All New Square Foot Gardening – Grow More in Less Space
Author – Mel Bartholomew
2006 Cool Springs Press
Newer editions available

Source – Purchased my copy from a local library sale

Do you enjoy gardening? If so, do you realize math is used throughout the gardening process from planning to harvesting? The All New Square Foot Gardening book is a perfect example of how math is naturally applied in gardening.

Brief Description –The author,a former civil engineer and efficiency expert, made a list of all the ineffective , inefficient and unnecessary steps of traditional gardening and shares his method of Square Foot gardening. For example, he simplifies the process by eliminating long rows and wide spaces between each row. Bartholomew wanted to know how far two people could comfortably reach into a garden without losing their balance. So, he asked an older lady and a big husky man to help him test an idea. Each person was able to reach in two feet. Thus, walking around a garden and reaching in two feet resulted in a 4 x 4 foot garden. Hence, he named the book to reflect the results.

Likes -
*I like how the math of gardening is explained in detail.
*Conversational tone
*Detailed instructions and explanations on why
*Plenty of pictures
*Text boxes with tips and “Mel says” comments
*Planting charts

To Be Desired – It does not happen often, but I have no dislikes. I guess that’s why over 2 million copies have been sold. However, we could always use more pictures.

Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. SFG, New and Improved
3. Plan Your Garden
4. Building Boxes an Structures
5. Mel’s Mixed Essential for Square Foot Gardening Success
6. How to Plant Your All New Square Foot Garden
7. Growing and Harvesting
8. Vertical Gardening
9. Extending the Seasons
10. Special Gardens & Gardeners


Appendix includes
--- Basil and Beyond
--- At a Glance Vegetables (spacing per foot, growing season, weeks from seed to harvest, etc.)
--- At a Glance Herbs and Flowers
--- Plant Profiles
---- Mel’s Final Summary
--- Planting Charts
--- Glossary
--- Planting Grids
--- Mel’s Mailbox
--- Index
--- Meet Mel Bartholomew

Comments
If you would rather not build your own box, there are ready to use square foot gardening kits.

See Free and Budget-friendly Math Books

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