- 1). Use space-saving techniques such as an espalier system for tomato plants and grape vines and interplanting. Interplant pairs that include a slow-growing crop with a crop that matures quickly, for example carrots and radishes. Plant the two in the same row, and the radishes should mature for harvest before the carrots require the space the radishes occupy.
- 2). Take advantage of containers to expand your planting space. Fill your containers with a growing media to avoid fighting weed seeds and many of the disease issues that trouble plants in traditional garden plot soil. Plant vegetable and herb crops among or instead of flowers. Many herbs produce attractive foliage and blooms.
- 3). Create raised beds. The soil inside raised beds does not require tilling as often as it does not suffer the compaction issues of regular garden soil. Raised beds need less overall space than traditional gardens, and plants are more accessible for maintenance. Raised beds produce higher yields per square foot, according to the Ohio State University Extension.
- 4). Plant another crop immediately after harvesting the current crop -- succession planting. This allows multiple harvests from the same garden plot. Cool-season crops may be started in early spring and replaced by warm-weather plants for summer. Summer plantings can be followed by the addition of cool-season crops for fall. According to the Oregon State University Extension, the location of your garden may affect how many plantings you can establish, without the need to provide additional protection from cold frames.
- 5). Plant complementary vegetables and herbs together. Companion planting uses the natural characteristics of one plant to benefit the other. Herbs can be used in preparing dishes to enhance the flavor of your garden produce and to repel insect pests and attract beneficial insects in the garden. For instance, basil planted near tomatoes can repel tomato hornworm, chives repel aphids, while radishes lure flea beetles away from cabbage.
- 6). Preserve your garden plot during seasons when it is not in use. Keep pets and people from walking through and compacting the soil. Plant a cover crop such as alfalfa to replenish nitrogen in the soil.
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