garden planning and design

Swiss Chard

The radish photograph below was posted accidentally. I was trying to post it to my CSA's blog, Cold Water Creek Farms. If you've wondered why I don't post here as often that's the reason. I've jumped into full time farming at least for the summer and I've had forty family for whom I've been growing vegetables this year.

The radish image was a hit so I think I'll start posting more images from the farm.

There will be more action here however as Sharon Astyk and I are about to begin a 6 week Garden Planning and Design Class. Fall is actually the best time to get garden planning done so you're ready for the next growing season.

The goal of the class is for you to come out with a full design plan that takes into account the realities of your site and a strategy to implement your plan. The design plan will serve you over multiple years, and help you maximize your potential. Here's an example of a plan from our last class.


The class is offered online, asynchronously over six weeks. Sharon and I will offer new material, homework and new ideas on Thursdays, but will be available over the course of the week – you are free to participate as much or as little as you like – some people have tons of questions, others take a while to absorb information – both styles are just fine.

The class consists of several components – readings, which we’ll put up on our blog or link to through the discussion group, the discussion group where we pool our knowledge, answer questions and try to work through issues, homework, in which you’ll get the tools to build a site plan for your own space, and phone calls – each student gets one 15 minute phone consultation with one of us to answer any specific questions they have. The class begins on October 15, and runs until November 12.

The cost of the class is $180 and can be paid either with a check to addressed to Sharon Astyk at 43 Crow Hill Road Delanson, NY 12053 or by paypal to sharondownonthefarm@yahoo.com.

If you’d like to make a donation to our scholarship fund, 100% of which goes to making the class available to low income students who can’t otherwise afford it, you can do that as well at the same address.

Here is the syllabus:

Thursday, October 15: Sun, Soil, Water; Taking Measurements; The Project of Design, Meet Your Graph Paper ; Small Space and Urban challenges, Container Gardening, Getting Started,

Thursday, October 22: Soil Preparation, Perennial Plantings, Orcharding and Woody Agriculture; Permaculture, Seed Starting and Variety Selection, Calorie Crops, Beginning to Plan, Design Project 1 - A Courtyard Garden

Thursday, October 29: Transforming a City or Suburban Lot, Dealing with Zoning, Small Livestock and Polyculture; Finding More Land; Gardening Cheaply, Gardening in an Unstable Climate, Design Project 2 - A Suburban Yard

Thursday, November 5: Community and Garden; The CSA Model, Making Money, Children’s Gardens, Year-Round Gardening, Maximizing the Harvest Garden Design Project, 3: An Urban Farm - in Many Yards

Thursday, November 12: The CSA Model, Farm vs. Garden, Making Shade Productive, Vertical Gardening, Succession and Long term Planning, Deep Food Security.

Thursday November 19: Visions for the Future, Long Term Fertility, Larger Livestock, Becoming a Victory Farmer; After the Design Phase; Garden Design Project 4: A Larger Farm - In Smaller Pieces

You are invited to join in the fun.