Raised Beds
2010-11-16 at 01:05 pm pshipley
Raised Beds
I personally love raised beds for vegetable growing, it solves many problems, and is very easy to install. All you need to build them are some lengths of pressure treated / tannalised timber and some stakes. Of course you can use other materials, such as old / new railway sleepers, (do not use if treated with creosote) brick or stone, logs, plastic raised beds are also available to buy. In fact, anything solid enough and safe.
My preferred method is lengths of tannalised timber, between 6inches / 15cm to 1ft / 30cm wide with adequately long stakes (at least 12 – 18 inches). Simply cut the lengths of wood to the size of bed required, remember a 4 to 5ft wide bed allows for easy maintenance.
Mark out and dig a narrow trench approximately 2inches deep for the boards to sit in on their edges, then support the board with stakes driven in to the ground every 3-4ft. For extra stability it helps to have stakes on both the outside and inside edges. Ensure the boards are nice and perpendicular as you drive in the stakes. The stakes should be knocked in, and sit 1 -2 inches lower than the top edge of the board.
Raised bed during construction and filling
Sometimes it helps to line the inside edge of the boards with a non permeable liner, or plastic. This keeps the moist soil off the wood and lengthens the life expectancy of the boards a little.
Once built, the raised bed can be filled with good quality soil that has been improved with organic matter such as well rotted farm manure or compost. Spread the soil evenly making sure there are no air pockets remaining at the edges and corners. Fill the bed to the top of the boards, as it will in time settle and the level will sink. It may require topping up in a few weeks.
Raised bed a few weeks later with plants flourishing and netted for protection in this case from cats disturbing seeds and seedlings
Paths between raised beds should be plenty wide enough to walk along and preferably wide enough for a wheel barrow. Between raised beds I like to put down a weed membrane on the soil surface and lay a 2 inch deep layer of mulch. Bark chippings or gravel make good paths but do not over do the depth otherwise it makes pushing a laden wheel barrow difficult! Tamp down the paths with the back of a rake to make them more solid. Alternatively you can leave them as grass paths, gravel or just plain soil, but beware soil gets muddy and slippy!