I have been gardening for 20 years, however I have never tried raised bed gardening and would like to set up raised beds for next spring. Could someone tell me how to go about building frames? Also.. I have really good soil in my garden, can I fill the beds with that soil or do I have to buy bags of potting soil? I need some one to clue me in as to what size of beds to build also. We live in the country and usually have a very large garden.
raised bed gardening
- Thread starter farmchick
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patandchickens
Deeply Rooted
Regular good garden soil is just fine (=is good to use). You don't want the beds to be wider than you can conveniently reach into, which for most people means 4' or at *absolute total* most maybe 6' if you are a tall person with long arms and enjoy reaching. (One of the big points of raised beds is to avoid walking on the soil). They can be any length you want. I have never really understood the fad for lots of 4x8 beds with space all around them - you don't really need to go between 'em every 8' 
You can buy any of probably three dozen kinds of not all that inexpensive widgets to affix landscape ties, lumber or pavers together to make the edges of the beds. Or, you can just, you know, build it yourself and make it sturdy
It is often a good idea to have a stake or post every 4-6' down the side of a long bed, made of something strong and rot-resistant driven deeply into the soil, to prevent the side from bowing out under the weight/pressure of all that soil.
Actually of course you do not HAVE to have sides on raised beds at all, if you only want to raise them like 6-10" which is plenty for most purposes. Just hill the dirt up and poke it with a hoe every now and then when it starts subsiding along the edges. Really truly
Be prepared to water your raised beds more. They warm up faster in spring, and because they are raised they can be a good strategy for gardening in an area that gets a bit soggy and marshy at times -- BUT, the tradeoff is that the soil gets hotter and drier in the summer. Extra water, and perhaps mulch even if you don't usually use it, will be needed.
Have fun,
Pat
You can buy any of probably three dozen kinds of not all that inexpensive widgets to affix landscape ties, lumber or pavers together to make the edges of the beds. Or, you can just, you know, build it yourself and make it sturdy
It is often a good idea to have a stake or post every 4-6' down the side of a long bed, made of something strong and rot-resistant driven deeply into the soil, to prevent the side from bowing out under the weight/pressure of all that soil.Actually of course you do not HAVE to have sides on raised beds at all, if you only want to raise them like 6-10" which is plenty for most purposes. Just hill the dirt up and poke it with a hoe every now and then when it starts subsiding along the edges. Really truly
Be prepared to water your raised beds more. They warm up faster in spring, and because they are raised they can be a good strategy for gardening in an area that gets a bit soggy and marshy at times -- BUT, the tradeoff is that the soil gets hotter and drier in the summer. Extra water, and perhaps mulch even if you don't usually use it, will be needed.
Have fun,
Pat
Beekissed
Garden Master
Because I mulch deeply, I find I don't have to water my raised beds as much as regular beds. Of course, mine are only raised about 6 in., I expect if they were deeper, this might be a problem?
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Oh, also... can anyone tell me what to do with the paths or spaces between the beds? How do you keep the weeds out? Do you put that black weed barrier down? Using a 6" thick mulch alone over newly turned soil isn't enough here, because we have so much bind weed. Any suggestions? I want them to look kinda nice too.
Beekissed
Garden Master
Some folks will establish permanent walkways with pavers, some with black plastic and mulch, some reseed the paths to grass and mow in between. I didn't go with pavers but tried the others. I think the grass will work the best for me, as the mulch tends to displace over time and leave patches of black plastic exposed.
Someone on here has pea gravel, which is very pretty.
I have read where some folks reseed with a grass high in nitrogen and will cut it to place on their garden...almost a garden within a garden.
Someone on here has pea gravel, which is very pretty.
I have read where some folks reseed with a grass high in nitrogen and will cut it to place on their garden...almost a garden within a garden.
Reinbeau
Deeply Rooted
That someone would be me I put down two layers of landscape cloth and then three inches of pea gravel. I've had raised beds for years and am done with mowing between them! My mother also has the peastone, it's very nice for garden paths.
I put down two layers of landscape cloth and then three inches of pea gravel. I've had raised beds for years and am done with mowing between them! My mother also has the peastone, it's very nice for garden paths.- Thread starter
- #8
Is that pea gravel kind of expensive? I bet it does look great though. Do you buy it by the ton, or get it in the bags at the nursery? I bet what you did keeps the weeds down good. Sounds like what I need to do. Our bind weed is soooo bad here.
Reinbeau
Deeply Rooted
I bought it by the yard, one yard is about 1.3 ton. The rounded pea gravel that I liked so much at my mother's was very expensive, $53 a yard because it's tumbled, and I needed two yards to do what I did out there. But they had this other stuff, same size, but not rounded (it isn't that sharp, you just can't walk on it barefoot, not a problem as far as I'm concerned, I'm always in Tevas out in the garden), and it was $21.00 a yard. Either one had a $35 delivery fee. I have a Ranger, so I didn't want to kill it like I did with the load of soil I'd purchased this past summer (I think the suspension took a hit, it was wet and heavy!) So if you have access to a heavier duty truck, you can probably get it from a local gravel yard for a similar price.farmchick said:
