At the moment my vegetable bed it 2 bricks high about 6' but i now this is far to small . anyway i mite get railway sleepers or breese blocks . cud any1 tell me a resonalble hight for 1 and any info on the materials i need to use?? Many thanks Gavin
Railway sleepers should not be used if they have been treated with something like creosote. They could be very toxic, not to mention messy. I am not sure what is used or has been used on railway sleepers in Northern Ireland. It would be far safer to use bricks or concrete blocks or some wood product that has not been treated. Ask around to see what is available. Is there a botanical garden or public garden near you with people to advise you? Please use this resource if it is available to you. Or a good garden centre will do. Don't be afraid to ask questions. We all did when we started out. In fact, we all still do. People are very willing to lend a helful hand to beginners. Good luck. A minimum depth would be 18", preferably deeper. This, of course, would depend on what you are going to grow. There are a few things you could grow with less, but it really is better to have a good, deep bed to grow in.
Gpenen, hortfreak is right about depth, but I just wanted to point out that 18 in does not have to be all above ground. The frame around your raised bed can be anywhere from 6 to 8 inches up, but if the soil around you bed has sufficient drainage, you can just till the bed to a depth of 18 inches (10 to 12 inches below existing ground level). However, if the surrounding soil has poor drainage like a heavy clay, it would be best to build up at least 18 inches. One other way to add depth is to pull up hills for your rows (8 to 10 inches high) and then plant on top of the hills. Skeet
how wud i get that anount of soil ? (from lawn ) how?? wat are the vegies that do not need deep soil? IM PLANTING PEAS. BEETROOT,MIXED LETTUCE AND MABE CAROTS??? ANY ADVISE WUD BE GREATLY HELPFUL THANKS ;) Gavin
I have been veggie gardening for fifteen years...I don't have raised beds. If your starting from scratch you can either turn the turf and break it up ( I don't like to do this as lots of the grass doesn't die. or you can scrape off the top layer of turf (grass) and add soil to make up the difference. You can do it with a shovel.
yea ive been taking da to of da turf (grass) and ive been siving all da stones out ( it takes ages! any suggestions and it will tak ages to fill 8ft by 5.6ft ft and 18' deep . ???
OoOo BY THE WAY IS 18 INC NOT A BIT BOG FOR ME TO BE FILLING I WAS THINKIN 12 WAT DO US THNIK??? Gavin
If you are going to grow root crops such as beets and carrots, you definitely need that kind of depth. Lettuce can be grown in a fairly shallow bed. I've done it in a 6" deep window box with very good results. You could just turn over the sod and put it at the very bottom of your raised bed. This should not be a problem. Then put good soil on top of this. You would still need a good depth of soil other than from the sod. How big are the stones that you are removing? Don't worry about smallish ones. They help keep the soil loose. Unless they are really quite big where they would make gardening difficult, I would just leave them in the soil. Take a deep breath and relax. You are worrying far too much. Gardening is supposed to be fun. Just remember, if you make a mistake, there is always next year to try again. Yes, it is disappointing to not get things exactly right the first time, but those that do are few and far between and probably fibbers.
Thanks alot!! i am very glad i found dis website or i wud hav plob hav pulled my hair out lol do peas have to be planted in a deep bed?
Peas don't need a deep bed. If your weather is anything like here in BC...you can plant them soon...or now, I planted mine yesterday. ( I have to add that reading your typing is really challenging, it took me a few tries to get it...not up on text type)
