Has anyone ever built a raised bed or container garden?

[MrsJ]

We just moved into our new home (we're renting) and I have the permission to plant a vegetable garden in our backyard.

I was looking at several areas (some shaddy, some sunny) that would be perfect for some planters.


Has anyone ever built a raised bed garden?
What material did you use? I was thinking redwood...
About how much did it cost?
What will I all need to get my organic gardening off the ground?


My FIL is sending me some New Zealand Spinach...I'm really excited to try it - apparently it just grows and grows and grows - almost like a weed! HELLO GS's!!!

[FloridaPatty]

Lately I've been having better luck with container gardening - earthboxes. They have watering area that automatically waters the plants. It takes a lot less time and energy to do it that way than raised beds. Every summer the weeds take over my raised beds and I spend all winter digging up the weeds. The plants are better watered and fertilized in earthboxes too.

Just found out that if you are growing something for the leaves and not the fruit or roots (radishes, beets) they can be grown in part-shade! That would be lettuce, spinach, broccoli etc.


www.earthbox.com

[michigan roman]

- on the newzeland = soak the seeds say 24 hours before planting .
this is because they take a real long time to sprout , like around a month ,
and the soaking speeds it up .

- ide forget raised bed waste of time / money , its just for looks imo.
plus your renting so itd be all for nothing long term .
dig or til up soil down as far as possible , then til or dig in a bunch of
straw . the straw keeps soil from compacting which is great because
the less compacted / looser soil is easier for roots to course thru
thusly leading to more vigorous plants . if your by water sea weed is a great addition to soil . and its worth doing a soil acidity / alkalinity test imo because too aidic of soil and your plants wont thrive . if the soil is too acidic you can alkalize it with pellitized / powdered lime stone . you can buy cheap $5 test kits at garden centers , or every county has a county extension service for farmers / gardeners and they do test cheap . or you could just add a bag or two of the cheap lime stone to your soil as insurance because it wont hurt anything . at www.motherearthnews.com alot of good gardening info can be 'dug' ;) up .

- my best seed company = www.territorialseed.com , ide email for a catalog cuz its excellent info contained .

- after plants are esstablished i like to mulch around them with straw / grass clippings / leaves in order to keep weeds down / keep moisture in soil .

- newzeland is an xcellent all season crop , but not as mild / tasty as regular spinach , thusly ide also grow it .

- ide suggest going to www.superseeds.com and ordering their one ounce spinach mix package , and their one ounce loose leaf lettuce mix package for an excellent mix of salad greens . kales also ahardy / easy plant but taste better / less brassy in cool fall weather . and dont look at gardenimng as planting your seds in just the spring , here in michigan im planting things l;ike greens right til end of july . these late crops go deep into fall for extended season . and now that ive been raw 3 years and thusly dont eat tomato sandwiches anylonger ive found that the cherry tomatos taste way better than the bigger types so i dont grow bigger types anymore because dont need em for sandwiches . best raw eating string bean imo = drangon tongue bean , or in pole variet the old famous kentucky wonder . roquette / arugula is another fave green . if like basil its a must because fresh its taste plus aroma is great . if your having a small garden ide not play around with alot of differing stuff and rather focus on alot of greens because its great have a good mix of fresh / organic greens all season . and basic romaine lettuce is a hardy / easy plant that you can pack in close together . and on spinach my fave is the old standard ' bloomsdale ' .

ive been gardening 15 years and the best tip i ever read was dont plant seeds too deep , a quarter inch for little seeds like lettuce / spinach , a half inch for big seeds like beans .

and add flowers in order to attract insects for pollination too increase plant vitality .

cayene pepper in water in a spray bottle is a good insecticide .

happy gardening :)

[RaeVynn]

I rather like the raised bed garden, especially where we live. It helps the garden area to dry out early enough to plant greens in early spring, and makes it easier for me to care for the garden.

Have you looked into Square Foot Gardening? It is amazing just how much I can grow in a small area, compared to my previous "standard" garden I had for years.

