Tips on Getting Large Harvests from Small Spaces

If you are like me and want to grow lots of food in a small space, then read on. All the food that you see in the picture was harvested from my kitchen garden last evening.

Total growing space: 84 sq feet
Growing medium: Raised beds

Here are some tips that will help you maximize your harvests this summer:
1. Soil
Everybody knows that good soil is the centerpiece of a healthy garden. I add compost to my raised beds every fall to replenish the nutrients that were pulled away in summer - mushroom compost, composted leaf mulch, Black Kow bagged compost and of course home-made compost are my preferences.

2. Plant Selection:
When growing in a small space, variety selection is key! Varieties that grow smaller in size tend to be more prolific and will get you early harvests! For example, as you can see in the photo, I love growing cherry tomatoes, pickling cucumbers, slender eggplants and shishito peppers!

3. Fertilizing
I fertilize my plants with an organic all purpose granular fertilizer at the time of planting. I also feed them every two weeks on a regular schedule, with a liquid fertilizer. I also sprinkle rock phosphate (high in phosphorus) when plants set fruit. My brand of choice is Espoma.

4. Pollinate
To maximize production from my plants, I make sure that I hand pollinate them when I see flowers emerge. You can find several short videos on my IG handle on this topic.

If I can grow lots of food in a tiny bit of space, so can you! The more you grow, the more you know!