Square Foot Gardening High-Value Veggies

by Mel Bartholomew

  COST/LB.

  $2.51

  $1.49

  VALUE

  $20.08

  $11.92

  INPUT

  $3.95

  $3.95

  ROI

  $16.13

  $7.97

  ROI%

  408%

  202%

  GARLIC

  Garlic is one of the most useful vegetables you can grow, included in many kitchen dishes and excellent even alone, roasted, with a little cheese and bread. Choose from the three basic types of garlic:

  Soft neck: The most common and the type found in most supermarkets. Smaller, regular heads, classic garlic flavor.

  Hard neck: Has a straw-like center stem, off of which the bulbs form. Hard-neck varieties are larger, with a greater range of flavors than soft neck. ‘Killarney Red’ is a beautiful, striped garlic with a distinctively nutty flavor.

  Elephant: Not technically garlic, but is sold and grown as such. Produces a large, more mild-flavored head.

  Plant a bulb from a head of garlic, about 2 inches below the surface of the soil, in fall after the first frost. The soil should be nutritious and well-drained. Plant it with the pointed end up. Mulch the site well. Do not plant garlic where any other member of the onion family has recently grown.

  In spring, leaves and stalks will grow, until they stop in early summer. When the stalks are brown, carefully dig up the bulbs and store or use. Kept in a cool, dark location with good air circulation, garlic bulbs can last months.

  Value Added:

  • Put your garlic to work as a pest deterrence for other plants in your garden. Garlic is a common companion plant to tomatoes and roses, and it deters aphids and Japanese beetles.

  • Garlic makes wonderful housewarming and dinner party gifts. Leave the long dried stalks intact after harvesting and braid them together.

  NAME:

  Garlic, #4

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  6.75

  COST/LB.

  $3.75

  VALUE

  $25.31

  INPUT

  $0.10

  ROI

  $25.21

  ROI%

  25,213%

  TURNIP

  This is another cool-weather crop that is actually two crops in one. The roots are filling vegetables while the greens make highly nutritious and flavorful additions to salads or a side dish braised with pork or ham.

  You can plant turnips in spring or fall, but fall is often the better choice. Sudden heat in early summer can cause the greens to go bitter. As summer comes on, the plants will bolt. Turnips love rich, well-drained soil. Plant seeds about two months before the last frost date in spring, and ten weeks before the first frost date in fall. You may be able to grow the root over winter in mild southern regions with no winter freeze.

  Turnips are ready for harvest when the tops are about 8 inches tall and the roots are about 3 inches in diameter. You can harvest them young without losing any flavor. If you’re using the greens, they are best cooked as soon as they are cut. They will only keep in a refrigerator for two to three days.

  Value Added:

  • Turnip greens will eventually yellow and die during the season. Removing them as they do will encourage further leaf growth. The same is true of harvesting greens as the plant grows.

  • If you love turnip greens, overplant. Crowd the plants together when seeding, and wait for the greens to get just big enough to pick, and then harvest the entire plant to thin out the plot. It’s a great way to have abundant greens and plenty of turnips.

  NAME:

  Turnip, #6

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  9.00

  COST/LB.

  $2.55

  VALUE

  $22.95

  INPUT

  $0.09

  ROI

  $22.86

  ROI%

  25,400%

  LEEK

  Leeks are a misunderstood garden gem. Offering a more elegant, understated flavor than yellow or white onions, leeks are every bit as easy to grow if you understand just a little bit of what this plant needs to thrive.

  Choose the best leek for your location. Colder, northern regions are generally better suited to the less-hardy “short season” varieties, planted in spring and harvested in late summer or fall. Long-season varieties can take almost four months to mature and are hardy enough to grow into winter in warmer southern zones.

  No matter where or when you’re planting your leeks, you’ll want to create a loamy, nitrogen-rich bed that drains well but retains moisture. Leeks like near-constant moisture.

  As the plants mature, mound soil up to the bottom of the greens. This ensures that the more flavorful white portion remains pure white and tasty.

  You can harvest leeks young to use as you would scallions, but you get the best flavor from mature leeks that are 1 inch or more in diameter. Loosen the soil before pulling them up to protect against breakage or damage.

  Value Added:

  • A little bit of soil in the rings of a leek can ruin a dish. Although it’s always wise to clean leeks thoroughly before cooking with them, you can protect against soil infiltrating between layers by slipping a cardboard toilet paper tube down over the seedling’s green stalks. The tube will eventually rot away, but will prevent any soil you mound from making its way down into the growing vegetable.

  • If you’re growing a Square Foot Garden, try the high-yield method of using the top hat, which is a no-work, no-mounding method that we use for all root crops such as potatoes, leeks, and scallions that will produce almost twice the harvest of that desirable white stem.

