This is my plan...
Last year I (and my husband's tractor) started a new bed out along the roadway. I filled it with squash of every kind. Too much squash? Maybe, there is such a thing and it can happen quickly. But, I was really happy with the results. This year, the task of weeding before planting was daunting so I developed a strategy. Create mounds - 5 x 8 - on a grid and plant 1-3 squash, corn, and sunflowers on each. Squash actually like growing on mounds- the soil warms up quickly and drains well, helping them to become established and dominate the space. Squash need to be about 5 feet apart from each other leaving too much room for weeds. But if they are mounded, their location can be quickly identified, weeded, and watered. They squash will dominate the weedy in-between space after they have established and expanded. You can see in the photo, I still have my work cut out for me digging 40 mounds but I think it's doable.
Yesterday I took advantage of the sunny day in anticipation of a nice drizzly week and got some squash started in egg-carton trays.
I planted:
Watermelon
Cucumber
Butternut
Acorn
Spaghetti
Jack O Lantern
and Gourds
(I didn't have any Zucchini saved... none of mine grew last year)
I started Cantaloupe, but that won't go in the front bed.
all from saved seeds
I also planted:Corn
Dill
Basil
Cosmos
Nasturtium
Hollyhock
and Heirloom Tomatoes
all from saved seeds
I thought it might be too early for tomatoes, but the tomatoes are sprouting in the compost, so I took that as a good sign that it was ok to plant some.
What I'd like to do is get all my mounds dug and heaped, add a bit of mulch and compost, and give that a chance to breakdown a bit. Then once my starts are about 2 inches tall, pick the best ones and out-plant. I'm thinking I will do 1-3 per mound hoping that I will get 1-2 good plants each mound. That means though that 40 mounds will quickly turn into 80 squash plants. 8 varieties, 10 plants each... I think I'm going to have another busy summer!
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