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Photos courtesy of Grow Y'Own.

ing than products you buy at the big box stores, which are often made out of plastic, not produced locally, and without a cover system.

WHAT CAN YOU GROW? In a four-by-four-foot bed, a single person can grow a continuous supply of food—summer and winter. In a typical bed, Kuhne will plant chard, kale, arugula, spinach, lettuces, beets, carrots, radishes, sorrel, leeks, onions, garlic, tomatoes, cukes, peppers, eggplant, herbs, and more. The only thing he won’t plant are corn and artichokes, because of height. Biennials like chard and kale will keep going for two years. Kuhne stays away from broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and potatoes; despite growing well in a Grow Y’own system, these vegetables each take up about four feet, and gardeners will want to try to maximize the space available for plants they can harvest multiple times. For crop rotation, he will plant leeks, onions, and garlic in the fall for early spring harvests.

WHAT DO YOU GET? Customers can do as little or as much as they want with a Grow Y'Own bed. Typically, a system will include the assembled bed with 82

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built-in hoops; organic soil; an automatic drip system; a small heating system for the coldest periods of the year; a split-faced sand-colored block, if someone desires to have a bed and working space at a higher level; covers; and a large selection of starts and seeds. Kuhne put in a four-by-four-foot bed for a single woman in Eldorado. After about one month, she called and said, “You didn’t tell me!” He couldn’t imagine what she meant until she said, “What do I do with all this food?” Kuhne told her to share it with her neighbors, and she said, “I did.” Kuhne told her to take some to the Food Depot or shelters and she said, “I did.” Kuhne told her to start drying or canning her surplus and she said, “I did.” A few weeks later, she called and ordered a four-by-eight-foot bed. Kuhne said, “I thought you said you had too much food?” She replied, “I know, but I want to grow more things!” I left our meeting invigorated and ready to grow again, starting now, in the fall, not in the spring. With Kuhne delivering the bed, soil, irrigation, covers, plant starts, and installing, how could I resist? I hope to share many successful stories with you in the seasons to come. 505-490-1849, www.growyown.com