Okay. So they sit on top the ground and the rebar holds them in place.
What are you planning on planting? With the addition of the 4" drain pipe, it doesn't look like it will be deep enough for root vegetables.
clay into good soil?
- Thread starter BrackishTortoise
- Start date
What are you planning on planting? With the addition of the 4" drain pipe, it doesn't look like it will be deep enough for root vegetables.
Hessian
Well-Known Member
I have been sifting (and sifting
...) topsoil as a layer on top of the perforated pipes. wife wants to add a layer of promix on top of that too. Side walls are a minimum of 16 inches. I have a relief drain drilled into the wall at about 4 inches. So if my #s are right...I should have a minimum of 6-7 inches of soil for roots above the fabric (keeps the soil from settling into the pipes...lets water leach through). I have to watch for settling of the soil though.If you are thinking root veggies like carrots/potatoes...nope,...won't try that with this bed system. Maybe deep pots??
Wife is doing cukes, tomatoes, squash.
Make sure she washes them first .I have been sifting (and sifting
If you are thinking root veggies like carrots/potatoes...nope,...won't try that with this bed system. Maybe deep pots??
Wife is doing cukes, tomatoes, squash.
Gotcha. Nothing with really deep root systems. Wife and I were wondering about the bed retaining water after some of the summer deluges we get. Relief drains answer that question. And you will have a layer of fabric to keep the soil out of the pipes but allow the water to pass through.I have been sifting (and sifting
If you are thinking root veggies like carrots/potatoes...nope,...won't try that with this bed system. Maybe deep pots??
Wife is doing cukes, tomatoes, squash.
Hessian
Well-Known Member
That's the formula!
I found a hardware store in Kilamarnock Va that WAY overbought 4 inch perf pipe...and were selling it near cost. Went down & bought 200 feet of 10 ft pipe. Saved $50+ and explored a part of Va I had not seen before. Caps on the ends of the pipes were made from same filter fabric.
Untreated wood...I torched with a light scorching from a propane burner to reduce rot & insect damage.
Bottom line...I am earning about 25 cents an hour from my garden when it's done. Gee, so this is what the Great Depression felt like.
kom526
They call me ... Sarcasmo
That's what I did to wood I put on my garage walls.
You are definitely on the right track with all the suggestions here. Amend, amend, amend that soil! Back when I was gardening, we used big bales of peat moss to aerate and enrich the soil and help break down the clay in addition to materials from our compost bins. Also adding perlite and vermiculite help in to the enrichment process. Vermiculite helps in aerating the soil and has the added bonus of retaining water.
PeoplesElbow
Well-Known Member
Pretty sure I saw those at Lowes last night and had no idea what they were.
Hessian
Well-Known Member
Let me try this: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Oldcast...n-Brown-Planter-Wall-Block-16202336/206501693
Good. I did a search for Lowe's...and they had the 4x4 bases (sheds) but no raised bed blocks...maybe they carry them now! That would be far more convenient than run a over to the dorf. Hope they added them in Lex pk.
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Ahhh... they are block. The 22lbs each was throwing me off.
PeoplesElbow
Well-Known Member
Unfortunately I wasn't looking for them so I didnt pay too much attention, I just walked by and thought what are those for.
I was there for mulch and topsoil.
Hessian
Well-Known Member
The Commisar from the Ministry of Health would like to hear your defense of buying non essential items. Do you have your paperwork in order? Alles in ordinung?
jrt_ms1995
Well-Known Member
Not to our deer; they step over the marigolds and eat our tomatoes.
SamSpade
Well-Known Member
We did that for a while, but had to turn to something else, because it invited pests.
frequentflier
happy to be living
Mine is not close to the house. It has the richest soil around. If I was a plant, I would thrive in it
SamSpade
Well-Known Member
Mine is not close to the house. It has the richest soil around. If I was a plant, I would thrive in it
Ours was a good 30 yards out - and it was good enough that VERY often, some spring, we'd have a tiny garden growing out of it from seeds that mingled in with everything else. The problem was it brought in everything from deer to raccoons to possums to rats. And once satiated, they turned their eyes to my trash cans and flower beds. So we use a composter instead.
I used to say dumping food out there was just ringing the dinner bell.
PeoplesElbow
Well-Known Member
I have a use for clay, the more clay like the better.