2015 Master Plan: The Driveway Quadrant

All of the blizzarding and emotional turmoil of the past week has interrupted my mini-series of posts about the garden's master plan for the coming season. Let's wrap this up, shall we? Our last quadrant:

Across the top are our canning tomatoes: Paisano and Amish Paste. To the right is a long block of corn, which we have expanded a bit since we finally had success with it last summer. At the very bottom right corner is our block of okra.

The okra is next to the bed of sweet potatoes at the bottom, which should work to give those long vines a little extra space to curl around the tall okra stalks. Those crops should make good neighbors. Also in the bottom row are two zucchini plants (which will be plenty!) and a square of eggplant. Hopefully the eggplant will get enough sun in that spot as the summer wears on. By fall there's some shade there because it's near the house, but by fall we're usually a little tired of eggplant anyway.

To the left there is a spot for winter kale reserved near the house, which should make for easier harvesting when the inevitable Blizzard of 2016 hits. There's also a small spot for some fennel bulbs. Above the cross-path is the already-planted garlic bed and space for basil. 

In the center C we have a much scaled-down area for watermelon and cantaloupe, since we just can't eat as much as we've grown in the past. We find those fruits to be more of a special occasion treat than a staple anyway. (I'm completely satisfied with one great watermelon a year, to be honest.) 

We also have our succession plantings of bush green beans here, and down the left side is the summer onion bed. When the onions are harvested in July, that space will be turned over to the spinach and mâche cold frames for the winter — again, somewhat closer to the house for easier access when it snows. 

And that's it! The plan is in place, and we've already started the leeks and onions indoors, so the 2015 garden is already underway.