How much time will it take?
- Where should I locate my garden?
- What size should I make my soil-beds?
- How should I arrange my soil-beds?
- What should I plant?
- When should I plant?
- What tools will I need?
- How much time will it take?
The amount of time and work required to build and maintain your Mittleider garden varies according to the size of your project, the condition of the land to be cleared and prepared, and the way you obtain your seedling plants. If you grow your own seedling plants, additional work is involved. (On the other hand, you will save on the cost of buying the seedlings from a nursery.)
Learn More
- Home Seedling Production Grow-Bed Gardening (pp. 58-60)
- Building an Inexpensive Seedling Greenhouse Grow-Bed Gardening (pp. 61-74)
A typical soil-bed garden consists of a 55' x 35' area, divided into 10 plots (soil-beds) 18" wide x 30' long, with 3 1/2' wide aisles between beds.
The following time estimates are based on a typical soil-bed garden as described above. Because growing conditions vary broadly, these estimates are only approximate.
- To clear your gardening area, construct soil-beds, and make aisles and footpaths, plan on 8 to 16 hours of labor.
- To prepare the soil, plant seeds, and transplant seedlings, plan on another 12 to 16 hours.
- To water, feed, and care for your plants after you have planted them, you should plan to spend 30 minutes per day (preferably in the early morning).
- To harvest your crop may require an additional 1 to 5 minutes per soil-bed, depending on the type of vegetable and the amount to be harvested.
To anticipate your garden work and when it needs to be done, it is helpful to create a Gardening Cycle Calendar—a month-to-month to-do list that reminds you of crucial gardening tasks. Click on Dr. Mittleider’s Gardening Cycle Calendar to see an example.
Garden Genius
Click on Gardening Cycle Calendar and create your own month-by-month to-do list. You may wish to refer to your Planting Plan to note when you need to plant specific crops.
Join the Affiliate Program
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FREE GREENHOUSE PLANS!
Download free greenhouse plans to build your own inexpensive greenhouse!
Simply join the free gardening group and under comments say "send free greenhouse plans."
Free Sustainable Gardening Ezine
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Free Garden Journal
Here is a Free Garden Journal that you can use all year long in your garden. Download now! (PDF, 447 KB)
What's New
Complete Mittleider Gardening Books now available on one cd-rom. Read more.
Tip of the Day
It's Spring Planting Time! For those of you in the Northern hemisphere who have winters, March and early April are the time you need to be preparing your soil and planting the hardy vegetable crops such as radishes, peas, cabbage and broccoli.
The freeze/thaw cycles of winter have broken up and loosened most soils, so as soon as it's not muddy, go in and give everything a good weeding with the 2-way hoe (see Tools). Weeding thoroughly this early gives you the upper hand, and is very important.
If you grew a Mittleider garden last year, your beds will be easy to re-make. Just apply Pre-Plant and Weekly Feed to the bed area, then till them in, place strings on your stakes, and re-make the beds.
Be sure to re-check the level of each bed accurately, since they may have changed a little. Do not be satisfied with anything more than 1" fall in a 30'-long soil-bed. Good Gardening!
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