Doing rasied beds... is it right for me?

[Marion]

I have experimented a bit with raised beds. For my own, I'm afraid it does not have enough light exposure to judge fairly. It's been great for growing my greens. It's made from cinder blocks. 2 blocks high save a lot on the back. I'm posting a pic from a friends garden in the area. He reports great success with tomatoes in these beds. I think there's a way to make them work for you but it takes time to get the right balance of replenishing soil, watering, and finding the right plant to commit to in such a limited space. I love the fact that it saves the back

[LeeInEdmonton]

Myrt & I built some raised beds about a doz. yrs ago....for flowers to add more color to the yard. One raised bed was quite a distance from the nearest trees & did very well. We found that the other two raised beds which we thought were far enough from trees proved not so. After two yrs these two raised beds were choked with tree roots & we discontinued them. So keep raised beds well away from trees.

Lee

[maxmyshop]

Hello. This is my first post on this site so I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Trish. I used to live in Edmonton but now make my home in Victoria, BC.

I have had raised beds for years, and I would be the first one to say go ahead; it's great. It really doesn't have to cost that much is you use 2 - 10's and some corner clips. I did it the hard way with landscape ties. I would be careful if you use pressure treated lumber. It is said that it could leech into the soil, but I've always used pressure treated, and I haven't had any problems.

I would say that you shouldn't use potting soil to fill the beds. At most places where you can buy soil there is a 'garden mix' that's good. I would also add a little sand. It keeps the soil soft. Each year you can amend the soil with compost or bagged manure (not too much). One of the benefits of having raised beds is that you don't have to rototill. You can just turn the soil over in the spring and away you go.

Be careful how much room you leave between the beds. You want to have enough room that if you are facing a bed that your feet fit. I put landscape cloth under the soil and have gravel around the beds.

I have read and re-read the book "Square Foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew. It's great and yes you can plant a raised bed like that and get the same amount of food. Paste this link in your address bar to have a look http://www.amazon.com/gp/cm?t=gardenretreat-20/B0055IW8R0.

If you'd like more information you can contact me at http://www.mygardenretreat.com. This is a brand new site, so I'd appreciate some comments. It's much like another social media site, but for gardeners. I also have a site on gardening in raised beds at http://www.plantingraisedbeds.com. I tried to add some pictures of my garden, but I am not a computer geek, so I'll post some on my site.

If you are a busy person, this is for you.


Trish

[Dumbo]

Trish,

2nd link doesn't work.

1st link is American.