10x14 area - need suggestions

[0xy]

I live in southern california and I'd like to begin planting!
Last year was a bit of disaster... I tried to grow veggies but it just FAILED.

I've a small 10x14 area that gets sun all day. I bought a couple bags of soil and turned it etc, nowwwww I need planting designs/ideas.

I'd really like tomatoes and corn. Those are what my family enjoys most, but what else could I fill up the space with?

Pepper plants are growing fairly well, but I'm setting those off to the side so they don't mix with my upcoming garden.

 

[Antau LJn]

I am not sure if southern California is much like southern Arizona. We are desert to the extreme and the sun can burn even plants that are supposed to be planted in full sun. The plants I have planted have sun part of the time and shade part of the time, which they seem to like.

What went wrong with your garden last year? Did the plants die? Did pests get to them? What type of soil do you have? Too much clay or too much sand can cause problems.

 

[Becky]

Which veggies did you previously try?

 

[Trace]

I think you have less space than you think you have. And as another poster pointed out, soil can be a big problem, too, especially in a small space like yours. If it's not good, you might want to use the mix used in square foot gardening to help it along, even if you don't use that method.

Corn likes to be in double or triple rows or in blocks so that it pollinates adequately, so that's a fair chunk of your space, even if you only do four plants.

As for tomatoes, I've found the bush varieties are the easiest to work with, but they can spread quite a bit. I've also had really good luck with cherry tomatoes, in spite of abusing them (not making sure they were watered regularly).

You'll want to add a marigold or two with your tomatoes to help keep pests at bay. There are other companion plants you might want to look into when you decide what else you want to grow.

Ultimately, what else you put in your garden will depend on two things: the veggies you and your family want to eat, and the plants that will grow in your area. The former is most critical--after all, it doesn't make a lot of sense to grow food your family doesn't like, unless you want to feed the neighbors or set up a roadside stand. The latter can sometimes be worked around, if you're willing to put in a lot of extra effort for more delicate plants that don't like your climate.

 

[eackley]

In my experience, corn takes about a square foot per plant. And you have to have a bunch of plants for them to pollinate. I have done a 3x3 foot square (9 plants) before, and they seemed to do well. You might consider planting beans and squash with your corn. Indians called this combination the 3 sisters.

The tomatoes will also eventually require about a 3 foot square spot for each plant. Mine grow to about 5 feet high, I have a cattle panel surrounding each plant, and I try to keep the shoots inside the panel.

I use basil as a companion plant to my tomatoes.

Then I have spinach, lettuce, carrots and radishes in the spring, squash and string beans in the summer. I also have a trellis for cucumbers.

 

[TheBrit]

Tomato plants, and I believe peppers can be grown straight out of "grow bags". You could put these along a wall and peg the plants as they grew. If I'm right California gets very hot almost everywhere. Your biggest problem would probably be trying to maintain enough moisture in the soil for the plants. Or start planting genuine tropical plants.

 

[Marie]

Were you hoping for an aesthetically pleasing garden, or simply one that produces veg for you and your family?

If looking pretty is your objective, then choosing plants and vegetables that produce flowers; courgettes, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, even runner beans and peas. Also perhaps consider marigolds and nasturtiums, as these have edible flowers and can add a lot of colour to a salad!

If you prefer to just have a really productive garden, Have you heard of the square-foot planting method/ The general idea is that you split your garden up into squares (usually 4ft x 4ft, so you can reach all parts without stepping on any plants) and then this 4ft x 4ft area splits into 16 exact squares, each one a square foot. This means you could start with only a few squares, and when you build up confidence with gardening, eventually convert your entire garden to the square-foot method - a 10ft x 14ft could mean you have four 4ft squares in each corner with narrow walkways between them.. Three if you dedicated a corner to your own compost heap?

In short, each small square is dedicated to one type of plant, and depending on what plant it is and the size, you can grow 1, 4, 9 or 16 of a plant in each slot. (e.g. 16 onions or 1 tomato plant). You can also build up your soil to a reasonable height, as raised beds to save back ache. Adding compost is a must as you are essentially cramming as much produce into one spot as possible (it is much closer than planting in rows etc.)

I'm thinking of posting a new thread on the subject, see what people think. It's in no way my own idea, but I do stick to it loosely in my garden, as I tend to get more produce from the space I have..

Good luck with whatever you choose to do with your garden.

 

[sissy]

tomato plants don't flower when it is to hot and that means no fruit .I VA I plant them in the fall and protect them from night cold .But if your soil is all used up and needs nutrients you will not grow much of anything .You can get organic manure and add it to the soil and epsom salts softens the soil and lime sweetens the soil.Lime also helps fertilizers work harder when you add them .You can buy a soil test kit to see what you need .

 

[pdxchristine]

check the dates on the varieties you plan on using to estimate how big the corn will be when the tomatoes are ripening. You don't want to block the sun on them - unless they will be burning up!

 

[RedNeckCowBoy007]

If you want to pack a lot of veggies into a small space, check out Square Foot Gardening. My parents used to plant a big garden, but decided that they were better off with the ideas they found in that.

 

[firelily99]

Corn is a space eater and can be problematic even for the most experienced gardener. Potatoes, beets and carrots are always good. As long as tomato plants are staked and/or caged they can be limited as to much room they take up. Peppers can be grown in pots as can many other veggies. What is it that you want to grow and eat?