Can't view your plans.

Your picture URL works fine but the URL for your plan gives a 4040 Page not found error so no way to see it.

problem, I think it's due to the close spacing (one per 2x2 foot space in a row), and extra heat from being next to the white house wall.

It would be easier to temporarily cover part of that wall with something like lattice or sun-screening than make new beds. Setting a pole to plot sun exposure is a good idea.

Dave

Thanks for you responses. The heat from the wall is good for everything else...the peppers especially.

Maybe this will be viewable?

http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/281937_10100451517626908_5717300_56311124_3175729_n.jpg

(A side note: I always click "send me email follow-ups" but I never get any. :-/)

I always click "send me email follow-ups" but I never get any. :-/)

Then they are being re-routed to your junk email box by your server unless you have GW set up in your email as an acceptable contact.

Yes that plan comes up to view easily. Just a couple of suggestions to consider:

1) can the beds be coked a bit to run on a more E_W orientation?

2) are you interested at all in saving seeds? If so you wouldn't be able to do that with this set-up as you will get too much crossed pollination.

3) you might want to flip the cukes and the summer squash bed so the trellis in the cukes bed don't shade the other beds.

4) nothing says you can't mix-plant the beds. In other words separate the tomatoes - 2 to each bed - to improve air circulation and reduce disease, separate the summer squash to reduce cross-pollinating and pest problems, etc. Planted all together like that one could squash bug or SVB attack could easily wipe out the whole bed all at one time.

5) re-think the white wall "benefits" you think it has. While the light it reflects may be a little beneficial the heat it generates is detrimental to most everything, including peppers, as it raises soil temps substantially and also increases watering demands. It may allow you to plant a little earlier but with raised beds that is easy to accomplish. But later in the season it quickly becomes an over-heating issue, especially in the warmer zones like yours and mine. Zone 4 gardeners can benefit from it. We generally don't.

Hope this helps.

Dave

Dave, thanks for the thoughts. I had several "Why didn't I think of that" moments. Separating the tomatoes and squashes makes perfect sense. And I never considered doing anything but beds paraellel or perpendicular to the fence. But aesthetically I wouldn't really loose much putting them at a 45 degree angle. Brilliant!

I can't do much about the white brick wall for the current, existing garden. The terraced beds are pretty well-constructed and if I told my husband they weren't good for growing anymore he'd flip! So, I'm trying to build these new beds to move out the more susceptible plants. I do water often, but very often from my rain barrels and I have driphoses to set up for next season.

***

Here's a revised plan. I'm still not sure what the best, cheapest option would be for the soil.

{{gwi:86442}}

I got a "rejected" message for that first post, tried the second, then they both showed up. Sorry for the double-post.

I think you will love your plan. I strongly suggest that you leave three feet between each bed. This will allow you to get a wheelbarrow in between there and will give you room to move when the beds are full of plants.

If you can possibly make your fence eight feet tall that will help keep the seemingly inevitable deer out. Others may suggest other heights. I am only reporting what I have read on this point.

And most important, use only thoroughly dried bamboo! Green bamboo can root in moist soil and then you will have a big mess of running, difficult to eradicate bamboo.

If you want to eradicate the grass in your paths (great idea), I wouldn't bother tilling. Scalp it to the ground with your mower and then put down your cardboard and mulch. Be sure to cover it all the way up the sides of the beds and out to whatever edging you are going to use.

I'm going to make a suggestion that a lot of people will probably disagree with. That is, instead of four beds, make one large bed and use pavers to create paths.

You'll gain a lot of planting versatility. You'll have more planting area and more root space. And in my opinion, it can be much more attractive. Depending on what materials you use, it could even be less expensive to build. I used landscape timbers for mine.

I know the books talk about compacting the soil, but I've never seen the logic of that. Better to have a small amount of lightly compacted soil under pavers than losing that space entirely. The only downside I see is that access can be more difficult, especially if you want to use a wheelbarrow. I've never found it to be a problem...Just dump your compost on the edge and shovel it in. More work, but good exercise.

Thanks for the additional responses!

donnabaskets - The wood fence (brown line int he drawing) is solid, 6 feet, and deer don't come inside. Someone once told me they don't jump over fences unless they can see the otherside, and since we've had the wood fence (for our dogs), we haven't seen any deer poop in the yard. All of my neighbor's tomatoes are being eaten by the deer, so I'm incredibly thankful for my fence!

I do plan on leaving three feet between each bed. I have long-term hopes and plans of having a tractor chicken coop that can be placed between beds. :)

Thanks for the tip about dried bamboo! I suppose I should cut it down this fall in hopes of using it next spring?

We used the cardboard+mulch trick on our current garden's paths and it worked like a charm. No weeds and a nice, comfortable aesthetic.

corin - I thought about pavers, but I find they are not as comfortable in my current garden (I have pavers down the middle of my 8x8' beds). It's still a possibility though, because if I can get cheap pavers at the local recycled building supply place, and no lumber, that might be my only option! I'm trying to find a way to get this project under $100.

If your beds are no more than 4 feet wide, there will be no need to ever step into them. You can reach into the center from both sides. (If you are short and have short arms you might want to consider 3 or 3.5' widths.)

If you haven't checked out the potager forum, you may want to. There are lots of ideas for this kind of garden over there.

I envy you the fence. :)