[pixie_333]

yay! another gardener! i'm starting one myself except most of what i'm planting will stay on pots and bins ect and i'm tickeled pink about doing it all. i'm considering in building stuff for it too..like raised beds as well.

i'm basicaly a novice and newbie, however i had much success with what i grew while livng in california, but i've never tried greens like i'm starting now.

i recently watched some videos on youtube and i found this guy who has MANY how to videos and plenty of info you may be seeking or at east to get some good ideas. he uses recycled stuff..barely pays for anything.
here's a spinach one growing in wheel barrows... but click on his user name to profile to see all of his other videos. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rHUyB6_tGo

[pixie_333]

hey michigan roman... have you tried using botanical interests seeds? or heard anything about them? it's what i bought at whole foods. just am wondering if they are any good or not in your opnion. i haven't finished shopping for seeds yet. i'm still desiding what else to grow.

i bought parsley, basil, spinach, red kale, mesclun, cilantro, mint and red lettuce...so far.

and i think i wasted my money on the burpee eco friendly seed starter. i thought i'd try some i can start indoors for it and the rest of seeds in the other reg basic joe/jane container.

[Ilse W.]

My vote is for Square Foot Gardening. Go to Amazon and look for the book. You should be able to get a used one for a penny plus $3.99 shipping. I have four 8x4 raised beds, which is plenty of space for my needs. Have fun gardening.

[michigan roman]

hey michigan roman... have you tried using botanical interests seeds? or heard anything about them? it's what i bought at whole foods. just am wondering if they are any good or not in your opnion. i haven't finished shopping for seeds yet. i'm still desiding what else to grow.

i bought parsley, basil, spinach, red kale, mesclun, cilantro, mint and red lettuce...so far.

and i think i wasted my money on the burpee eco friendly seed starter. i thought i'd try some i can start indoors for it and the rest of seeds in the other reg basic joe/jane container.


never heard of botanical interest seeds , but im now on the case :D
the 2 companies i mentioned i boiled down over 15 years of getting tens of catalogs , neither treat their seeds . and territorial grows most of their own seeds in an organic style . territorial are true pro seed people . i love territorial seed company :)

another smaller family type company is www.highmowingseeds.com , totally organic and they grow all their own seeds . and for herbs go to www.richters.com , over 1000 herb seeds + EXCELLENT / INFORMATIVE catalog .

and seeing youve not decided all seeds i suggest the easy + vigorous romaine if you like its taste . very sturdy plant that stays into summer heat way better than a red lettuce , which by the way is not as tasty as romaine to me . BUT , the red sure does make a salad look more delicious :D so worth it .

for starting seeds indoors i use my garden soil , then put dirt from garden into my watering vessels in order to fertilize the plants .

im gonna whip out my territorial / pine tree / high mowing seed catalogs tonite and fire off some missiles :eek: , that in my childish manner means making some seed orders . the envelopes i mail out with the orders are the missiles i launch , LOL .

[Revvell]

Just chatting with someone about gardening on the "Appreciations" thread.

Like MrsJ, we're leasing yet, with option and were told we can do anything we want with the yard which is mostly grass.

So far, most everything we've got is in pots except for the pepper tree which we pulled down and replaced with a dwarf blood orange tree.

On the sides, they had brick so, I pulled that up, covered in in mulch and planted some various veggies which did fairly well, especially the tomato plants, two of which are still going on despite, hail and frost.

The problem we have here is, rocky soil so, going to do the raised bed thing. We can dig into this stuff. We have people all over the place giving away free soil; we can get free mulch... all we need are the sides to put the stuff in. At Path to Freedom (http://www.pathtofreedom.com/), they've used cinder blocks which I'm thinking we'll maybe use if we can get them at a decent price. We've already got a few here. PLUS, we went to a potluck Path to Freedom (http://www.pathtofreedom.com/) put on the other evening and I purchased some seed from them.