  NAME:

  Leek, #7

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  9.00

  COST/LB.

  $2.11

  VALUE

  $18.99

  INPUT

  $0.27

  ROI

  $18.72

  ROI%

  6,933%

  SQUASH, WINTER

  The sprawling vines of winter squash can be intimidating to some gardeners who don’t want their yard or garden taken over by one crop. But you can keep squash plants in check and healthier by growing the crop up a trellis or other vertical support.

  This is an unusual vegetable, picked only at the end of fall, when the skin has hardened and the vines die. Because of the thick skin on a mature squash, these beauties keep for a good long time—deep into winter—without losing a bit of their pleasingly rich and sweet flavor.

  Plant at least two presoaked seeds per hole and snip off the smallest seedling if both seeds sprout. It pays to keep the soil moist during the season, and weed as necessary, although the leafy vines often shade out most weed growth.

  Harvest the squash after the first light frost kills the vines and leaves, but before a hard freeze. Cut the stem from the vine with pruners, leaving at least 1 inch of stem. Then wipe clean and cure the squash in a sun-drenched spot that warms to around 70 degrees Fahrenheit during the day, protecting it at night. Leave it out for two weeks to fully cure.

  Value Added:

  • Winter squash grows both male and female flowers that must cross-pollinate for the fruits to grow. However, harvest one or two of the male blossoms (the first ones that bloom on the plant) as a lovely decorative edible to add to salads.

  NAME:

  Squash, Winter, #8

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  15.00

  COST/LB.

  $1.23

  VALUE

  $18.45

  INPUT

  $0.30

  ROI

  $18.15

  ROI%

  6,050%

  SPINACH

  Nutritious and flavorful, spinach is a favorite leafy green of gardeners everywhere for its versatility in the kitchen. However, many home gardeners find it a challenge to grow because it simply won’t tolerate heat. The trick is to plant as early as possible for a spring crop.

  The plants will grow in partia
l shade, making it a little easier to keep them cool. Spinach is usually planted from seed because it doesn’t transplant well. Plant as early as feasible in spring, drop seeds into a 1/2-inch deep hole and cover with a plastic cold frame or cover. Make sure the soil is rich and nutritious and keep the soil constantly moist during the growing season.

  You can help your spinach plants endure warming weather by heavily mulching around the plants. You don’t have to worry about diseases with spinach, but do keep an eye out for aphids and leaf miners.

  Harvest the outer leaves as soon as the plant is bushy. You can continue to harvest whatever you need as the spinach grows, but when the weather heats up and you suspect the plant will bolt, pull the entire plant and use the remaining leaves for a side dish or salad.

  Value Added:

  • If you live in a temperate zone or region, maximize your garden value by growing the spinach beyond fall and into winter. As long as the plant doesn’t freeze, there’s a good chance it will produce all through winter.

  • Next to water, spinach loves nitrogen. Side-dress the plants with an organic nitrogen fertilizer for bigger leaves and bushier plants.

  NAME:

  Spinach, #9

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  6.75

  COST/LB.

  $2.89

  VALUE

  $19.51

  INPUT

  $2.97

  ROI

  $16.54

  ROI%

  557%

  MUSTARD GREENS

  Combining the allure of lettuce and the complex flavor of sturdier greens such as collards and kale, mustard greens are a wonderful addition to a salad-producing vegetable garden. The flavor is spicier and more peppery than other greens, making mustard greens excellent for salads or sandwiches. These cool-season greens are also relatively fast growing and highly nutritious.

  Although seed companies recommend planting many seeds in one hole, thin your plants, or seedlings before planting, to ensure the bushiest growth possible. As soon as the seedlings establish and become robust, a hit of fertilizer will ensure bushy, thick, and quick leaf growth.

  The plants are not overly susceptible to insects or disease, but do keep an eye out for cabbage loopers and cabbageworms.

  Gardeners harvest mustard greens in one of two ways: taking just the outside leaves, or cutting down the entire plant, leaving a couple of inches at the base to regrow. Choose depending the quantity of greens you’ll be able to use at one time. In any case, you can harvest the first leaves about a month after planting when they are about 6 inches long.

  As with other cool-weather greens, a light fall frost will add sweetness to mustard greens. In fact, you may be able to grow the greens deep into winter in southern zones.

  Value Added:

  • For optimum harvest, avoid stressing your mustard green plants. These are sensitive garden greens that don’t like drought or heat. Keep the soil moist and ensure the plants don’t overheat.

  NAME:

  Mustard greens, #11

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  8.00

  COST/LB.

