Reflection on Starting a Market Garden

Posh Market Garden

I’ve learned a lot this spring and summer about growing a market garden. I’ve also been told by several fellow farmers to take lots of notes as part of my farming practice. The following are just a few things I’ve learned and discovered while starting Posh Market Garden

Soil Prep and Amendment

Be proactive in the soil prep and amendment department. This spring we were behind on this as we had not yet had our irrigation installed. This fall we are going to purchase weed barrier for the soft fruit, flower cutting and herb garden sections. Then using the Market Garden master plan, we will lay and secure the weed barrier for our future beds. The barrier will solarize the hay, alfalfa, and any weeds in advance of planting. So even though we won’t be planting the flower cutting garden or the herbs next year, the ground under the barrier will be prepped for when we do, the hay etc… will decompose and continue to amend the soil.

This fall we will also build raised beds for the soft fruit garden which we will plant next year, assuming we have the funds to build out the rest of the irrigation. We had the infrastructure for the irrigation installed for each are of the Market Garden, however the drip lines still need to be run. Once the raised beds are built, I will line the bottom with cardboard as an additional weed barrier and add a bit of soil and compost on time to keep the cardboard in place. Over time the cardboard will decompose and add to the soil composition.

This fall we will also plant perennial micro clovers as a cover crop with the goal of eventually replacing the current hay and alfalfa that grows between the beds. Clover is considered a legume which is good for the soil. It also doesn’t require a lot of water and is thus good for water conservation. It is also a lot softer on the feet and will add to the visual beauty of the garden which the hay does not.

Starting Seedlings

Another area we need to work on is the process of starting our seedlings. Here too we fell behind because we didn’t have a dedicated place to grow the seedlings and we didn’t have enough equipment and supplies needed to grow them in bulk.

Andy and I will dedicate our current fruit shed as the seedling shed and build another DIY green house in the garage to house my patio plants over the winter. The fruit shed floor is plywood so we will first waterproof the floor, and then purchase additional shelving units, grow lights, and heat mats. We will also purchase additional seed trays and seed starter mix in bulk. This should save us both time and money as we will have all our supplies prior to planting our seedlings.  We also need to do a better job of determining seed quantities and which vegetables and flowers we want to grow.

My goal is to create a niche for our Market Garden and focus on growing unique varieties that other farmers are not growing, for example Lemon Cucumbers, Delicata and Honey Butternut squash. As much as I like pickling cucumbers and or Swiss Chards, I will probably not be growing them in the Market Garden for 2025 because so many other farmers are growing them. That said, Andy and I talked about growing a separate smaller garden for ourselves so that might be a place we can grow them just for us. Lettuce seems to be a big demand so I will continue to grow it as well as my specialty Tomatoes.

For flowers, I will not be growing the Amaranths again as they do not do well in our high winds. Zinnias, Mignonettes, Chocolate Lace and Snapdragons will be returning. To those I think I will add Dahlias and cosmos. I can’t decide about the sunflowers… I need to see how they do. Once we have nailed down what vegetables we want to grow I will create a spreadsheet of which seeds to start when and when to plant in ground. We have seven beds in the vegetable garden, with one devoted to growing asparagus as that is a three-year endeavor. So that leaves six beds, one of which will be devoted to flowers (at least until I get the cutting garden developed). The hoop house will be again devoted to my tomatoes. That leaves five rows devoted to various vegetables.

This fall I will be planting long neck garlic, so that we can harvest it in the spring and then do a second planting in that bed after we remove the garlic. We will order the rest of our seeds, the soft fruit root balls and the Mulberry tree during the winter, January, or February. The soft fruit we plan to grow includes strawberries, blackberries, raspberries (both white and red) and gooseberries. They should arrive sometime in the spring. I will also refine my planting map in the winter, so I know exactly where everything goes before hand.

Planting

With the irrigation already installed we can begin planting much earlier in 2025. Unlike this year, I will count back from the estimated last frost date and begin planting from there. This will also help me determine when I need to start our seedlings. Once we get the drip lines installed in the soft fruit section, I can finish prepping the beds with additional soil and manure; then when the root balls and tree arrive, it should be easy peasy to get everything in the ground. The nice thing about the soft fruit section is like the orchard and even the asparagus, once it is planted, I shouldn’t have to plant it again! So, these are my reflections on what I’ve learned and what I can do better next time. I’m confident I will be adding to this as summer moves into fall and more vegetables are ready for harvesting!

Additional things I’ve learned:

·      Don’t plant close to the edge of the weed barrier as it makes it hard to mow along the edge.

·  Plant a foot away from the edge and limit your rows of vegetables or flowers two per 5 foot weed barrier, it will make harvesting easier

· Do not over pack the rows, limit each row to two items; there are 7 rows therefore limit our produce to 14 items only, plus tomatoes in the hoop house.

· Plant a sacrificial squash outside the market garden (south side at the edge of the property) to lure squash bugs away from market garden. Squash buts are evil!

· Cut off leaves that have squash eggs and throw the leaves in the trash can (do not compost them!)

·      Don’t grow things that cannot stand up to the high winds (ie Amaranth flowers are not a good fit)

·      Diatomaceous earth is a game changer in battling earwigs.

·      Plant poppies as part of landscape and not for the market garden – too hard to grow from seeds but still need them on the farm as they relate specifically to the logo and Palisade Posh brand

· Need to figure out a different location for the nasturtiums as they do not do well in the rows on the weed barrier (however they are doing well in the raised bed with the herbs

· Need to identify a better location for the lettuce (a more shaded area)

· Need to research and understand companion planting better

· Need to find a better location for Sweet peas

· Need to find a different location for pumpkins (outside the market garden)

·  Need to increase edible flowers produce and find better location for them