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Small Garden Ideas

You don’t need acres of land or even a huge garden to grow your own healthy, delicious food. If you’re the proud owner (or renter) of a sunny balcony, fire escape, patio, postage-stamp lawn, flat sturdy roof, or front porch, you have plenty of room to grow veggies and herbs—and we’ve got a bunch of small garden ideas to help you out.

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Square Foot Gardening

Square foot gardening is exactly what the name says: dividing a growing area into 1-foot x 1-foot sections. In a true square foot garden, an actual grid is placed on the growing area to divide up the space. What you grow in each section depends on the mature size of the crop.

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Meet the Urban Gardeners

Urban gardeners use salvaged materials and creativity to build a mini-farm in their backyard. Learn from their experience to grow your own urban garden.

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Sweet and Spicy 4 x 4-foot Pepper Garden

Planting a pepper garden is easy using this simple plan for a 4 x 4 pepper garden. Choose the types of pepper that you love most. Learn more.

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Herbs: Your Gateway to Gardening

You don’t need a big suburban yard to grow your own food. You can create a wonderful edible garden right on your balcony.

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Easy and Tasty 4 x 4-foot Kids' Garden

This kids' vegetable garden plan from Bonnie Plants features a variety of kid-sized vegetables and herbs that are flavorful and attract butterflies.

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Hot and Sweet 4 x 4-foot Pickling Garden

Using this plan, gardeners of any skill level can produce their own ingredients for fresh, homemade pickles and pickled veggies.

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Fresh and Handy 4 x 4-foot Herb Garden

Keep a collection of herbs handy with this herb garden plan designed for a 4 x 4-foot bed. The plan includes several types of kitchen herbs used every day.

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4 x 4-foot Chiles Rellenos Garden

Give your next batch of chiles rellenos a super-fresh flavor boost with ingredients picked from your very own garden.

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Fresh and Early 4 x 4 foot Salad Garden

If your clan loves salads, you’re in luck — this bed supplies enough for the whole family. You’ll be surprised with how much salad you’ll harvest from a small, but well-tended space.

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Heirloom Tomato 4 x 4-foot Garden

Grow an heirloom tomato garden even in a small space. This plan for an heirloom tomato garden allows you to choose your favorite heirloom tomatoes to include.

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Spacing in the Garden

There is no one size fits all for vegetable spacing. Read on to see which spacing works best for what you have to work with, garden or container.

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Herb Garden in Containers

Grow fresh herbs to add flavor to soups, salads, beverages, and more in this simple herb garden designed for containers.

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How to Choose Your Garden Type

Debating whether to plant an in-ground, raised bed, or container garden? We’ve outlined the pros and cons to help you choose the best garden type for you.

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6 Great Books for New Gardeners

New gardeners have one thing in common: They have lots of questions. If you don’t have a neighbor or friend who gardens, you can find the answers you need by stocking your home library with a few key books.

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Easy 4 x 4 Summer Garden

Use this summer garden plan for a 4 x 4 bed and harvest fresh homegrown produce all summer. The garden plan includes your favorite summer vegetables and herbs.

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How to Lay Out a Vegetable Garden

Is there anything more satisfying and delicious than growing your own food? From the first tender tips of asparagus in spring to the tasty tang of summer’s homegrown tomatoes, a garden filled with beautiful, productive plants provides a terrific sense of accomplishment—and fabulous, fresh meals.

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Creative Ways to Grow Food on Your Deck

Discover the many ways you can grow food on your deck in containers, including window boxes, hanging baskets,vertical growing, upcycled containers, and more.

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Fresh Tomato and Pesto 4 x 4-foot Garden

A tomato and pesto garden gives you ingredients for fresh pesto and pesto's perfect companion—tomatoes! Grow this tomato and pesto garden for summer.

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4 x 4 Grilling Garden

Many vegetables go great on the grill, either for a side dish or as the main event. Find out how to plant your own grilling garden.

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4 x 4-foot Cajun Garden

Are you itching to fill your big kitchen pot with gumbo, jambalaya, or another classic Cajun entree? Build your own cajun 4x4 raised garden bed with these suggestions.

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4 x 4-foot Homemade Salsa Garden

Grow the plants for homemade salsa in your own Salsa Garden in a 4x4 raised bed or in-ground garden. The plan includes tomatoes, peppers, onions, and herbs.

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Mediterranean 4 x 4-foot Garden

Grow a Mediterranean vegetable garden using this plan for a 4 x 4 bed. The plan includes Mediterranean ingredients such as eggplant, basil, and tomatoes.

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Garden Mistakes -- and What I've Learned From Them

Some say the best lessons are taught by our failures -- and when it comes to gardening, I would have to agree. Season to season, I not only learn from the mistakes I make in my garden, but also share this knowledge with my three daughters so they won’t have to repeat them when they get old enough to start growing their own.