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Soil, Compost & Mulch

Lazy composter, new beds

17 years ago

Hi! I'm a pretty lazy composter (also with back and neck issues that prevent me from doing much physical stuff)

I have a pretty full bin of nice compost and want to start 2 new 4x8 beds SOON.

I'll be using 10 inch high railroad ties for the raised beds with tight wire to keep the gophers out.

My main bed I built 5 yrs ago, I did a truckload of compost kinda dug into the soil before we brought in a truckload of soil just made for a vege garden.

I have top dressed the gardens for the last 3-4 years with compost from my bins.

For these new beds, should I break up the clay soil, add compost, then the non-bought soil on top, Fill the bed with the soil. then top dress with the compost, or put the whole thing off another year so we can buy great soil?

Note, I can't do much physical labor due to back probs.

TIA Nancy

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Comments (4)

Kimmsr
17 years ago
Some clay soils will allow you to put compost on top and, over time, the Soil Food Web will work that into the soil for you. Other clay soils will not do that and the organic matter will never get mixed into the soil until you do that. The only way to find out which you have is to plunk the organic matter on top of the soil and see what happens. Unless you have a real need to use that bed this year putting OM on the soil and letting it sit for a year will not be much of a problem.
gardenlen
17 years ago
g'day nancy,

we use no-till raised garden beds and also like the lazy composting method where we add our rottable material straight into the beds where it can do its job from the word go.

you can do a clay test by putting a dessert spoon size ball of clay in enough water to well cover it for 24 hours if it starts to or dissolves then you have the clay nearly all of us have the other kind is less common.

using raised beds i wouldn't bother, just throw down a good cover of gypsum then start building the bed on top sooner or later the earth worms will come and they will mix the organic matter into the original soil.

anyhow got pic's and descriptions on our web site, might be some ideas there for you?

len

Here is a link that might be useful: len's garden page
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From my experience this is the best form of composting. The reason is that earthworms get more food, resulting in much more intimate mixing than if you were to just spread finished compost on top. Basically, you get composting, micro-tilling, and minimal nutrient leaching in one shot. But it can only be done when a bed is unplanted, anytime between the end of the season and planting, not to disturb the roots. If you use the bed through the winter, it has to be done in May before planting for the new season. If you have heavy clay, this method is preferable to just using finished compost to loosen your soil, again, more earthworm activity. Disadvantages are occasional raccoons (just leave the electric fence on), and planting through some fetid stuff in May. The latter can be minimized by covering with adequate amounts of brown stuff at planting time (wood chips for cover, or leaves for mixing and covering). The smell is then mostly neutralized and disappears within a week.
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I guess I'm the lazy gardener. We have thick sod at our place. Last weekend I started two new beds using the lasagna method. This is how I've started all my beds. First, a thick layer of newspapers and then layers of grass clippings, kitchen scraps, dead plant material (i.e. old bean plants but not tomato plants that may be diseased), chopped leaves from the lawnmower bag, and a heavy sprinkle of wood ashes, and some aged manure. You're supposed to alternate greens and browns. This pile will sink a lot by spring. In the spring, a layer of aged and composted horse manure (mixed with bedding, kitchen scraps, etc) is added to all the beds. Right now, the two beds are about 24 inches tall. Sometimes the used soil/dead plants from pots gets added. I built my first bed in 2007, planted it in 2008. I've been very happy with this system since we have plenty of the ingredients. I get the composted horse manure from a Craigslist find. Perhaps I add enough soil, wood ashes and manure to get a good mix. (We heat with wood.) I started the first bed with old grass clippings from a neighbor and kept adding different material as it became available.
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led_zep_rules
17 years ago
Hi Nancy, Are they actual railroad ties that you will be using? Because those are generally soaked in creosote and other weird crud to keep them from rotting. As far as I know, it is considered unwise/unsafe to grow food surrounded by railroad ties.

As for laziness, I am that kind of gardener as well. In any event, I would advise that you put down a layer of cardboard over whatever ground you have, put your framework up, fill it with whatever you have. Viola'. If your back bothers you, that is really an excellent reason to avoid digging. My back is pretty good and I still avoid digging and make more raised lasagna beds every year. Good luck.

Marcia
gpclark
17 years ago
I used railroad ties for my first raised bed. I threw the leaves and stuff right in there from day one and let it compost there. It was easy to flip because I used the tie as leverage. My second bed I just layered and did not flip it worked just as well. Anyway, before I started putting anything in the railroad tie bed I lined the interior sides and the bottom of the ties with extra pond liner I had to keep the creosote from seeping into the soil. It worked for me everything is growing well and I like the rustic look in the back yard.

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