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syntria

My Backyard Garden - Drainage and Hoop House Questions

syntria
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago

Hello friends!

I've got a few questions. Quick background is that I'm wanting to produce enough food to eat out of my garden daily though the growing season. I have 8 raised beds - 4 are 4x8 about 6'' deep and 2 are 12'' deep, and 2 are 4x4 that are also about 6''. They all get full sun from 10am to 6pm at least. The video will show you more details.


The soil under the beds are tilted in compost into dense clay, now in it's second year it's slowly starting to loosen up. The beds themselves are built up with 'gardening soil' and 'compost' mixes from Home Depot/Lowes. They claim to have bat guano, oyster shells, mushroom compost, cotton compost, but I can tell the majority of it is composted wood chips which I've heard 'lock in' nitrogen.

So two concerns is that I feel the tomato bed is probably too moist. Next year what can I do? Dig them out, put rocks in maybe? I've read a lot on soil but I've a bit lost. I was attempting to go all organic last year but this year I've caved and mixed in slow-release fertilizers into the soil and added epson salt to give a boost of magnesium, particularly into my pepper beds. I know because of how closely I'm planting everything, they need a lot of nutrients to do well. I find the square foot gardening method fantastic, but I know I'm sloppy about following all the methods correctly.

Also I would like to do small hoop houses on each bed come fall because I'd like to keep my peppers alive, in their raised beds, though the winter. Does anyone think it's possible? I am setting up a better grow area in my garage for the winters but I would like to keep as much in the beds as possible. I was thinking if I do a hoop house on the beds, plastic with PVC then maybe a second larger hoop house over all the beds so there's a 'double' hoop house going on. Of course, here in Texas we get some vicious storms, high winds, so that might not survive. I'm resistant to buying a greenhouse but I'd love to have one. My concern is they wouldn't last long/the way they look/and fighting the HOA to let me have it.

Does anyone have any experience with greenhouses and raised-bed hoop houses here in the south? Given our storms and our dramatic up/down temps.

Thanks everyone!

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