10 Mittleider Grow-BOX gardens .pdf

Mittleider Grow-Box Gardens By Jacob R. Mittleider Adjustments & Improvements Since Publication Page #

Original Book

Recommended Changes

33.

Grow-Boxes 5’ wide . . .

Now recommend 18” or 4’ wide Grow-Boxes.

38.

Aisles of 3’ . . .

Aisles of 3 ½’ recommended for 18” Grow-Boxes 4’ aisles are recommended for 4’-wide Grow-Boxes

38.

1” X 8” redwood or cedar wood . . . Treated 2” X 8” pine recommended Redwood or cedar stakes . . . Pine stakes – preferably 2” X 2” and painted preferred.

41.

12” 1” X 8” or Stake for splicing End pieces – 5’ long 1” X 8”

Treated 12”+ 2” X 8” is recommended for splicing. Use 2” X 8” treated lumber – 18” or 4’.

43.

Spreader board – 2” X 4” X 6’

Use 5’ length for 4’-wide box or 2’ length for 18” box.

46.

Sawdust – from almost any wood

Avoid walnut sawdust, which is toxic to many plants.

47.

Spread 10# lime on ground . . .

Apply Pre-Plant only In 18” box apply 1 oz/ft – in 4’ box apply 2 oz/ft.

48.

Pre-Plant formula . . . Apply 12# 2 oz to soil Apply 5# lime to soil Weekly Feed – nothing said

Pre-Plant - calcium, magnesium, & boron – 80-4-1 ratio. In 18” box apply 1 oz/ft – in 4’ box apply 2 oz/ft. None, only Pre-Plant above. Apply ½ oz/ft in 18” box – apply 1 oz/ft in 4’ box See Weekly Feed formula in Mittleider Gardening Course

53.

Dates for planting common crops

Supplement with Garden Planting Details schedule, and use Your ADLF (average date of last frost) for planting dates.

54.

Sample Planting Layout

There is real merit in this, because short rows of many crops can be ideal for family gardens. However watering, fertilizing, and difficult access to the center of the bed convinced Dr. Mittleider that 4’ wide and planting lengthwise is generally a better solution for the home gardener. Apply both Pre-Plant (1 oz/ft) and Weekly Feed (1/2 oz/ft) mix with the soil, and plant another crop if time allows.

After a crop is harvested . . .

55.

A marker for uniform plant spacing Use an 8’-long 2” X 2” board, with dowels 6” apart on one side and 7” apart on the opposite side.

56.

List of plants and spacing.

Recommend using Garden Planting Details schedule if growing lengthwise in 18” or 4’ boxes.

64.

Transplanting Solution

Immediately after transplanting apply ¼ oz/ft of nitrogen fertilizer down the center of the row and water in.

68.

“Plants can be watered with a . . “

Automating the watering is recommended. See Mittleider Gardening Course Lesson 16. “One or two . . watering per week” Do not let your plants begin to wilt! Water daily if needed.

69.

“Nearly 95% of a plant’s weight . “ Water constitutes about 80% of a plant’s total weight. As much as 95% of the water entering a plant on a hot day passes through as transpiration, to keep the plant cool.

71.

Mittleider Nutrient Formula

72.

Optional Nutrient Formula

This formula works short-term in many soil-bed gardens Grow-Box gardens need the complete nutrient mix.

73.

Very Important

Eliminate paragraphs 13, 14, and 15.

75.

How to support tall plants

See Mittleider Gardening Course Lesson 15, and the How to Build and Use T-Frames schedule. Use a single Tframe with 6’ top for 4’-wide boxes placed in middle.

76-86.

Guiding, pruning, & tying

Excellent material and highly recommended.

97-108.

Making a simple greenhouse

Recommend – Constructing a Greenhouse – Appendix D of The Mittleider Gardening Course book. Any greenhouse should have sides that roll up for ventilation, and if larger than 10’ wide a continuous ventilator at the top is important

Fertilizer formula in Mittleider Gardening Course Lesson 5 is recommended, or purchase Micro-Nutrients from FFEF website www.growfood.com and mix as instructed. Feed 1# 4 oz for 5 X 30 Box Apply ½ oz/ft WF down the center between 2 plant rows. Stop feeding 2 weeks before harvest Stop feeding 3 weeks before harvest for single-crop plants. Stop feeding 8 weeks before hard frost for ever-bearing.

Soil-beds or Grow-Boxes should be 18” wide, and aisles should be 4’ wide. Therefore, 12’ 6” of width is minimum needed for 3 soil-beds or Grow-Boxes. 109-110.

