I just ripped out my first patch of bush beans. Started them 2009-04-24 (Our april here in germany was like a may - very warm, so I risked the late frosts. 0.5°C :-) - very close call. From mid may to mid july weather was very cold and very wet, so it took ages for my beans). Type: Golden Teepee with a very few Berggold to fill the patch. Patch size 1.2 x 3.6 m (4 x 12 ft). Sown in 3 rows (and not tufts). Yield: 12.8 kg (28.2 lbs). Divided by the 36 ft of rows that's almost exactly 3/4 lb per ft of row. Or 3 kg per m^2. I read some pdf where they tested commercial varieties and got around 2.5 kg per m^2 as max yields. So >2 lbs on a ft of bush bean row is AMAZING - hats off!

This time of year in our zone it is almost impossible to get a cover crop to develop without extensive watering and then it just shallow-roots. It is just too hot. Later this fall, no problems, and any of the clovers is an excellent choice. You could accomplish the same thing with a good thick layer of organic mulch - compost or composted manure (more N), even chipped hay. As it decomposes it will provide nutrients to the soil. Other option for nitrogen is alfalfa meal/pellets. Put it on now and then plan to plant CC this fall. But keep in mind that N is seldom tested for professionally simply because it is so volatile and quickly dissipates. So they usually just make the flat recommendation to add N even though there may be plenty there - it just won't show up in the testing. So don't go overboard with N additions or you may create even more problems in the long run. ;) Dave

For the past 5 or 6 years, we have been planting a cover crop on our garden after we dig the tubers. Here in Oregon, there is just enough warmth in the soil in late October and early November to get the cover crop started. I do a quick, one pass till with my tractor and spread the seeds(by hand) over the soil and rake them in with a garden rake. They sprout and by Christmas it is usually 2-3 inches tall. The cover crop seed mix is sold by our local farm co-op and is not very expensive. I plant 1/2 acre for about $35- in seed cost. The mix contains: Annual ryegrass, vetch, crimson clover, austrian peas(leaves are edible in the Spring!), buckwheat(does not over winter). The cover crop grows to a height of 4-5 feet by May 1st. My wife is 5 feet tall and in a typical year some of it is taller than her. We mow it down with a riding lawn mower and immediately till the soil. Dahlias are planted right away. I am going to cut sown the cover crop at 3 feet tall next year because it was so thick this year it was hard to cut down with the mower. No spray is used to kill the cover crop and since nothing has gone to seed, it all disappears. Legumes add some nitrogen to soil and soil is full of excellent organic material. Another benefit is weed reduction as they cannot compete with cover crop in the Spring.

If you are 5'1", I certainly wouldn't go any wider than 3' on the beds. Think of it this way: your armspan, fingertip to fingertip, is generally the same as your height. So, spreading your arms wide, you are about 5'1" from tip to tip, including the width of your body, which is usually about 18", more or less. Standing at one edge of the box, unless you really lean, you can only reach as far as your arm is long and you don't want to just brush stuff with your fingertips, you want to easily grasp it, so knock off he lenght of your hands from arm length...you get the idea. Working more than 18" from your body is going to be difficult for you. I say generally, because there are freaks like me who's arms are too short or long. Mine are long. I'm 5'10" and my "wingspan" is 6' exactly. (I have a heck of a time buying long-sleeve shirts.) My arms are 2'3" long, including fingers. I find a 4" bed comfortable, but even I have to really reach for some stuff. You don't need more than 3" for paths, even if you are going to be wheeling a wheelbarrow around. That's plenty wide.