We've also got a small concrete area behind our garage where we have our worm farm and compost bins. I'm thinking we may be putting some Earth Boxes there. We've used them before and like them.

Going to have to eventually dig up some lawn and build some more beds. I, like many of my neighbors, would like to become self-sustainable.. growing the bulk of what we eat here. We've got a group of local gardeners who share food, seeds, information, etc. It's very cool to live here. :)

I've also got Square Foot Gardening on my Amazon Wish List along with some others.

Another resource y'all might want to check out is: http://gardengirltv.com/. Expect to spend some time with Patti. She's delightful.

Oh! Also planting wildflowers. Cathy (Lafsalot) from this forum told me to make our yard "bird friendly" and we'll have less need for sprays of any kind. Remember, you spray for anything, you're spraying for everything. Any spray you use will kill the beneficial as well as the not-so.. so, better to add more beneficials to feed on the not-so's.

Revvell (http://LetsTalkRaw.com)

[Raw Joy]

Square Foot Gardening is awesome, but would probably take more work and time to set up than containers. I did SFG last year and loved it. But because of a recent back re-injury, and I don't want to strain it, I'm thinking about just doing a few containers this year, and then next year, do a combination of both.

Good luck. Let us know how it goes. Digging in the dirt is one my best therapies.

[JCB44]

If you use redwood or any wood to make a raised bed, make sure the wood is untreated or stained. I made planter with treated wood and nothing grew very well, even though I had good soil in the beds.

[Revvell]

If you use redwood or any wood to make a raised bed, make sure the wood is untreated or stained. I made planter with treated wood and nothing grew very well, even though I had good soil in the beds.

Good advice. The stuff wood is treated with leaches into the soil.

I've got a neighbor who purchased a house and part of the property was covered in asphalt. She's been working on it for 5 years and weeds are finally coming up.

[MrsJ]

Thank you guys! I bought Square Foot gardening, it arrived just before we moved last week!

Can't wait to dig in!

[pixie_333]

im gonna whip out my territorial / pine tree / high mowing seed catalogs tonite and fire off some missiles :eek: , that in my childish manner means making some seed orders . the envelopes i mail out with the orders are the missiles i launch , LOL .


haha! i have a choo choo train that takes me to sleepyland! choo choo!

[MrsJ]

Lately I've been having better luck with container gardening - earthboxes. They have watering area that automatically waters the plants. It takes a lot less time and energy to do it that way than raised beds. Every summer the weeds take over my raised beds and I spend all winter digging up the weeds. The plants are better watered and fertilized in earthboxes too.

Just found out that if you are growing something for the leaves and not the fruit or roots (radishes, beets) they can be grown in part-shade! That would be lettuce, spinach, broccoli etc.


www.earthbox.com

For the earth boxes, do you need to use plants or can you just plan open-pollinated seeds?

[Revvell]

Plant seeds if you want; just leave holes in the plastic for them to come up through.


For the earth boxes, do you need to use plants or can you just plan open-pollinated seeds?

[juliebove]

I use Earthboxes. They work really well.

[michigan roman]

nothing personal or disrespectful meant towards anyones opinion in this thread , but im going to disagree with the earth boxes . ive seen them and their nothing special imo , just a waste of money when youve got all the ground you want to plant on . and if you want a cold frame affect just make a wooden frame with sscrap wood and lay clear plastic over it that you secure down . sorry for disagreeing with you peeps but i dont want our young newlyweds wasting their money on anything but vitamix'es , champaign and flowers :D

[Revvell]

Yet, if you don't have all the ground you want to plant on, they're VERY good and, you can take them with you! I used them outside my apartment because I had NO ground to plant on and if you're renting/leasing, it may not be a good idea to tear up the lawn, especially if you want your deposit back.

No disrespect meant. :D



nothing personal or disrespectful meant towards anyones opinion in this thread , but im going to disagree with the earth boxes . ive seen them and their nothing special imo , just a waste of money when youve got all the ground you want to plant on . and if you want a cold frame affect just make a wooden frame with sscrap wood and lay clear plastic over it that you secure down . sorry for disagreeing with you peeps but i dont want our young newlyweds wasting their money on anything but vitamix'es , champaign and flowers :D

[michigan roman]

haha! i have a choo choo train that takes me to sleepyland! choo choo!

:eek: , omg - im adding that to my list of standard statements :D

[michigan roman]

Yet, if you don't have all the ground you want to plant on, they're VERY good and, you can take them with you! I used them outside my apartment because I had NO ground to plant on and if you're renting/leasing, it may not be a good idea to tear up the lawn, especially if you want your deposit back.

No disrespect meant. :D

rev its so civilized in this thread aint it :cool: ,
i think its gardening that makes us so .................:D

[MrsJ]

I like the whole "grab n go" concept.

But I was really planning on doing raisebed gardens for the MOST part.

I will have to figure this out...there is an exsisting drip system in the yard for the plants and trees. I wonder if I can work with that.

DO ALL IF YOU JUST HAND WATER OR DO YOU HAVE YOUR GARDEN ON IRRIGATION?

[Revvell]

rev its so civilized in this thread aint it :cool: ,
i think its gardening that makes us so .................:D

Absolutely! *looks 'round for the lil huggy smiley guy* :D

[Lavendula]

I have been gardening most of my life, on my own for almost 30 years, intensive raised beds for 23. I would not do it any other way. I would just like to improve what I have. Raised beds don't have to be boxed. To do raised beds or not depends on many things: space, permanence, native soil quality, climate, availability of water, and ability to care for a plot as compared to keeping a 3x6 bed. So, imo it's not just for show, for me it's the only way to get the most out gardening w/o the intensive labor.

[MrsJ]

Lav ~

Would you mind if I asked you a couple of questions via email when I'm ready to make my (raised) bed?

[michigan roman]

I have been gardening most of my life, on my own for almost 30 years, intensive raised beds for 23. I would not do it any other way. I would just like to improve what I have. Raised beds don't have to be boxed. To do raised beds or not depends on many things: space, permanence, native soil quality, climate, availability of water, and ability to care for a plot as compared to keeping a 3x6 bed. So, imo it's not just for show, for me it's the only way to get the most out gardening w/o the intensive labor.


that you put it that the beds dont have to be boxed i now agree .
i was more so disagreeing with the waste of labor / material to box a bed in , which to me is for looks . though i know to many thats important .
and i guess i kinda garden raised bed as ive a big mulch pile that each spring i pitch onto my beds raising them like 6" . this rich / loose soil is perfect for roots to easily coarse thru , and ive no need to churn up the soil to loosen it so less work like your saying . i just mulch with grass / leaves / straw around the developing plants to keep weeds down / moisture in .

and concerning the other wheres statements about square foot gardening , ive read the book many years ago and saw his square beds . and his logic for plant access . but for me to get more plants in an area i just ran rows 4' wide with 3' paths between them . my beds are like 4 ' wide and 50' long with out interuptions every 4 ' to make square beds . i can still get at my plants this way , and get more production out of the space .

and one of my favorite gardening books is ' four season harvest ' by eliot coleman . he describes how to get as much production possible out of the length of your growing season . he gets into cold frames / row covers / cold hardy species / etc .

and another thing i can pitch in is back when i started gardening 15 years ago my neighboor a senior women of like 50 years gardening experience in a big 150 x 40 foot garden became my teacher , and she turned me on to the original creator of organic gardening magazine J I RODALE . he was a great character and bright man with extensive gardening knowledge . she gave me all her old organic gardening mags from the 80's which were packed with info . so though i dont read their mag today , ide say their site would be a decent place if J I 's vision was carried forward because he was a leader . their sites probably www.organicgardening.com

[Revvell]

Only reason I'm doing raised bed is our soil is so sandy/rocky I can't really get into it and it drains quickly sooooo, looking for some loamy soil to mix in with the mulch we get free from the city (yeah, we've got 3 composters going but compost is not ready yet).

