After reading the latest water retention and movement thread with only 15 replies (I get very intimidated when there are over 100 replies), it seems you are right about a watering problem! I'm going to go out tomorrow and dig int the soil and see what it's like down deep in the containers (1 ft). The neighbors put in a few inches of gravel "for drainage" Luckily I have some ruts out in the field that need to be filled! I'll check out Wheeler Zameroni to replace the soils throughout the winter (already have most of my winter crops planted in lower raised beds that are closer to the house) or maybe I'll just save up some each month to get a couple of yards in the spring. Nancy

I had in-ground garden beds (made from trex) that were invaded by tree roots. I dug out the beds and sifted the soil to get rid of the roots. I then put down cinder blocks, 9 in a 4'x4' garden bed, with their top surface level with the top of the in-ground beds. I then put down two layers of 1/2" cement backerboard which is supported by the top of the cinder blocks and perimeter of the in-ground garden bed. I drilled drain holes about every 12" in the cement backerboard. Now I have a 16" air gap between the new bottom of the garden bed and the old bottom of the in-ground garden bed. I build a raised garden bed perimeter and set it on top of the cement backerboard. I'm hoping the tree roots won't reach up through that airgap into the new garden bed. We'll see... Don't use the Hardie cement backerboard that has grooves to help you break it to size. I tried that first and it broke at some of those grooves. Dug out beds and used thicker double layer of cement backerboard.

You don't say what you plan to grow. Perhaps vegetables in rasied beds? Generally, I would ease myself into the new environment by having a reasonably sized garden at first with some soil ammendment. This would allow you to do some gardening while getting to know the local gardening community and the local methods. I am a frugal gardener and the thought of spending hundreds or perhaps thousands of dollars on raised beds and soil ammendments does not fit with my idea of gardening. I have some raised beds but those were made from salvaged lumber. Doing a little at a time is not a bad idea. It seems that in our "make over age" everything has to be done at once to look picture perfect. I do all my gardening with hand tools which includes a garden fork, a shovel and a crow bar. A little at a time gets the job done and saves my back.

I have a 4x8 box of 2x8 lumber with a plywood bottom. The lumber is 7.5 inches and not full. So I am growing in 6 inches of Mel's mix. I currently have about 200 tomatoes in various stages.