like most things, there are pros and cons to raised beds. i use them so i can concentrate the soil ammendments on my thick clay soil, i just couldn't grow well without them. they warm up quicker (pro and con), they drain faster (pro and con) and so on. most people seem to provide some kind of border (wood, stone, etc) but thats not really required. you can just mound your soil a few inches above the surronding area. even if i had great soil, i still think i would because i find it easier to care for the beds. i think it just depends on your situation.

I can understand why your landlord would be accomodating. You're not leaving the apartment for at least this growing season if you can help it, so he's got a tenant for a while. Win/Win.

That said, I think the major con for wood beds would be that they tend to dry out faster which can be a problem in hot weather. It hasn't stopped people here, but it may be a concern with you.

Remember, just because something works for some people doesn't mean it is the best for every situation. Whatever you decide will work.

Enjoy your garden!

Here is a link that might be useful: Sinfonian's garden adventure!

Thanks so much!
I was wondering if the majority of people used raised beds because they needed to- like flatlander. I know my family in Austin, TX raises their garden because they have very little topsoil- I thought this was the only reason people did it before reading this forum.

My biggest issue would be the amount water needed to keep a raised bed, so I think I will opt not to do one because of the amount of sun this plot gets.
They are cute though :) Too bad, because aesthetically I think a raised bed would look great in the area. Maybe next year I'll raise part of our primary garden... for looks.

Thanks again!

Oh, and no one ever leaves this building! there are 3 other units and the tenants have lived there 6,7, and 10 years :) Our landlord is a gardener- she loves that we are into it too. The grass is dyeing in our courtyard (fungus?)- we may take the whole back yard is she lets us :) ha ha.

If you mulch, the water requirements aren't much different than row gardening. Especially if you have some organic material in your soil, it will hold the water and the mulch will keep it from evaporating.

I would suggest, for your particular soil, adding compost and vermiculite. Sand drains beautifully, to the extent that you would rather it hold moisture for longer, and it isn't very strong on plant nutrients. My father has sand in his front yard (with gravel underneath), it drains about as well as anything could, and the addition of compost and vermiculite has made a tremendous difference to how well his gladiolae and roses grow. With the soil you are working with I would try and mix these in down to spade depth. I bet you will see the need to water less.

If you can find Mel's original edition of the SFG book, which is white and quite a bit thicker than the current book, you can read his extensive information about amending soil. The same ingredients, vermiculite in particular and also compost/organic matter, which are famous for "lightening" and improving the drainage of heavy, dense, (clayey, etc.) soils, will have the opposite effect on sandy soils, and will help them retain the watter you apply longer, and allow your plants to make better use of them.

Your lack of weeds and dieing grass may be symptoms of the sandy soil being unable to support them well, especially in dry weather, due to lack of water and nutrients. Then by amending your soil and mulching your garden bed you made a much better growing environment,and, like Mel's Mix, you started without much by way of pre-existing weeds, and kept the weeds well under control.

The other topic that Mel hit much harder in the original book was not walking on the soil, I know from my own years of pre-SFG experience how much of a difference this makes. Mel designed his suggested raised beds so that it would not be an issue, since he specifies a design that you can always reach the middle of, especially if you can get to at least three sides. In your situation I would try and plan places to walk into my beds to make sure I can reach everywhere without walking on the soil, it makes a tremendous difference, and is the other big reason for the raised beds. (Clearly defining an area and keeping the plot to a size you can reach all the way into so that there is never any need to walk in it.)

honestly, i did it because A) i hate digging B) i hate weeding and C) traditional gardens are too permanent for me. I can change my SFG up on a whim with little to no impact on the rest of the garden. Also i use less water.

I have 2 4x8' raised beds and had good luck last year. However this year I had no say as son got the soil ready. I didn't realize that all he did was put in a long-acting fertilzer. Due to a back surgery I didn't plant. My husband put in some beans, 4 broccoli, peppers, small eggplants and couple pickle plants. The broccoli are getting heads but rest look anemic!I didn't know what to do to amend but had hubby put a layer of compost on top of everything. Does he work it in soil or leave as is? The sun is extreme as we're on a Great Lake. I thought I read somewhere that some aluminum sulfate might help too and again, if I would use, do I sprinkle it on and work in or what can I do now that plants are in place?? I'm in a quandary!

taking all of your conditions in consideration, I would still try one raised bed and see if you like it and if you see comparable benefits to growing in the ground. Here is why:
- you say the soil is very sandy - well, does it retain nutrients well? for what I know, sandy soil will let water and nutrients drain too fast so you have to replenish both more often
- which brings us to the next point - if it is too hot where you are, aren't you then watering more often? the raised bed with proper soil texture and mulch will retain moisture in the soil longer - just enough so that you dont have to water too often
- then all you need to do is mulch to keep weeds out and overall moisture/temperature stable
Give it a try for couple veggies and see if you like it.

>>taking all of your conditions in consideration, I would still try one raised bed and see if you like it and if you see comparable benefits to growing in the ground. You can do the same thing in a non-raised bed, and do it much easier. Why go through the rigors of building a bed?

>> which brings us to the next point - if it is too hot where you are, aren't you then watering more often? the raised bed with proper soil texture and mulch will retain moisture in the soil longer - just enough so that you dont have to water too oftenAnd plants in the ground will draw moisture from the dirt under it. Also, it will stay cooler, since the soil three feet deep is a much lower temp.

>> then all you need to do is mulch to keep weeds out and overall moisture/temperature stableMuch easier to do in a dirt garden than a raised bed.

>>Give it a try for couple veggies and see if you like it.If you have the money to spend (waste) I agree!

YMMV,

Mike

I still like NOT to have to walk on my soil and compress it, and it is easier to apply nutrients and simply work with the plantings when they are in beds. I spent almost nadda for my raised beds -- people THINK they have to buy stuff. Use your imagination, walk around the neighborhood and you will find lots of materials to build the beds from.

I like my raised beds because I have rheumatoid arthritis and have difficult bending and stooping. It gets my plants up 18 inches higher so they are easier to reach. I have 18 inches of compost in my bed for tomatoes. Their roots go on down into the harder clay soil beneath. The clay beneath has improved a great deal over the past 2 years since I built the bed. I tried to loosen the soil beneath the bed, but it was hard as a rock 2 years ago. Now it has earthworms and other microbes that have improved the soil so it does not even look like the same dirt.

I also have a thick Bermuda grass lawn. It would be almost impossible to keep the Bermuda grass from taking over if my plants were not in raised beds.

With sandy soil like yours, having raised beds would help you concentrate your soil amendments where you want it most under your plants, without having to improve the soil in the walkways between the beds. If you have loose sandy soil, it is perhaps hard to imagine how walking on clay soils compacts them.

Also, if you live in an urban area (I do), it's safer to use raised beds or containers for vegetables. The ground soil has a pretty high lead contamination. Not a problem for things like tomatoes, but it is a problem for root or leaf crops.