Went to a nursery yesterday and they had beds raised about 3 feet off the ground and told me it was to discourage bunnies.

I'm thinking not much will deter our furry squirrel friends to keep them out of my raspberries. :( They're not eating the tomatoes though. :)

Revvell (http://LetsTalkRaw.com)

[Lavendula]

Sorry I have been gone awhile, my sister died. I caught a cold at the end of a long road trip. I'll come back when I have the energy, to talk gardening experience and ideas. Maybe we can post some pics.

Michigan Roman: my current garden is boxed raised beds of ; 2 x12's, in 3x5 3x6, and 3x9 with gravel paths. I too, cut my teeth on the OG magazines of the 80's, and all of the other Rodale press, publictions and books. My father was a pretty serious gardener, tending a huge plot. He cleaned stalls just for the manure, and gathered boxes of produce trimmings from the grocer, and some restaurants for his compost. He was even the sought after gardener for a few of the snooty rich ladies, who fought over him. Get me going about gardening and I have to brag about him. That's it for energy today.

[Revvell]

O.k., got the first phase done. I wanted to take befores and afters.. Himself took some befores and can't find them soooo.... here's (http://revvellations.com/weekly/) what I've got!

[Bookish Lass]

Here's a link on how to make an earthbox if you don't want to spend the big $$.

http://www.seattleoil.com/Flyers/Earthbox.pdf

[Revvell]

That's pretty much what we did. Got the tub for under $4 at Home Depot. Very easy, very inexpensive.

Big Lots has a similar tub. Cheaper material; more expensive.

Revvell (http://LetsTalkRaw.com)

[debilana]

I have not read the thread but heres my first raised garden, from last year-my DH built me 2 raised boxes from cheap wood. This year we are putting down weed barrier between the boxes, maybe building another one, and hopefully making a tunnel for this fall so I can grow late lettuce.

I also have a pic of my starter herb garden- its slowly growing. I think I will rock in the border this year.
http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t297/lanarylie/Picture260-1.jpg

http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t297/lanarylie/Picture259-2.jpg

http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t297/lanarylie/Picture255.jpg

http://i163.photobucket.com/albums/t297/lanarylie/Picture258.jpg

[irishserra]

We built raised boxes and started planting. We're building two more this week, as we have lots of good things going in:

a variety of green beans
a variety of peas
cabbages
various lettuces
various spinach
brussell sprouts
a variety of tomatoes
multi-colored peppers; hot and/or sweet
garlic
onions
tomatoes
ground cherries
variety of carrots
egg plant
cucumbers
melons
blue and rainbow Mexican corn varieties (of course will not be in the raised boxes)
Chinese radishes
herbs galore: cilantro, basil, cinnamon basil, parsley, dill
Stevia

My mouth is watering thinking about that big salad...

Planting has been very fulfilling, as well as interesting. We even found a baby snake in one of the boxes yesterday...

http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj253/kyolin1/garden.jpg



http://i274.photobucket.com/albums/jj253/kyolin1/snake.jpg

[circle]

i have a raised bed. it is very easy. i just use bricks. i pile the bricks on top of each other so i can put dirt in the area that i prepared with the bricks. then, i mix all the dirt together on the topsoil, and the soil in the ground so the good soil mixes with the old soil. in the back of the garden, there is a fence. along the fence i plant climbing plants like tomatoes and cucumbers so they can loop around the fence. in the front that's where the greens go.

good luck.

[circle]

it looks kind of like this, but this is not mine. i just took this photo off google. just imagine this setup, but only in the back there is a chain link fence.

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/55/169897457_789a490673.jpg

in this photo they use like this wooden fence thingie in the back for the same purpose i will assume.

[Lavendula]

I'm loving everyones pics, the snake is great. Here are some the first year for this garden, 2002. Just a peak. I'll see if I can do it ,post more later.
just getting going in Spring
4949
4950
late Summer, Morning glory arbor. We made this from saplings, fixing the framework into two oak barrels, it is long since gone.
4951
No idea how to make them bigger, oh, I guess just clicking on them from here.

