smaller and more compact as I am not using the neighbors spare lot this season.. with remodeling our house for resale I cannot keep up with two gardens this year but the flower beds will have a variety of veggies in them so we will have enough for our canning needs. Most likely we will be spending the coming winter months in another state, so there will be no freezing the fruits and veggies this season.

Last year:
(one of two beds - total 35 square feet)

{{gwi:47676}}

This year:
(2500 square feet)

{{gwi:38693}}

Bigger! I've added 4 raised beds and will plant more in 5 gallon buckets. Mostly extra tomatoes, peppers and brassica varieties.

Deanna

Bigger. I didn't do much last year. This year I have 2 raised beds (total approx 50 sq. feet).

Nothing out of the ordinary (tomatoes, squash, peppers, onions, lettuce, melon, etc.)

Bigger - went from 80 sq ft to 350!

Same size, but WAY better organized.
Added fence for vertical growing
Dug my paths (so beds are now raised)
Spread Preen on paths (but still have flippin QUACK GRASS!!!)
Vowed to be more diligent about maintenance
Already have cole crops out
Doing it 'piece-meal' so I don't get overwhelmed.
Vowed to be more diligent about maintenance
Hanging out more on the Veggie forum to get better edumacated about veggies & certain types of (non-chemical) ferts.
Vowed to be more diligent about maintenance

It's funny how simply deciding to make these small changes changes your whole outlook about veggie gardening. I was SO uninterested in the veggie patch previously..it was just boring...I'd DS and just let it go and "whatever comes up, comes up." Now I'm actually pretty excited about this whole process!

I'm definitely not all gung-ho square-foot-gardening, but the concept of the Potager really turned my head around.

Doubled in size from last year. Still planting the usual crops, but added potatoes this year. My darling husband got us a freezer, so I can put up more of our vegetables, and we are growing for the local food bank, too.
We have two growing seasons here--right now we are finishing up the spinach, broccoli, and lettuces planted in the winter garden, and starting to harvest from the spring planted garden.

Much, much smaller. Has to do with the cost of water.

Slightly larger, increasing the container area.

same size, but i'm growing twice as much...wait, how's this gonna work? ;-)

Bigger. Went from 3200 sq ft to 4800 sq ft adding grapes, raspberries, and corn.

Bigger, I think.

I added a little to help spread out the melon patch.

I also added alot of hoop building space. From 300 square feet to 1900 square feet.

Bigger - 80 sf to 168 sf, plus we added 4 fruit trees. We moved a couple of years ago, and have been gradually adding more garden areas, but we are probably at our max.

Mine is bigger and relocated to several spots. The spot where I used to do my primary kitchen gardening is now under the shade of maturing fruit trees. Even tho this year's is bigger, it's an urban neighborhood backyard garden so I don't guess I have more than 200 sq ft. (not counting the fruit trees).

We removed a humungous pine that had a trunk that was about 7' in diameter. That left me with a planting area of about 12-15' in diameter in the middle of the yard in full sun for tomatoes, lettuce and herbs. Then I removed a diseased oleander hedge that provided a 4' x 15' sunny spot up against a wall for other veggies.

I also have assorted perennial or volunteer crops like potatoes, strawberries, artichoke and asparagus mixed in with flower beds on the perimeter of the yard.

What I'm more proud of than the size is the degree to which I've been able to improve the adobe clay soil over the years. I have a really significant compost system that's been evolving over the years from a small container to about 72 sq ft of enclosures that give me about 1.5 cubic yards of passively produced compost a year. And I can't tell you how delighted I am that I can now dig down about 18" with a trowel instead of a pickaxe!

The Vegetable garden is about the same 1.5 acres. But we just added 21 fruit trees on the hill above the actual garden.

Much, much bigger - probably sextupled it's size? Is that a word even lol?! I dug out a bunch of perennials in an area adjacent to my existing veggie garden that I've never been happy with and am making an asparagus patch in one half and planting blackberries in the other half. I'm taking a 15 x 20 foot area of lawn and digging out the sod and making that into a vegetable garden as well. Finally, I'm going to try a few hot peppers and eggpants in containers.

I still have to find a spot for a blueberry bush I ordered and a dwarf apple tree. I'm thinking of trying the tree in a large pot on the deck like I grow my fig tree - we'll see. I've never grown a fruit tree before (other than the fig) so it's going to be an adventure!