Filling Grow-Boxes in Greenhouse Use Pre-Plant Mix – 1 oz/ft in 18” & 2 oz/ft in 4’ boxes.

111.

“Now add the Pre-Plant fertilizer . . Use Pre-Plant formula of calcium, magnesium, and boron In the ratio of 80-4-1. Apply 1 oz/ft in 18” box & 2 oz/ft In 4’ box. Apply Weekly Feed at ½ oz/ft in 18” box & 1 Oz/ft in 4’ box. D. & Note Lime or gypsum is not needed in addition to Pre-Plant Mix. “Plants in the greenhouse are fed a The same amount of fertilizer is used whether plants are in larger amount of fertilizer.” The greenhouse or outside in the garden – and whether in the soil-beds or Grow-Boxes.

112.

114.

Preparing your nutrient mixture See pages 71 & 72. “From the time seeds are sprouted. . . Weekly Feed is applied ½ oz/ft in 18” beds or boxes, and they are fed . . .” 1 oz/ft in 4’ beds or boxes.

115.

“After flowering begins . . . to end

Continue feeding the same amounts of Weekly Feed until

3 weeks before harvest for single-crop varieties, and until 8 weeks before the first hard frost for ever-bearing plants. 116.

“Plants appear to be nutrient hungry Increase the feedings to twice per week for two weeks.

116-117.

For training vining and climbing . . Recommend 1 row of plants per bed or box, with alternate Plants going up baling-twine strings to 2 rows of wire, pipe, or 2 X 4’s on edge 28” apart. “Aisle” space at the top is 33” in the two aisles. The bottom end of the string . . . Is tied to tie-wire placed at the base of the plants. The tiewire is attached at both ends of the Grow-Box and to stakes at maximum intervals of 10’ the length of the box.

121.

Watering in the greenhouse . . .

Watering Grow-Boxes should be daily in greenhouse & garden.

123.

Mild climate greenhouse plastic

Use UV-protected 6 mil greenhouse plastic for all climates.

135.

Starting seedlings for transplanting Tomatoes and peppers take 8 weeks from seed to transplant-size plants, so growing these in a protected environment can save you that much time. Large-seeded plants like beans or squash take much less time to grow to transplant size, so you will be saving only 3 to 4 weeks. Bottoms can be made with 3 slats Using 5 or 6 narrower slats to cover the bottom is better.

136.

Spread ½ oz lime & ½ oz 0-45-0

Spread 1 ½ oz (3 TBSP) Pre-Plant Mix and mix into soil.

137.

Seeds per row in 18” X 18” flat

Celery & parsley should be 100-125 /row. Large seeds Such as beans, squash, etc. should be 25-30/row.

138.

Every watering after seeds sprout

When sprouts first appear begin watering with “Constant Feed solution – 1 oz Weekly Feed in 3 gallons of water. The first transplant should be into 2” or larger pots, or Into other flats, 49 to 81 per flat, depending on plant size.

Seedlings are transplanted to . .

140-141.

If flats have been used before . .

Methyl Bromide is very difficult to obtain, is very expensive, and can be deadly. A Pesticide Applicator’s license is required to handle it. Therefore other methods of sterilizing your flats should be pursued. Bleach and water (1 to 10), or vinegar and water (1 to 2) can be used.

145.

Common soil us usually more work Many years’ experience in soils all around the world taught and somewhat less rewarding than Dr. Mittleider that growing in the soil was just as productGrow-Boxes or greenhouses. ive as Grow-Boxes & greenhouses. See 6 Steps to Success ful gardening, Grow-Bed Gardening, and The Mittleider Gardening Course books for greatest success in the soil.

146-153

Open furrow soil-bed gardening

Numerous material changes and improvements have been discovered and perfected since this book was written. Raised level 18’-wide beds with ridges are a big factor in making soil-bed gardening at least the equal of Grow-Box

gardening. The books named above are highly. Recommended. For field crops 3 applications of Weekly Feed are normal – 1 before planting and 2 after – at 3-4 week intervals. 170.

Questions often asked: Why use redwood or cedar Should Grow-Boxes face N/S

Now that treated 2 X 8 lumber is readily available and safe to use, that is preferred over redwood or cedar. Not necessary. What IS important is that tall plants be grown North or East of shorter plants, so as not to shade them. Sizes of Grow-Boxes have changed, fertilizer formulas have changed, and application rates have changed. Read previous comments and review topics in The Mittleider Gardening Course book.

173.

Appendix II

183.