  $2.01

  VALUE

  $16.08

  INPUT

  $2.18

  ROI

  $13.90

  ROI%

  638%

  ONION (YELLOW, WHITE, RED)

  Onions are some of the most practical crops you can grow, not only because they have so many uses in the kitchen, but also because they can keep for months if properly stored. There are subtle differences in cultivation between the three basic types of onions, even though any onion is very easy to grow. Within these three, you’ll find an amazing number of varieties from which to choose—all offering their own unique flavors. Red, white, or yellow hybrids will last months once harvested and dried, but certain types of onions need to be used fairly soon after harvesting.

  Onions can be planted from seeds, seedlings, or “sets”—small bulbs. If your cool-weather growing season is short, it’s best to plant sets. Otherwise, you can quite easily grow from seeds.

  Red onions are the sweetest type of onion and are wonderful pickled. Red are the best choice among onions to grow from a set. To plant a set, dig the hole about 2 inches deep and drop the set in the hole root-end down. (The root end is the brown, flat side.) Choose ‘Red Creole’ for a spicier flavor, or grow a red cipollini for a tiny, surpassingly sweet red onion.

  If you cook for a large family, you might want to select a bigger variety of yellow onion, such as ‘Big Daddy’. The traditional ‘Walla, Walla, Sweet’ has a signature flavor and is incredibly versatile. The white ‘Exhibition’ is a sweet version of the white’s usually mild flavor.

  Keep an eye out for thrips and treat them with insecticidal soap. You may occasionally experience onion maggots. If so, cover unaffected plants completely with netting, mounding soil around the base of the netting to create an enclosed net tent.

  Onions generally don’t need any fertilizer help, and avoid adding nitrogen to your soil, which can cause greater top growth and a smaller onion bulb. The plants will only need a weekly watering, and you should stop watering once the tops start to fall over and brown.

  All bulb onions are harvested the same way. As the stalks turn yellow, you may want to force them over with a rake, so that the plant’s energy is refocused to the bulb. Loosen the soil around the onion and pull it up. Lay the harvest on a window screen or chicken wire for several days, until the paper covering and top dry out. Onions with green or thick tops should be used within one or two days.

  Value Added:

  • Be aware that if you choose to plant your onions from sets, the plant will be more prone to bolting than it would otherwise be. That is why sets are better in regions with cooler summers. If you decide to plant sets, pick out 1/2-inch bulbs, which are less likely to bolt.

  • Plant radish seeds along with your onions for a trap crop that will draw root maggots away from the onions.

  NAME:

  Onion, yellow, #12

  Onion, white, #18

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  16.00

  12.00

  COST/LB.

  $0.83

  $0.87

  VALUE

  $13.28

  $10.44

  INPUT

  $1.28

  $1.28

  ROI

  $12.00

  $9.16

  ROI%

  938%

  716%

  NAME:

  Onion, red, #20

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  8.00

  COST/LB.

  $1.13

  VALUE

  $9.04

  INPUT

  $1.33

  ROI

  $7.71

  ROI%

  580%

  PUMPKIN

  Pumpkins are definitely in the running for the title of most purely fun crop you can grow. This fall crop needs the right site, with nutritious soil, lots of sun, and a steady supply of water right through harvest.

  Choose your variety carefully, because they range through different weight classes from “mini” or “small” (less than 5 pounds), through medium (up to about 15 pounds), and on to large (up to 25 pounds). There are “jumbo” varieties that can grow up to 100 pounds, although these are mostly fascination crops.

  All can be used for decorative or culinary purposes, but it’s wise to eat the pumpkins you grow because they are chock full of nutrients and fiber. Not to mention the unique and subtly sweet flavor is a memorable flavor to add to any meal.

  Be prepared to handle the long-growing vines, and water with drip irrigation to avoid the hassle of hand watering (don’t ever let water sit on the leaves or you risk disease). You can also grow the vines up a trellis, as long as you provide proper support for the mature fruits.

  You’ll know your pumpkins are ready for harvest when the vines and leaves yellow and begin to die.

  Value Added:

  • Control vine flowe
rs to determine size and number of pumpkins. Pinch main vine tips when the vines are 2 feet long and you’ll get more pumpkins in a more compact plant. Increase your yield another way by pinching off all female flowers for the first three weeks. However, when you increase production, you decrease the size of the pumpkins. For fewer, larger pumpkins, pinch off all remaining flowers after three or four fruits have formed.

  NAME:

  Pumpkin, #13

  YIELD/FOOT (LB.)

  24.00

  COST/LB.

  $0.50

  VALUE

  $12.00

  INPUT

  $0.24

  ROI

  $11.76

  ROI%

  4,900%

  LETTUCE

  Decide to grow lettuce in your garden and you’ll have plenty of options from which to choose. Frankly, the best strategy may involve planting several different types for a range of flavors and textures in your salad bowl. In any case, lettuces are cool-weather crops ideal for early spring and fall plantings.