Well, the SFG and SWCs will all be placed on concrete. We have a huge expanse of concrete on one side of our house (the previous owner ran a taxi company out of the house). Its great because we build and race cars, so we have plenty of room to store and work on them. We do still have plenty of yard, but most of it is shaded, so I'm doing the containers on the side of the house that has the most sun and it happens to be paved. So I'd imagine that would make a difference on the Nematodes. I'm starting some seeds this week, and my parents will be down MLK weekend to help me build the containers... I'm hoping to get an early start on some of the things that can't take our heat. Plus, the 5 gallon SWCs should be movable if needed so I can protect them if it gets too cold. I will also be companion planting as much as possible with the SFG so I can use the least amount of chemicals for pest control etc. Thanks for all the responses!

First, location- where are you? Second, there are a few important things to consider before you build/place your beds. 1. Does this location get at least 6 hours of direct sun during the day? If not, you will have some problems with getting things to grow. 2. How are you planning on getting supplemental water to your beds? Are you just going to stretch a water hose over and hand water or do you plan on running a drip irrigation system of some sort? Either way, do some planning so that if you need to install something before you bring in all that dirt and walkway stuff... 3. Since you moved into the house, have you noticed any pollinators flying around like bees, wasps, ect... If not, you might end up having to do some hand-pollinating, depending on what you plant. 4. How's your yard drainage in this area? You don't want your yard draining into your beds after a hard rain, as this will not only wash out the nice work you just put in, but can create problems with root rot of your plants because of too much water and the soil does not get a chance to dry out. Again, your area rainfall/climate comes into play here too. Anyways, these are just some things I wanted to ask based on your post. If all is well with these, then you are on your way. Your layout is fine, but with one caveat- the location of your trellises. Again, depending on your area climate/position of the sun, you might want your trellises on the other side of the boxes, as with where they are now, you run the risk of shading out your smaller plants when you get the most direct sun. Just take notice of where you get the most direct sun, and make sure it would reach your smaller plants. Good luck and happy gardening!

