feel the box with rich manured soils mixed well in a ratio of 3:2:1.

This means, three parts of top soils, two parts of manure, and one part of sand depending on what you intend to plant. Sand makes the soil light and to easy drainage.

"It's time to start planting plants of your choice. However, follow the recommended planting distance written on the pack of the seedlings," he explains.

Businge adds that make sure you water the plants regularly since the garden is small and easy to maintain.

Favourable plants to grow

Atuhereza says that when the plants mature, you can harvest and plant again year round.                       

In a square foot garden, you can plant vegetables, herbs and spices like spinach, sukuma, celery, parsely, cauliflower, coriander, beetroot, and cabbages among others.