Idiots guide to raised bed please

splodger_seedswapper

berries wrote: »

Slpoder seedswapper- Have you used your raised bed's this year if so what has you plantd?? It look's really nice think I might try that too as it's full of weed's!! And ground isnt good either

yes - i have them planted up now



toms and cucs in one - melons in another - chillies and peppers in another - peas and dwarf beans in another - and i am using one as a compost bin at the mo

i put some glass around the sides (and over the top early in season) and that got the beds really hot - the melons still have glass over them

3v3

hotcookie101 wrote: »

I didn't see decking that cheap when I was there at the weekend-was £4.98 so I thought the gravel boards would be better-would decking be better? ...

You need to look because they tend to have the very cheapest one's less "on show"; but they really are that cheap, and they feature in the showroom catelogue - which, if my memory serves me right, also showed you how to make raised beds from the decking boards? So, yes, they are suitable for raised beds

Did you say you had all those weeds *in* your lawn? Is that the section of lawn which you hope to put your raised beds? I've spent the past year ridding an area of bramble, nettle and bindweed and you really have to get every single itsy bitsy pieces of root out. Perishers they are for popping up via their root system. But, as I said in my earlier post, the land the raised beds have been sat on has been dug down two spade depths, the soil all sieved and returned (after mixing with my hm compost!).

You could try the "lasagne" gardening approach to your beds if you can bare to wait until next Spring for actual planting. Basically you sit your raised bed on the lawn, then, lay down a layer of wetted cardboard to cover the area inside the bed; next add vegetable waste (peelings etc) then top with a layer of wetted newspaper and keep building up the layers to the top of your raised bed and lay a final layer of wetted cardboard. Over winter it should all break down ready for planting in Spring (and no added cost of topsoil). Basically, the cardboard keeps the sun off the lawn/weeds (no sun = no growth) and sandwiching it with the kitchen scraps is pretty much how you make compost in a compost bin anyway.

Just another thing for you to consider (hope it isn't overwhelming/confusing you)

hotcookie101

3v3 wrote: »

Did you say you had all those weeds *in* your lawn? Is that the section of lawn which you hope to put your raised beds? I've spent the past year ridding an area of bramble, nettle and bindweed and you really have to get every single itsy bitsy pieces of root out. Perishers they are for popping up via their root system. But, as I said in my earlier post, the land the raised beds have been sat on has been dug down two spade depths, the soil all sieved and returned (after mixing with my hm compost!).

You could try the "lasagne" gardening approach to your beds if you can bare to wait until next Spring for actual planting. Basically you sit your raised bed on the lawn, then, lay down a layer of wetted cardboard to cover the area inside the bed; next add vegetable waste (peelings etc) then top with a layer of wetted newspaper and keep building up the layers to the top of your raised bed and lay a final layer of wetted cardboard. Over winter it should all break down ready for planting in Spring (and no added cost of topsoil). Basically, the cardboard keeps the sun off the lawn/weeds (no sun = no growth) and sandwiching it with the kitchen scraps is pretty much how you make compost in a compost bin anyway.

Just another thing for you to consider (hope it isn't overwhelming/confusing you)

Thanks very much was planning on not planting til next year anyway, so that might be an idea, although I don't think we'd have that much veg peelings!

Re weeds in lawn-the bindweed and horsetail is mainly around the borders, the area I was going to use for raised beds is quite dry (after having neighbours conifer tree there for years-now cut down) but there are a lot of daisies, plantain and dandelions in the grass... what I might do is make the beds-zap the inside with round up, dig over removing lumps, lay some cardboard down and fill with topsoil?