Hi mom2sld; Reading your list I think you know what you need, but Ill summarize it for you and try to give you prices for what I know, I was just at Home Depot pricing out stuff for this season. Material Description ______ Quantity _ Cost Each _ Total Cost ------------------------------------------------------------- 2"x6"x8 (cut in half) ...... 4 ....... $6 ea. .... $24 1" blind slats (4" long) .... 12 ...... Free ...... 0 Peat Moss ................... 6 cu.ft. ............ $23 Compost, Various ............ 6 cu.ft. .$5-7 ...... $30 Vermiculite ................. ~6 cu.ft. ........... $30 Box 3-3.5" deck screws ...... 24 min. ............. ~$5 ...................................................------ ........................................ TOTAL ....$97 + tax Your prices will vary. Peat Moss  This stuff come in dry compressed bails usually in 2 cu ft ($9 ea), and 4-5 ($14 ea.), so youÂll need a 2cu. ft. bail and a 4cu. ft. bail. The large bail is heavy so get someone to help you with it. Compost ($5/per cubic foot of composted manure 6 bags ($7 for dehydrated 4 bags)- get yourself a nice selection if you can of composts, get some cow manure compost, some compost mixes, and maybe some sheep pooh too. Chicken manure is too strong and should be used judiciously. I also like seafood compost and you can typically get in New England. I recommend buying dehydrated compost manures when available, they cost a little more but you arenÂt paying for water, and you need less of it by 1/3rd I would say. My advice it to get someone nice at the store to help you and answer your questions, HD/Lowes tends to be hectic, so try a nice garden center. Vermiculite ($20 for 4 cu. ft.) - (not Perlite it is different) call ahead and find out what they have, HomeDept here in the Boston area doesnÂt carry it. I checked to see if LoweÂs website says they carry it and they donÂt say. I have to go to Mahoney in Woburn, MA to find it. Try a real garden center or farm stores in your area. Deck screws  buy a box they will be cheaper then buying them individually, and get a few extras. Have you ever looked for a screw in a lawn? Lumber  Douglas Fir sound great. Just avoid pressure treated stuff, you donÂt want it near your food. Have the folks their cut it in half for you, it depends on the place but often the 1st cut is free, each following cut it 50 cents to a buck. Might I suggest you call around to Home Dept, Lowes, or your local home/garden/building center and see what their prices are and find out what they carry. Also once you decide where youÂre going call ahead and see if they will put the order together for you and have it waiting. It will make it easier for you and the toddler. Then you can just pay for it, chat a little and have some nice person that works there bring it out to your car for you. How big is your car anyhow? Will it fit 16 to 18 cubic feet of garden supplies plus 8 x 2x6x4ft in it? I ask because you might need to make a couple of trips. If you end up doing this you can go shopping at different places and get the best price possible. Other nice places to get gardening materials that I know exist in New England is Agway & Blue Seal and they will have the stuff waiting for you and load it for you too. Plus, you should bring a tarp to put all this stuff on if you have anything other than a truck. These bags seem to always leak and having the car/SUV/van smell like manure all summer well youÂve been warned.. I would like to suggest that you just stick to MelÂs methods & formulas for a couple years until you get the hang of it. The SFG method is really designed for you to succeed so donÂt look for formulas other than what he recommends for now. If your garden succeeds you will probably be garden the rest of your life and will be able to make changes in the decades to come. To answer your other questions more directly: "As for the mix, can someone please tell me exactly what to get and about what it will cost?" : See list above. Are there names/brands to look for or avoid? : IMHO not really, itÂs all composted animal pooh. Get dehydrated if you have a choice more volume for the buck. "Will I be able to get everything at Lowes/Home Depot? If not, where?" : You will be able to get almost everything from either. I suggest you let you fingers do the walking, and as I suggested see if they can have the order ready for you when you arrive. Call them the day before to give them some time to put it together. IMHO: you might like to buy from a local business too such as Agway, Blue Seal, a local green house, and hardware/home builder store, this will get you started in being part of your local community. Also when you need advice or help the small places tend to have less turnover in staff, so next year you can talk to Bill the Garden guy because he still works there. The smaller places will put your order together for you and are happy to have your business. To get the Vermiculite you will have to go to a specialty place since I donÂt think HD or Lowes has it. "I haven't started composting yet, so I will have to purchase that too. Is it sold in these stores? " : Yes composted manure is sold at HD & Lowes although their selection is not as broad as a garden center. They usually only have cow and one other compost mixture. "Has anyone not used Mel's mix, but a different mixture with great results?" : as I said earlier stick to MelÂs method for a couple of years before you use something someone else has developed. SFG is designed to help you succeed. More experienced gardeners develop there own formulas for there own reasons, which they donÂt always remember the reasons why. Backyard gardening is more an art form then a science. MelÂs method reduces it to a science that you can learn the art form from. "For the two 4x4 gardens I described above, about how much will it cost to start? $50? More, less?" : It will run you just over 100 bucks, see list above. Since you say you are so busy and canÂt take the time to scrounge materials youÂll have to pay retail. Composting: you seem to express and interest in composting, which will be essential to keep your garden going in the years to come. There is a nice composting forum here at GardenWeb, but I suggest you get a little book that teaches you a method too. Mel does a good job getting you started. Composting is not hard but it CAN take a little trial and error. ItÂs not rocket science, but be careful what you put in your pile. If you are not sure if something belongs in the pile leave it out until you know it is safe. Your local town Parks/Recreational or Trash department might actually have compost bins for sale at a discount. Or a friend of yours might live in a town that can get it for you cheaper. A simple bin cost is $25 ea, better bins about $50 ea. Let me say, "Welcome to the wonderful world of gardening." I hope we can help you succeed at your first attempt. CloneZero PS Sorry the list is not very readable but the forums editor software ripped all my space formatting out.

Hi Lisa, I actually did a bit of research myself for both of your questions and found that a lot of people put 2 TBLS. of castings in a new planting hole and that coffee grounds and organic compost, including dried leaves, are good for blueberries. So in addition to buying a bag of worm castings since I won't have enough as soon as I'll need it, I also made a garbage can composter for things I don't put in my worm bin, based on these plans found at CompostJunkie.com. Instead of aluminum pipes, I used PVC and it works great so far and will produce useable compost quickly. Mine isn't wrapped in anything and I didn't use the bolts after all because the holes I made in the top and bottom for the PVC pipes are a very snug fit and help keep the lid on and to roll the bin (extending about 5" above the lid)--I didn't have enough scraps to fill it immediately and didn't want to have to take the bolts off every time I add to the bin. :) And I set it up on blocks with a cut gallon jug fitted snuggly under it to catch the leachate. So if you have a drill and way to cut the pipe and threaded rod as needed, you should be able to do that easily as well. I do a lot of container gardening too and was considering SWCs, but thanks to the responses here, I think I'll pass on that option; especially since I recently installed an irrigation system which will help an awful lot when it comes to watering. So as always, thank you all for sharing your experience and great ideas! BB in FL