How do I raise an existing flower bed?
taylorkmorrison
8 years ago
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sunnyborders
8 years ago
woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoRelated Discussions
raising existing beds?
Comments (3)Well, sometimes you can only do the task at the wrong time; you just have to know what the risks are so you can mitigate them. If you decide to do it now, which I agree is less than ideal, and to lift the plants, which I agree would be ideal, then it is like planting a new bed, and the plants will not be established for summer so you will have to water a lot to get them through. If you don't lift the plants, you will lose some of them if not all; it depends on which ones they are. Some will not be bothered at all, but their growth may be altered. Let's take hydrangeas, which root quite well from the stem and so likely won't rot. So even if you kill off their original roots by piling on the soil, chances are at least some of the stems can form new roots and your bush, or what appears to be your bush but is really cuttings from it, will survive. But the story may be different for any grafted shrubs, say Japanese maples or a contorted filbert, and may be different still for shrubs prone to suckering. In perennials, some will succeed in growing through the additional soil, others not. Or peonies, for example, will grow but not flower if they are planted too deep. If you do keep the new dirt pulled back from the plants, you can make little rock wells around each plant you won't have the dirt rotting the stems, but it won't quite be the look of the full hilly beds you want. Life is a series of compromises! Question is which ones you want to make here. KarinL...See MorePre existing soil in neglected raised bed?
Comments (8)You can use that soil but you really need to know more about it and that means a good, reliable soil test. Contact your county office of the Cornell Cooperative Extension Service about havning that done and also dig in with these simple soil tests, 1) Structure. From that soil sample put enough of the rest to make a 4 inch level in a clear 1 quart jar, with a tight fitting lid. Fill that jar with water and replace the lid, tightly. Shake the jar vigorously and then let it stand for 24 hours. Your soil will settle out according to soil particle size and weight. A good loam will have about 1-3/4 inch (about 45%) of sand on the bottom. about 1 inch (about 25%) of silt next, about 1 inch (25%) of clay above that, and about 1/4 inch (about 5%) of organic matter on the top. Drainage. Dig a hole 1 foot square and 1 foot deep and fill that with water. After that water drains away refill the hole with more water and time how long it takes that to drain away. Anything less than 2 hours and your soil drains too quickly and needs more organic matter to slow that drainage down. Anything over 6 hours and the soil drains too slowly and needs lots of organic matter to speed it up. 3) Tilth. Take a handful of your slightly damp soil and squeeze it tightly. When the pressure is released the soil should hold together in that clump, but when poked with a finger that clump should fall apart. 4) Smell. What does your soil smell like? A pleasant, rich earthy odor? Putrid, offensive, repugnant odor? The more organic matter in your soil the more active the soil bacteria will be and the nicer your soil will smell. 5) Life. How many earthworms per shovel full were there? 5 or more indicates a pretty healthy soil. Fewer than 5, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, indicates a soil that is not healthy. which will help guide you toward that good, healthy soil. Sides are not necessary for raised beds although they can aid in controlling erosion and the sharp corners of wood sides can present as much a danger as metal stakes. If all the stakes do is hold the sides in place the wood can be screwed together so it stays put without atakes....See MoreMaking my first raised bed this weekend. How do I go about it?
Comments (5)My husband just made my first raised bed three days ago using cement bricks we already had. It looks really good and though it was backbreaking work to carry the bricks, husband said it was very easy. Lacking easy access to many of the materials in the sq foot book, we used black silage plastic for the bottom and covered it first with straw seeped in horse manure then a layer of garden grit followed by four bags of compost mixed with grit. The depth is about 12 inches which should let us grow almost anything if it works. My family is very found of American veggies that take up a great deal of space and or grow vertically. So I'm working out ways to get our Three foot by Nine food bed with as many things going up as possible. I'm only 4'8" so the child sized width works perfect for me, but we made the bed longer to conserve bricks. I used old rusted steel beams for the horizontal makers and bamboo stuck under to mark the vertical squares. No link yet as we are just starting - good luck with your bed! Disaster Cat - ex-patriot Californian living in rural Ireland with husband, dogs, new garden plot and many, many cats......See MoreHow do I build the sides of a raised bed?
