Square Meter Garden

Training Manual
Editors
Mai M. Phillips, Victor D. Phillips, Nicholas Syano, Ron Tschida

Other contributors:
Thomas Syverud, Arlen Albrecht

Global Environmental Management Education Center (GEM),

University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Wisconsin, USA
Dietetics and Small Garden Systems (DSGS) For HIV/AIDS
Communities in Kenya

A GEM Project Collaboration with Marquette University, Wisconsin

Supported by a grant from:
USAID Cooperative Agreement No. GPH-A-00-02-00009-00
 Square Meter Gardening
Advantages
• Simple method
• Can be adapted to
individual or family
needs
• No digging
• Easy to maintain:
9 Less space
9 Less weeds
9 Less water
9 Uses fewer seeds

Square Meter Garden array

 Garden Basics
• Set garden area with 6 hours
minimum sunlight
• Build 1 x 1 meter square
frame of bricks, rocks, wood,
sticks or any available local
material
• Fill with compost to 6 inches
deep
• Use successional planting
• Locate close to kitchen
• Do not walk in garden bed
Planning the Square Meter Plot
• Divide each square meter
plot into 9 squares
• Use strings or sticks to
divide garden
• Plant different vegetable in
each square
• Number of seeds or plants
depends on the final
mature plant size
• Can add additional plots
as desired
 Planting the Garden
• Depending on vegetable type,
plant either 1, 4, 9 or 16
seeds/seedlings per square
• If planting seeds, sow in shallow
holes
• Cover with compost and firm
• Water immediately after planting
• Use kitchen gray water whenever
possible
 How Many Plants
Per Square?
1 - tomato, kale, collard
green, eggplant, chili
pepper, Swiss chard,
Amaranthus, cabbage,
okra
4 - spinach, cilantro,
soybeans
9 - onions, beetroot
16 - carrots
 Plant Spacing
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 Crotalaria species- Mito

• Plant 1 per square

• 1.2 meters tall
• Does best in warm
sites
• High protein (9%)
legume
• Edible leaves of
some types are bitter
 Amaranthus species- Mchicha

• Plant one per square

• 1.8 meters tall
• Begin harvest at 30 cm
• Seed protein content 6.30%
• Nutritional quality decreases
after flowering
Solanum nigrum – Kenyan Black
Nighshade
• Plant one per square
• 1 meter tall
• Caution: Most black
nighshade is reported
to be highly toxic
• In Kenyan, local
variety is commonly
grown and eaten
• Leaf high in protein
(4.6%) and iron
 Cleome species – Spider Plant

• Plant one per square

• Half to 1 meter tall
• Leaf protein 5.1%
• Rich in minerals and
vitamins
• Harvest in 3 weeks
• Plant 4 per square
 Cucurbita species - Pumpkin

• Fast growing ground

cover
• Plant 1 plant on corner
square of garden
• Need extra water and
nutrients
• Fruits, shoots, and
blossoms are edible
 Solanum melongena- Eggplant
• Harvest fruit 25-40 days after
flowering
• Fruit should be glossy and
feel heavy
• Pale fruit color indicates low
nitrogen
• Potential pest - Red spider
mite can cause serious
damage
 Spinacea oleracea - Spinach

• Fast growing
• Plant 4 per square
• Two types-
smooth leaved and
crinkled leaved
• Potential pest -cabbage
worms
Abelmoschus esculentus - Okra

• Plant one plant per

square
• Fast growing
• Likes full sun
• Edible pods high in
protein
• Fry pods or use in
soups and stews
 Brassica oleracea v. acephala -
Collard Greens
• Plant one per square
• Harvest leaves often
• Potential pests: cutworms;
aphids carry viruses
• Use soapy water for aphid
control
• Destroy cut worm eggs early;
sprinkle wood ash around plant
 Capsicum species - Pepper

• Plant one per square

• Likes warm soil
• Fruit rich in vitamins
A and C
• Can produce in 8
weeks from seedlings
 Allium species - Onions

• Plant 9 per square

• Do not allow to dry out;
needs consistent watering Bulb
onion
• Harvest leaves or bulb
• Seed to harvest in 12 to
16 weeks

Spring
Onions
 Lycopersicon esculentum -
Tomato
• Plant one per square
• Does best in warm
conditions
• Do not water leaves; stake
plants up to keep leaves
off ground to reduce blight
potential
• Shaking plants in flower
improves production
• Seed to harvest 17 weeks

Leafminer on tomato leaf

 Brassica oleracea v. capitata -
Cabbage
• Plant one per square
• Do not water head
during formation - will
cause rot
• Harvest in 12 weeks
• Rich in calcium,
vitamin C
 Daucus carota - Carrots