Lisa

Two years ago, I had about 250 square feet in vegetable gardens. Last year no real garden because I was moving over the summer. This year I have about 100 square feet so far, but I have a 40x80 area I have tilled up and am going to make hills and put space-takers, like melons and squashes, maybe cucumbers. So I suppose I'll have 3300 square feet or so when that project gets done.

Bigger. Last year I only grew 4 tomatoes and a cucumber (and a pepper which was free and but no peppers were actually eaten). This year I've ordered 9 tomato plants and I'm growing lettuce, cucumbers, brocolli, melons, pumpkins, spinach, carrots, peas, and potatoes. Or at least I will be once it stops raining for long enough to do anything. I think my first seeding rotted since it has been so cold and wet. The new part of my veggie garden was planned as another rose bed, but I felt it was more important to grow more of my own food this year rather than more roses. I'm adding more fruit trees, berries, and grapes too.

I only found a spot for the pumpkins and melons last night. My husband agreed to let me claim another corner of the lawn.

Much Bigger :)

Last year I was a traditional row gardener with just a 15 X 15 plot in heavy clay soil... did "Ok" but learned a lot :)

This year converted to raised beds - I have now:

3 4X4 Beds
1 4X6 Bed
5 4X8 Beds
3 4X12 beds

I also grew all my tomato (went from 6 to 14), pepper (9 to 25) and Eggplant (didn't grow last year, 9 this year) from seed, in addition to some herbs.

I'm so excited for this year!!!

I can't wait until harvest season.

Bigger - I hope. I had planned on larger than last year, then the older man that usually plows and tills my garden area and shares it told my husband he wasn't going to make it as large. I hope when he sees all the beautiful plants I started from seed he'll change his mind. Anyway, I am planning on doing a lot of container gardening this year, too. I haven't grown potatoes for many years, but this year I'm planning on five types in containers. Have three blueberry bushes to put out and am tossing about growing some sweet corn in a back field. I'll can, freeze and dry for us and give fresh product to a local organization that takes food to seniors in the area and a soup kitchen.

Bigger.

From about 900 to 1200 sqft and raised most of the beds. Raspberries are spreading. Added a bed of blueberries. Planting peas along 120ft of fence. New greenhouse will extend season in the fall.

Exactly the same size. It fills an area surrounded by a fence on a concrete foundation and a sidewalk. If it was smaller, I would be mowing more lawn or spraying more weeds. If it was bigger, it would be ticketed for trespassing.

BIGGER! My garden at LEAST tripled in size. And I found new spots to sneak veggies into the front landscaping, too. DH built a lovely trellis so now my cukes will be growing UP the side of my house. Summer squash will go in with my dayliles. Last year, I had 18 tomato plants. This year, I will be doubling that. Plus peas, corn, spinach, carrots (yes, yes... I am still having "thinning" issues), cukes, pumpkins, squash, raspberries (new this year) and lettuce, onions, garlic, and green beans.

m lorne, I loved the pics! Thanks for sharing. I am envious of your space.

PAM

The garden is the same size as last year but I have added 5 more earthboxes on the deck for a total of 6.
m lorne, would love to trade you some RED CLAY for some of your soil. Glenn

Thats it! Making plans to rip up yard because of this thread. LOL I went from 50 sq ft to 200 this year.

Now I must achieve 1000 ft. Thanks. lol

Thought a picture might help. Broccoli's are in and 1 lonesome tomato. lol We'll see how it fairs in this wild weather. 90 one day - 40 another.

The greens in back are weeds. The pots are waiting for their peppers.

{{gwi:47677}}

Much bigger. Last year I had 10 totes growing tomatoes, peppers, lima beans, snap beand, cucumbers and zucchini.

We are moving in late May, so I'll get started a bit late. But the fenced in garden area will be approximately 4300 square feet.

Of course I won't be planting the entire thing. That would just be too overwhelming and I'd probably do things incorrectly.

Oh goodness. lol BIGGER! Bigger every year.

Ever since learning about sheet composting/lasagna gardening (right here on gardenweb & in the LG book), my vegetable garden has been bigger every year, and this trend will keep up in the forseeable future. It's just too easy to plop cardboard and compost right on top of existing grass lawn, and grow right there-- I expand the patch every year this way. :)

(I do greens/spinach in containers, then peas, tomatoes, peppers, many herbs, zucs & summer squash, winter squashes, potatoes, carrots, onions, beets, asparagus, & some flowers for cutting, in my actual garden; also starting some peanuts and edamame this year new- never done. Plus raspberries, strawberries and fruit trees and such, eleswhere.)

Those of you who have excess from your gardens (I do and I only work about 200 sq ft) might be interested in The Garden Writers Association's "Plant a Row" program.