Appendix III

A much more comprehensive schedule of nutrient deficiencies and corrective treatments is attached hereto.

187.

Appendix IV

For materials list to build recommended greenhouse see Appendix D of The Mittleider Gardening Course book.

192.

Appendix V

While numbers, sizes, and configurations are no longer valid, multiplied thousands of families around the world have proven the validity of the assertions made herein.

mittIeider

grow-box gcwdens Dr. .IR llitt1.eid.er

mittleider

grow-box gardens BY

JACOB R. MITTLEIDER, LLD. AGRICULTURAL CONSULTANT LECTURER, LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY ILLUSTRATED BY

DON BERGGREN

InbUnationCll Food PtOCIuction mczthocl).lnc. Salt Lake City, Utah

Published and Distributed by International Food Production Methods, Inc. Post Office Box 17114 Salt Lake City. Utah 84117

Copyright © 1975 by Jacob R. Mittleider, under the title "More Food From Your Garden." This edition printed by arrangements with Woodbridge Press Publishing Company, California 93111. All rights reserved. This book or any part thereof must not be reproduced in any form whatsoever. whether by graphic. visual. electronic, or any other means; or be translated

into any language, devices, or symbols. without the written permission of International Food Production Mettlods. Inc. Post Office Box 17114. Satt Lake City. Utah 84117. Library of Congress Catak>g Card Number: 78-52953 Printed in the United States of America

D This book is dedicated to my family Mildred Mittleider, patient and supportive wife, tolerant and brave amid the frustration and uncertainty of life with an adventurous husband. Without her, success would not have been possible. Douglas and Carol Deitrich, son-in-law and daughter, who encouraged me in the development of the first experimental models that stimulated this entire program; and who still inspire toward continuing refinement and perfecting. Dr. James R. and Jeannie Wise, son-in-law and daughter, who also built and planted the early model gardens whose success was convincing evidence that millions could benefit from these extraordinarily productive techniques - if only they had the information. To these, and others, who encouraged and motivated me to accomplish that in which I really believed, I gratefully dedicate this book.

-The Author

I wish to thank Edmond Henken, my chief associate, for his encouragement. loyalty, hard work, advice, and support through both prosperous and adverse times. In my estimation, he is the one person who has gained the most complete knowledge of my entire concept and method as outlined in this book. He has not only the theory but also the practical experience to conduct the program and also to advance it. Willis J. Hackett, for his confidence and encouragement, for his belief in the methodology, and for the foreword he generously wrote for this book and for a previous book. Lynn Galr, M.D., for loyalty and personal involvement in past years. helping to bring this program to success. Without his help there would never have been the opportunity to develop it, either abroad or in the United States. D. L. Stoops, M.D., whose humanitarian nature led him to study the Mittleider program thoroughly as a means of helping hungry peoples, and then to promote it and encourage its development. Don Berggren, the illustrator of this book. Without his outstanding talent it would not have been possible to prepare this work for mankind. It is a rare privi lege to work with so talented a person who is also selfless and sensitive to human need. -The Author

FORE.WORD... • • • . . . . • . • . . . . . . . . . •.

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HOW TO MAfew applications of well-established agricultural principles. Jacob R. Mittleider is the plant"magician"who has been in scores of countries these past few years turning people on to the thrills of unbelievable gardening success. He has moved into food-problem areas of New Guinea, Africa, Bang ladesh, Lati n America, the U.S.A. - and has started a "food revolution" every time. How about 30 tons of sweet potatoes where only 4 had previously oeen possible? or 6,000 pounds of rice where only 1,000 pounds ..ere considered normal? or 100 tons of tomatoes compared with 20 Ooefore? Experts say that with Mittleider's simple methods, this earth could leed nine times its present population - with no further agricultural ElIEfl. UTiLiZED e€CAUSfO 11IEMITTLEIOE./l. GROW-fOX AND 5IMPL.E G~KOUSE G~TLY EXTEND 11IE. GROWING 6E,A'SON. IN TflE: MITTLE:IOE.f1. MEfflOO YOU KAVE. A eu:,o.fl. PATT~N fO FOLl..OW FOfl. SOIL. ~Af'I'TION)6EXOING AND f'L.ANTING) FEeDING AND WATeRING I PL.ANT CAflC AND HA~ve5TING I AND f'/2Ol"'eCliON FROM I Hsecr6, D/9eASe, !'NO WeATHE~. YOU SIMPLY CANNOT FAIL. ___ YOU WILL HAVE A SUCCE.S6FUL. GARDEN IF YOU

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