• Plant 16 in a square
• Allow 2 weeks for seeds
to germination
• Thin to 1 plant per spot
• Avoid shade of other
larger plants
Common Pest Problems in
Mkia refu or mousebird Kenya

Damage on spinach

Fencing to exclude the bird

 Blossom End Rot
• Not an infectious
disease
• Caused by lack of
calcium due to uneven
watering
• Affects tomato and
pepper
• Mulching helps
• Add ground eggshells
when making compost
 Whitefly
• Like humid, windless
areas
• Insects suck sap
causing yellowing
• Very small white
winged insects; dart
away when plant
shaken
• Spray with soapy water
at night when insects
not active
 Cutworms
• Many types of cutworms
• Moths lay eggs in plant debris
• Larvae feed at night
• Attack seedlings and young
plants
• Dig, find worm and destroy; then
replace plant
• Physical barrier helps deter
• Ashes around plant may help
deter, add again after rain
 Cabbage Worm and
Diamond Back Moth Worm (DBM)
• White butterfly lays
orange eggs
• Moth lays yellowish
green eggs
• Larva attacks
cabbage family
• Destroy eggs and
small larva early
• Neem is effective
against DBM, but do
not use on tomatoes
 Tomato Fungal Diseases
• Can cause severe
disease problems
• Always water plants at
base
• Worse in rainy times when Early Blight
leaves are wet
• Disease lives in plant
debris
• Stake plants up to keep
leaves off the ground
Septoria Leaf Spot
 Prevent Diseases First
• Grow plants in high quality compost
• Use mix of vegetables
• Water only at base of plants
• Constantly wet leaves and wet compost promote
disease
• Plant different vegetable in each square after harvest
• Thin plants and garden keep weed free
• Remove dead or diseased plants
• Use organic sprays early before plants have disease
• Do not spray during heat of the day
 Homemade Organic Disease
Control Sprays
• 1 teaspoon baking
soda in 1 quart water
• 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp
cooking oil, a little soap
in 1 quart of water
• Spray top and bottom
of leaves
• Spray until leaves just
wet Powdery Mildew
 Homemade Organic Insect
Control Sprays
• A little soap in water
• Repeat in 5 days for
eggs
• 3 oz. garlic, 2 tea
cooking oil in water,
repels caterpillars, flea
beetles and cutworms
• 2 teaspoons hot
pepper, garlic, a little
soap in water, repels Ladybug Beetle is a
beneficial insect
thrips and beetles
 Other types of Small Garden
System- Portable Sack Garden
• Old sisal bags filled
with soil or compost
• Best for use in cities
• Place on flower
pavements
• Plant sukuma, spinach,
tomatoes, pili pili,terere
• Seedlings are planted
on top and sides
 What is Composting?
• It is a natural process
• Mixture of decayed
organic matter
• Valuable source of
nutrients
• Turns organic matter
into a valuable material
• The end product is
called humus.
 How to Compost
• Use a mixture of
plant materials
• Chop into small
pieces
• Keep pile moist
• Add a layer of clean
wood ashes
• Add a layer of
completed compost
or good garden soil Gather and chop materials
 How to Construct
a Compost Heap
• Start with dry and
rough vegetation
• Then add top soil or
finished compost
• Add another layer of
green vegetation
• Sprinkle ashes on top
• Repeat the process
• Manure also can be
Measure 1 meter by
added
any length
 Compost Making Continued
• Add ground eggshells
• Water and cover with
soil and dry grass.
• Turn the pile ever 2
weeks until ready
• Add to garden when
replanting a square
Adding water when pile is dry,
keeps the process going
 Compost Management
• Drive the stick into the pile at an angle
• Check temperature - high temperature
will kill weed seeds and any diseased
materials
• Test for “fire fungi”-when you find
whitish substance on the stick - water
immediately – “fire fungi” depletes
nitrogen content of compost
 What Not to Compost

• Charcoal ashes
• Dog and cat manure
• Eucalyptus, acacia
leaves
• Meat and animal fat
• Colored or glossy
newsprint
• Diseased plants Finished pile start in to heat
 How to Make and Use
Compost or Manure Tea
• A shovelful of compost or
manure in 5 liters of water
• Stir once a day for a week
• Nutrients will dissolve
into water
• Separate water from the
solids
• Dilute by ½ and use
compost or manure water
in garden
 How to Make and
Use Plant Tea
• Chop green sappy leaves
into small pieces
• Put into drum or debe
• Cover the drum
• Stir every 3 days
• Ready after 15 days
• Dilute 1:2 then apply on
plant leaves
Training in Nairobi

Ruai Babadogo
Training in Mombasa

Mikidani Bomu
Training in Nairobi and
Voi Town

Nairobi Voi Town