This program puts you in touch with a local food bank that will distribute your fresh produce to needy families. These food banks will do all the work of qualifying the families and distributing the food. They'll even acknowledge your gift if you ask them to so that you can take a charitable tax deduction for it. And families whose food supply is mostly cast off cheap starchy foods will get nutritious, essential produce that's harder for the food banks to come by.

Here is a link that might be useful: Plant a Row

Bigger. We had a neighbor plow up another patch specifically for corn. Haven't quite figured out how to tell the horse she "donated" part of her pasture to the project! We also expanded the main garden to make room for fruit - right now, just rhubarb and blueberries. Maybe next year, raspberries and grapes?!

Same size garden, but I'm trying to plant in succession so that I have an extended harvest.

Bigger, but with a small backyard on a lake and only 325sq. ft. I had nowhere to go but up! Tomato trellises are now cuke and squash trellises as well, should work in the Florida heat. Now to decide on arbors for melons....

Here is a link that might be useful: Tom's Veggie Pacth

First I will repeat the plant a row program, I am aiming to help, I was so shocked when I moved to the US and saw the poverty, even more shocked that the people where the Wives of Navy and Army personnel, a couple where even on food stamps and I saw no frills, bring up their children they where, using freecycle, sold what they could on moving, brought in the goodwill if they could afford it! so goodness knows what people without jobs or on disability are like? and I know they get free health care and other benefits, but they are working hard, moving around, losing spouces for months on end, My Brother who is in the British Army was often moved to American bases as his specialty in lacking in both the US and UK armys just we have a few more (chef, an army marches on its stomach!) he said the facilities the US Army had was vastly superior to the British Army and at first he was jealious, then he found friends and found out how their husbands, wives and children lived, and as a private he was managing to support a wife, 2 step kids and a mortgage (UK house prices are High!) and I would agree that the Forces housing in the UK left a lot to be desired! and the Balfore Beatty homes I have seen in the US where lovely, I just thought forces families shouldn't need food stamps? I know this may be controversal but I have found alot of people who live in my situation, nice house, good jobs, nice area have not meet with forces folk, and are shocked when I tell them, the millitary poeple are all trying to build a better life for themselves and family...Sermon over.
Gardens getting bigger each week, I am uncontrolable!

Same garden, different stuff in it this year. Main garden is on 1462Gibson Atlantic Giant pumpkin. Side of the house are beans, tomatoes and peppers.

Here is a link that might be useful: Start a growers diary here

bigger.last year my garden was 32x16.this year its 32x32.and i and in the process of enlarging to 40x32 for next year.the extra expansion is for more asparagus beds.i now have 60 asparagus plants,soon to be 120.asparagus omelets anyone?

Mine is bigger I am happy to say!:-) I live in a apt. so it's all container gardening. I got tired of waiting for a house and workable yard. I figured that just because I live in apt. that I should be able to have a garden too! I am very excited and many things are new to me. I've been growing herbs indoors over the winter months and that has been going well. Learned many things too as a newbie. Nothing like fresh herbs when making my own salad dressing. Yummy!

Doubled it to 72x60. My back testifies to the increase. But I'm still running short of room to put in all that I've planned. Unless the Lord provides for a (significant!) upgrade of machines, I'm at my limit! Something tells me that's not a bad thing.

PS - I did put out a nice 4x20 strawberry patch too.

Slightly increased area, but converted to SFG, planted 6 toms last year and 1 basil, 1 pepper. This year 15 toms grown from seed indoors, 15 basil also indoors, 15 peppers, twice as much corn and every thing should have adequate spacing. 4ft in between toms.

Oh boy! Mine is going to be much bigger...if I ever get it all in. We moved last Fall, into a house with a mostly shaded yard. I was bummed, thinking that yet again I was going to be stuck with a few tomatoes and green beans in pots on the patio.

Then, the huge acacia tree that was responsible for cutting off all the morning sun from the whole yard and the midday sun from half the yard blew down in a storm! Yippee! Sun for my veggies!

However, there was still the tree to get rid of. My husband has been valiantly hacking at it with sporadic help from me, and it's finally reduced to just about 6 feet of the thickest part of the main trunk. The hill it was growing on is going to do for my potatoes, strawberries, cukes and zucchs, but I can't put them in until he's done cutting it up or they will be trampled. The local strawberries are already in the stands, so I will probably lose out on the Spring crop.

As for the rest of the garden, I have small plots here and there over the rest of the yard. I am not yet familiar with how the sun hits this yard, when, so I'm trying out different areas so that next year I'll know which is the best for what.