[irishserra]

Ooooh....that arbor of morning glories is gorgeous!! I can just imagine the humming birds buzzing around those things...

[CoachP's Wife]

This sound all really good til the word snake came up, can't even look at them in a magazine without screaming:eek:

[FloridaPatty]

For the earth boxes, do you need to use plants or can you just plan open-pollinated seeds?

I do both.

[FloridaPatty]

i have a raised bed. it is very easy. i just use bricks. i pile the bricks on top of each other so i can put dirt in the area that i prepared with the bricks. then, i mix all the dirt together on the topsoil, and the soil in the ground so the good soil mixes with the old soil. in the back of the garden, there is a fence. along the fence i plant climbing plants like tomatoes and cucumbers so they can loop around the fence. in the front that's where the greens go.

good luck.

I did the wood thing. Spent a lot of time and effort putting in the wood and digging out the grass. Now, years later the wood is rotting and I have to do it again. I am on a rampage of "once is enough". Brick raised beds, weed blocker between beds because I am tired of cutting the grass and weeding grass from the raised veggie beds. Lots of mulch on the perinnials.

[kaybee]

irish serra--are you in ireland? if so, will things like stevia, etc grow outside here?

thanks

kaybee

[iwuvmydoggy]

We just moved into our new home (we're renting) and I have the permission to plant a vegetable garden in our backyard.

I was looking at several areas (some shaddy, some sunny) that would be perfect for some planters.


Has anyone ever built a raised bed garden?
What material did you use? I was thinking redwood...
About how much did it cost?
What will I all need to get my organic gardening off the ground?


My FIL is sending me some New Zealand Spinach...I'm really excited to try it - apparently it just grows and grows and grows - almost like a weed! HELLO GS's!!!

1.) Yes.
2.) Cedar- it helps repel bad insects from your plants.
3.) Depends on how much you want to grow, but it's not too bad. Just make sure you have lots of different types of compost, and/or start building your own compost.
4.) Buy Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew... He shows you how to do everything for raised beds. I would recommend at least 8-10 inches of compost, though. Not the 6 he recommends.. Vermiculite can be found at pool supply stores, alternatively you can use Pearlite... And you don't have to use Peat Moss. You can just use compost. There's also another book called The Four Season Harvest, by Eliot Coleman. Tells you how to get fresh veg year round (he lives in Maine) You may also want to join GardenWeb and buy or borrow a couple books from the library regarding organic gardening. :)

[Lavendula]

I really never read his book(s?) back in the early 80's. My bf is starting her first proper garden, Mel's way, right down to the particular way he mixes the soil. I could never afford much in the way soil, I just amended the native soil, the way my father did. I always had good to great results as long as I continue to add compost every year or so. But I think I would opt to follow his recommendations as close as possible to insure the ease of the whole garden experience. If it is too challenging, most people won't do it. I am tired and my body is broken, and I need easier. Just do it and enjoy the fruit of your labor.

[oceanluv]

Ruth Stout is my hero!! I have been gardening for more than 40 years. It has been my joy to play in the dirt, and then get something wonderful to eat later. Right now I'm in an apt. on the 7th floor. I have a very small balcony, filled with potted plants. just room for 1 chair, lol. I am growing herbs, aloes, and edible flowers, and later will get one of those upsidedown hanging thingys to try for tomatoes or some lettuces, greens. If I can't garden, I am not a happy camper.

[Raw Joy]

I put in lettuce, swiss chard, green and red leaf lettuce last week. Stopped yesterday and bought some basil, oregano, parsley, cilantro and mint. Can hardly wait to go dig in the dirt.

Tomatoes and cucumbers get planted in a few weeks.

