Changing my garden hardscaping

[Prairie Rose]

After a two year experiment, I have decided raised beds for my vegetables is going to be my best solution for my situation. Next week I am planning on adding several more raised beds, then mulching them to rest all winter before planting next spring.

I have a question though, my test plot is a four by four square, so I never worried about orientation. These new beds are going to be four by eight. Do I orient them so the length is east-west, and plant short rows, or would I have better results orienting the length north-south?

Our big garden growing up was oriented north-south, but we always planted in east-west rows and never had a problem. My smaller garden as an adult I planted in north-south rows and got decent results until we accidentally ruined the soil and now I have to grow mostly on top of it.

So, for those of you who grow in raised beds, what way do you orient yours? How are your results?

 

[ducks4you]

Raised beds are great BUT you need to dig out the sides and corners every year bc soil compacts there. I have LOTS of beds and have created temporary raised beds that didn't always get taken apart at the end of the season. Wood needs replacing every 5 years. If you screw/nail them together you will need to collect screws/nails when you pull them apart. Treat them like huge pots that you grow in and add to or replace the soil every year, OR amend it. It involves digging out and mixing soil. I orient mine east-west.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I don't know what you are planting and how much it spreads. How far apart will your rows be? Are you planning all of a 4x8 will be the same thing or plant different things in the same bed?

I oriented most of my 4x8's north-south but a couple east-west. I plant short rows in all of them and usually have different things in the same bed. I do pay attention to how tall things get and what might shade what.

One reason for short rows is that I don't need 8' of lettuce or many other things. A 4' row gives us plenty of lettuce to eat.

 

[Prairie Rose]

Too true, I did not think of it that way. Right now I am looking at putting in 4 4x8 beds, and I already have 4 4x4 boxes. I am planning on three foot spacing between the beds in each direction, and I mostly grow summer crops. tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, green beans, etc. I am hoping to grow things that like to spread, like squash, up on trellises. there are only 3 of us, so I don't grow a lot of anything.

I guess maybe once i get all my boxes made I should just take them out front and lay them out and see which will be the most effective use of my space

 

[ducks4you]

Yep. That's the joy of gardening, YOU decide.