Around here, if you plant lettuces, spinach and tender herbs in all-day full sun, they bolt almost immediately in the Summer heat. So they have to be at least partially protected from the afternoon sun. I have one small bed for them and am going to scatter them around the rest of the yard, here and there, as well.

I have a couple of old, healthy roses, and figure there will be enough sun by them for my tomatoes. Radishes and carrots will go in around them.

First though, I am waging a major battle with snails! I don't think anyone's done anything about them in this yard for years, and I don't want to just be feeding them!

Larger this year. From three 4x4 raised beds I added an 4x8 raised bed and have three huge containers for tomatoes as well as three containers for overflow, and have my potatoes planted in shredded leaves in two storage bins. I will have to put two heirloom tomatoes in a flower bed, but that's okay.
A lot of expense, a lot of work. But I'm canning this year!
Sunny

I got a whole new garden!! Found out I could rent a community garden plot for 20/year, and more than doubled my garden space! Also bought a bunch of rubbermaid bins for more container planting. I'll still probably not be able to grow everything I want to :-P

bigger I moved my garden and have 5 beds instead of two.

Like I said, same size, but growing much more...lol...

Steve's Garden

Bigger.

Last year, due to illness during planting season, my garden was a bust.

This year almost everything is in -- including a 30 foot expansion into the front yard that DH OK'd after he built some raised beds to front it and conceal the melon vine tangle from the road.

I can't actually use much more than last year though because I'm leaving a big section bare for DH to install raised beds a few at a time as we can afford to buy boards and dirt.

If he gets that section in by mid-August I'll have a place for the fall/winter crops.

Perhaps one day we will have enough garden space for me to actually put flowers, instead of tomatoes and eggplant, into the flower beds. DH would like that -- but agrees that tomatoes look better than the drought-killed shrubbery that was there the first year we moved in.

Perhaps one day it will stop frickin raining here! =)

I do a farmers market, and my garden has been increased by 6x. I'm expecting alot more customers, but with less money to spend. Now how do I go about offering discounts to less advantaged customers without upsetting my regular customers?
I would really like to be able to offer more to the less fortunate, but not sure how to do this. Ideas?

Pastor Steve, are you near Lafayette?

wow...my wish was granted...quite the nice sunny afternoon. All my plants are gonna be like satellite dishes pointing at the sun when I get home. Now, what will tomorrow be like? =)

Mine is about 20% smaller, but I moved it to a part of the yard with better soil (we're building a detatched garage near where the old garden was and I wanted to give them room to work). So far it's growing better. Also added 3 4x8' raised box beds and raised a couple more beds with boulders I had in the yard. I'm hoping to get a lot more out of the 'new' garden this year and be able to use BOTH gardens next year.

hanselmanfarms's, think in order to help out, you may find that people who are struggling, maybe your reqular customers? lots changed in a year! and I heard on Radio 4 (UK) on the food program many places in the US, don't know where? remember NY offer food stamps that are actually worth more in farmers markets, to encourage those on low incomes to eat healthily, again don't remember how it worked? it was about 18 months ago I heard it!, or maybe you could inquire how you can take food stamps and have them reimbursted, and let it be known you except them, or lastly the food banks grow a row program, I think like donations to goodwill, you can get a receipt for tax purposes and I assume (and never assume as it make an ass out of u and me!)this would hold true for business? I am not an expert I have only been in the States for 11 months! but these are some of the things I have found out, and you could investigate, good for you, in these times it helps to reach out to a neighbour, just looked up grow a row and you can either donate food or land

Here is a link that might be useful: grow a row

Mine gets a little bigger every year. Even if it is just wideing or lenghtening a few inches to try and squeeze in one more row of something. A few years ago I removed all the flowers on one side of my fence around the pool, about a 30' long area to plant my tomatoes and peppers so I wouldnt take up room with them in my garden. It was getting too crowded. So now in the garden I have Peas (first this year), Lettuce (3kinds), spinach, I plant every 2 weeks or so to stay in supply as long as possible.
Beets, carrots, radishes, again short rows a few weeks apart, broccoli. I am thinking thats all to date. I will be planting the tomatoes and peppers as well as cucumbers and zuchinnis in the next week or so. Oh I forgot I have onions (red and yellow) and leeks also. Last year I started replanting in august and sept of fall crops, and this year I am going to put garlic in also. This will be the first year I have done everything from seed. not that everything is perfect or on time. But I am learning alot for years of just "winging it" gardening.