[RaeVynn]

After being very inspired by Revvell, here is a shot of part of our raised bed garden:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3494/3463093521_5c2368c4a7.jpg

[Revvell]

Heeeeyyyy RawVynn, nice job! I've got to get a new picture of mine. It's looking quite good and producing quite a bit of lettuce. Not much in the spinach department though.



After being very inspired by Revvell, here is a shot of part of our raised bed garden:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3494/3463093521_5c2368c4a7.jpg

[sprouts2go]

I was intrigued by Lasagna Gardening and bought the book as well as googled it. No removing lawn or weeds just build on top of it. Sounds like a good idea!
The lasagna part has to due with how you layer the gardening dirt and compost.

[RAWmen-Noodles]

Hi MrsJ

Whatever you do, DO NOT use railroad ties as the boundaries for your raised bed. The chemicals from those ties can and will leach into your soil. I am not sure if someone already posted that. I did not have time to read all of them. I remember seeing that not only on the Green Network but a guy in my healthy food store said it to.

So many people use them because they are pretty cheap (2-5 dollars a piece) and they look nice and don't warp.

[sprouts2go]

I watched this ladies youtube site today and she sure did a lot with her square foot garden
http://www.youtube.com/user/dylan14570

I was impressed with what she got out of it. Don't think I would make that many beds but she had lots of info.

[Revvell]

That's GREAT Sprouts! That's what I want to do with our yard.

This is what I REALLY want to do with it yet, having met this family (http://www.pathtofreedom.com/) it seems they have no other life than gardening. They live down below us, have similar soil and turned 1/5 acre (including their driveway) into edibles.

Their video is short but interesting yet, like Jules says, he can only really talk to people about SoCal, not anyplace else because this is what he knows.

Revvell (http://LetsTalkRaw.com)

[j3ff]

We just moved into our new home (we're renting) and I have the permission to plant a vegetable garden in our backyard.

I was looking at several areas (some shaddy, some sunny) that would be perfect for some planters.


Has anyone ever built a raised bed garden?
What material did you use? I was thinking redwood...
About how much did it cost?
What will I all need to get my organic gardening off the ground?


My FIL is sending me some New Zealand Spinach...I'm really excited to try it - apparently it just grows and grows and grows - almost like a weed! HELLO GS's!!!

I am way late to this thread as I just joined today, but I made a raised bed garden a few years ago, and use a technique loosley based off "Square Foot Gardening"

I made mine 10 foot long by 4 foot long. I had to remove three bull pine trees from the backyard to get sun. The guy I hired to cut the trees out I asked to leave 2 -10 foot logs and 2 - 4 foot logs.

For soil I went and bought a pick up truck load of organic topsoil for $26.

This year, because I am lazy about watering, I got a water timer on ebay for $30 bucks, and a soaker hose locally for $8. I must admit it's nice to not have to remember to water.

This year we planted 10 tomato plants, 2 pea plants, 2 squash plants, 2 cukumbers, 2 green pepper plants, one hot pepper plant, lot's of herbs, and 120 onions.

Next year I plan to make more raised beds, one for corn, and a box for potatoes.

[Revvell]

We just came back from the Arboretum plant show in Arcadia. This year was GREAT! Anyone showing had to have at least 75% edibles. I wish we had thought to bring a camera.

Anyway, I got some more/different tomatoes... I think 3 more plants; some squash, zucchini and summer yellow; stevia and some other sweet leaf. I'll have to find the name of it. And a melon. I think that's all. Going to get some more lettuce probably since it's doing so well.

Now, need to get more cinder blocks to do the next phase. We're also going to do more things in pots. This is the last update (http://revvellations.com/weekly/2009/03/garden-update/)on my garden. I need to take more pics as we've got tomatoes, a few strawberries, onion sprouts are looking good, etc. Garlic didn't survive, neither did stinging nettles, and spinach isn't hanging too well. Not sure the blueberries are going to survive either. :(

Sooo, I know what I'll be doing over the weekend especially if I've got the van to pick up the cinder blocks.

Revvell (http://LetsTalkRaw.com)