Learn vegetable gardening by the square foot
In a square-foot garden, seeds are planted in squares instead of rows, wasting little space. Using string or bamboo dowels (shown above left), gardeners map out a planting grid in raised beds. Vining crops are grown with trellises -- a space saver that also keeps vegetables from rotting on the ground. The benefits of square-foot gardening? You can plant the same amount of vegetables in 1/5 of the space, use less water, and no tilling is required.
This method is well-suited to seniors, she says, because the beds can be elevated to eliminate squatting. "Even people in wheelchairs can do it," she says. "Just put it on a sawhorse and drill holes in the plywood base."
Square-foot gardening classes, Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden, 301 N. Baldwin Ave., Arcadia. April 11, May 16 and June 13, 9 a.m. to noon. Classes are $22 for members, $25 for non-members. For more information, call (626) 821-4623.
-- Lisa Boone
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