Need advice on building community vegetible garden

11 years ago

I am a Life Scout working on my Eagle project. The project is to build three 12'x3' garden boxes which will become part of a community garden. I have multiple questions, and they are;

Should I have a fence? I've started designs that include a fence, but I'm not sure whether varmints will be a problem. Any alternatives to fences?
How tall should the walls of the boxes be? I've seen wide variation on that, and I'm unsure how high I should build the sides.
I also have questions about bird netting. Is it advisable, or necessary?

I appreciate any help I can get on this. Thanks!

-CorollaryDodge

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Comments (5)

ghoghunter
11 years ago
We have a community garden and our raised beds are 10 feet by 4 feet by about 8 inches high. There are 40 of them. We have a deer fence around our garden but the rabbits and groundhogs get in despite the fence and do a lot of damage. Once you have a raised bed you can pretty easily use chicken wire stapled onto stakes around the bed to help with critter control. In our garden one or two people did that and have not had the damage others have had. I guess it depends on where you are located but we have tons of rabbits and groundhogs here in our park where the garden is located.
Joann
oliveoyl3
11 years ago
Ask a Master Gardener in your area or go to an independent nursery & ask someone there. Either will know what works best in your climate.

Height of sides depends on material you're using as well as the location of the bed. If on concrete you'll want to go higher. If on turf and converting it to garden 2x6 boards are fine.

A 4 foot width works well with lumber lengths, so not sure why you're going 3 feet wide. I have both widths and I prefer my 4 foot beds. Several plants take up 2 feet width, so the 3 foot bed just doesn't fit as many plants.

If this is for handicapped access height must meet their needs. An edge with a flat board might be nice for sitting & working the space.
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Great idea! You have space, use it. Make sure it's south facing, without many trees or buildings to block the sun. I would start by mapping out the plan for garden beds. If funds are short, I wouldn't bother with raised beds. They can be added later if donations of wood are abundant. I recommend 4x8' beds at least 2 feet apart to allow for paths and reaching the middle from either side. That way, you can add wood in standard 8 foot lenghts later. Once you have your plan, mark them off in the area and have the volunteers go to work removing the sod. The sod can be placed elsewhere if you need to re-sod an area, or broken up in a compost pile near the beds. Trust me, you want a compost pile. Once the area is clear of sod, you should augment the soil with as much compost as your donations/funds will alow. The dirt won't have the nutrients to grow great crops. If you weren't growing for several months, I would suggest just turning over the sod and breaking it up. However, now is the time for salad crops. At least I think it is in your neck of the woods. Plant several types of leaf lettuce, spinach and any greens that are appropriate for your dinner table. I like Salad Bowl, Red Sails, Italiansheir for their rapid growing, color and texture. By growing leaf lettuce according to the spacing on the packet, you can simply trim off the top few inches and let it grow back over a week or two. Radishes and green onions are good to, maybe carrots. I'm not an expert on your aream but that makes for a decent salad in short order (carrots are slower growing). Save the northern most spaces for your tall crops so they don't shade your garden, though come summer time, that may be a good idea for your salad greens so they don't bolt so fast. By tall crops I mean tomatoes. You may want to get your parisioners to donate seedlings since you may not want to mess with growing from seed to start, and may not want to pay to buy them. I hope that helps. Others can help better for your area. Enjoy your garden and best of luck to you! Here is a link that might be useful: Sinfonian's garden adventure.
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Question: how much space do you have? If the answer is quite a bit, then Steve Solomon is probably your next step. His books are arguably the finest resources for those trying to run a dry garden. The key is giving each plant enough space to grow their roots and find their own water. As for the alluminum sulfate, I would hesitate to use this stuff without a) a proper soil test (that would be a professional test, not a Home Depot ph kit) and b) awareness that exposing yourself to increased levels of alluminum may be detrimental to your long-term health. You are better off with elemental sulfur. It acts more slowly, but is much safer. Raised beds are the way to go. And unless there is good reason to use the tiller (i.e. breaking up sod or large tangles of weeds), you may consider doing the "old fashioned" way using hand tools. Again, depends on the area involved. Soil additives really depends on your soil test results. Without a specific profile, adding anything to the soil could do much more harm then good. For instance, I had purchased all the ingredients for a complete organic fertilizer prior to my soil test. The results indicated high organic matter (14.5%), magnesium deficiency and a ph of 7.8. Suffice it to say that had I added the compost, lime and bone meal that I had planned on adding, I would have done some serious damage to the soil balance. In other words, get a soil test, now. Best of luck, Michael Here is a link that might be useful: Steve Solomon: Gardening When It Counts
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Nora ... I echo the admiration of other comments for you efforts ... I'm of the generation when our school had a Victory Garden and have very happy memories, not to mention fortifying familial gardening pattern for a lifetime of enjoyment. May I add to the list of educational benefits to the children, the cross-generational habit/culture .... also the example of starting small [workable money/ time/ experience/ manpower-wise] is HUGE! The children will really feel the importance of their contribution if the scale is small. Visual aides are also valuable ... both for children and adults/community to see the scope of the plan. Re: soil tainted with toxic materials ... raised beds are great, but the pathways will kick up dust and airborne problems unless well-mulched. Because the oldsters and youngsters may be already at risk to airborne toxics. Again, a reason to start small, so as to throughly cover all the bases. Even if the soil test comes back OK/CLEAR, the fact that construction waste was dumped on the site is a major argument in favor of raised beds. Would you be able to use those rocks in the picture for some of the raised beds? They would be so pretty, not to mention FREE!
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howelbama
11 years ago
1. Fences are always a good idea
2. The deeper the better, holds moisture better, stays cooler, easier to access...but deeper = more costly...24 inches is awesome, but not necessary. I find 10 to12 inches suitable for most things
3.bird netting is also a good idea for added protection, but again not necessary.

Good luck, sounds like a good project
ltilton
11 years ago
Putting in corner posts a couple feet taller than the sides will allow for removable netting or chicken wire as the need appears. But a lot depends on just what is going to be growing in the boxes.
nancyjane_gardener
11 years ago
You might ask some people in the area what-if any critters are in your area and how they manage them. Or you can go to a reputable nursery or find your local extension office to get that info.
We have pocket gophers and have to line the bottom of the boxes with hardware cloth (very small wire) Some have rabbits, ground hogs, turkeys and list goes on
The height is up to you and your pocketbook! You can go as low as 8" or so, but if you think of any elderly or disabled wanting to garden it would be nice to have some boxes about sitting level with a rim for someone to sit on. Maybe 18" high?
I saw a great boy scout project at a senior apt where the beds were varied from 1-3', all staggered. It was very nice looking as well as great for different abilities of the residents.
Good luck! Let us know what you decide and post a pic if you think of it! Nancy

Need advice on building community vegetible garden

Comments (5)

ghoghunter

oliveoyl3

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