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Ingredients for a raised bed?

  • 13-07-2007 9:06am
    #1
    NextSteps
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 984 ✭✭✭


    I'm building 2 long raised beds (3 blocks high - to keep the dog out, mostly) and plan to use them for a mix of veg and flowers, and maybe espalliered apple trees at the back. The trouble is I'll have to buy the soil in since there's so much needed. Can anyone suggest the best way of doing this? I was planning to put 6-8" of gravel at the bottom for drainage, then a mix of farmyard manure and topsoil, and as much compost as I can get towards the top. Then plant it with clover or beans for the first winter, for the nitrogen. What else should I add, ideally?
    And has anyone got a line on a LOT of manure, near Dublin?


Comments

  • #2
    10-10-20
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,073 ✭✭✭10-10-20


    Won't raised beds have a higher potential to dry out significantly during dry-spells? You will have to invest in rain-water storage in my opinion.
    I know that with the current inclement weather it's not a thought on everybody's minds…

    I personally wouldn't bother with the stone at the base for drainage, I'd place two layers of plastic down and bring it 1/2 way up the height of the blocks to make a trough and RETAIN some water. Maybe I'm just mad...


  • #3
    foamcutter
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 324 ✭✭foamcutter


    You could use polystyrene sheets/blocks to fill the void area. They don't rot or degrade when in touch with water, they would be light weight (easy to transport) and relatively inexpensive.


  • #4
    NextSteps
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 984 ✭✭✭NextSteps


    foamcutter wrote:
    You could use polystyrene sheets/blocks to fill the void area. They don't rot or degrade when in touch with water, they would be light weight (easy to transport) and relatively inexpensive.
    That's a thought, but I want to plant small trees and other things with deep roots, such as potatoes, so it'd be better to have the whole thing filled with soil. Plus I'd be afraid of digging it up through the soil over time as it got broken up by roots and the spade.


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