Comments (0)There is no "right answer", it all depends on your personal preferences, your needs, and how much you want to spend. Keep in mind that in essence, a bed is any defined space holding a planting mix that differs significantly from the structure of the surrounding soil. Here are some options: Nothing at all: You don't *have* to have a side on your raised bed. Some folks just mound the soil up and use a hoe or rake to keep the edges relatively steep. This works best in places where flood action isn't likely to erode the beds with water running around them and there are not weeds or invasive grasses growing near the edge of the beds. Plus, it is really cheap, and can be lived with even in less than ideal circumstances until sides can be built later. Weedless Gardening by Lee Reich covers this approach. Sunken Beds:In keeping with the above, the raised part of building a bed is optional. Some desert locations use sunken beds to maximize water use. If you live in a hot, dry climate don't let the focus on reduced ground preparation distract from the advantages of a sunken bed. Though it is a lot of work to dig each sunken bed, screen out the caliche, and then add compost, etc. to the remaining soil, it is work that is only needed once per bed. The advantage of having a sunken bed that keeps water more easily combined with paths of undisturbed native soil can be well worth it in some climates. Untreated wood: Some people use thin strip of plywood with more solid corner stakes and simply replace their beds ever several years as the wood falls apart. Others have found that use of 2x lumber (either 2x8 or 2x12 or stacked 2x6s) lasts a very long time and is sturdy enough to bear weight even along the edges and resists mechanical injury from weed trimmers or wheelbarrows. Some staple heavy plastic to the inside of their wood sides to help keep moisture away from the boards and prolong their life. Use of a naturally decay resistant wood like cedar or redwood is both attractive and exceptionally durable, but considerably more expensive. Check the damaged wood section at lumber yards for big discounts. Landscape Timbers: They last almost forever even when in constant contact with moist ground. However, there is/was considerable debate about the CCA treated landscape timbers possibly leaching into the soil and being taken up by certain vegetables. A commonly recommended precaution is to placing a heavy-duty layer of plastic between the landscape timbers and the bed contents, which actually helps keep the wood dryer (thus lasting even longer) and prevented the preservatives from leaching directly into the soil. New wood preservatives are not supposed to be as dangerous, but using the plastic barrier method could not hurt... Plastic milk crates: Some have used plastic milk crates lined w/perforated cardboard & filled with soil as planters. They're great for growing carrots (24 to the crate). You can use them as edging for raised beds by arranging them in open rectangles that you then fill with soil. They form a sturdy, frugal & easily expanded raised bed system and container garden all in one. You can also use the wooden fruit crates that produce markets toss out. They only last a season or two (unlike the milk crates which may outlive us) but they work just as well. We do not recommend railroad ties: If there is enough creosote left in the tie to keep it preserved, there is enough to leach considerable quantities into the soil around it. The reason used RR ties can be bought cheaply is that throwing them away requires paying a hefty hazardous material fee. They are also a vector for transporting Formosan termites. If a railroad tie seems light compared to others that look fresher, most likely its middle portion has already been removed by some sort of wood destroying insect, and should not by purchased. The good ones do last forever and have a rustic look, but the plastic barrier method is not always sufficient to effectively stop creosote leaching. Masonry products: Durable, generally portable, and flexible, with a higher initial cost offset by permanency and other benefits. Existing or bought stone, cinderblocks, stacked or mortared bricks, or concrete paving materials all make a suitable bed edge. Cinderblocks can be moved or rearranged if a bed needs to be extended or relocated. For a classy permanent raised bed made from cinders or salvaged brick, it can be coated with a concrete based substance called hypertufa (See the Hypertufa forum here at GW for more information). Plastic bed edging: cheap shallow beds are a breeze to make using the generic black plastic bed edging materials. Especially useful if needing to make a raised bed around something, in tight locations, or to transition from a more formal planting into a vegetable patch tucked onto one end of a decorative garden. Rubber lumber made from old tires Fiber cement house siding boards (like Hardi-plank) or exterior fascia trim boards Plastic Mesh Corrugated tin Composite plastic/wood decking material (like Trex): it should work great-- but once you price it, you may decide to seek a cheaper option. Whatever you've got! Use your imagination and what is available-- then let us know if it works!...See Moretaylorkmorrison
8 years ago
You can see there's a deck on one side and then the sidewalk surrounds the rest of the garden. The concrete is 4inches deep so I think we would need to put in 4-6 inches of dirt to make it level and allow for the water to run off instead of pooling.
woodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agotaylorkmorrison
8 years agoNevermore44 - 6a
8 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
8 years agodowlinggram
8 years agoken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
8 years agoUser
8 years agolast modified: 8 years ago
linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
8 years agolast modified: 8 years ago
mad_gallica (z5 Eastern NY)
8 years agotaylorkmorrison
8 years agoWow I'm a little overwhelmed by all the bad talk about fabric! Everyone I asked prior to putting it down said definitely use it!
Yes there is a house on the other side of the deck. I Was planning on building the flower bed up so it still slopes towards the sidewalk-- just so the water runs over the walk instead of into it. I am also surprised to learn I should dig them up this fall. I would have thought wait until spring so the roots will be well established for the winter.
Here's a picture of what it looked like after the rain.
Sorry about another sideways picture-- it's not how I took them and I'm not sure how to rotate them back.
Nevermore44 - 6a
8 years agowoodyoak zone 5 southern Ont., Canada
8 years agotaylorkmorrison
8 years agorhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
8 years agodiggerdee zone 6 CT
8 years agoNevermore44 - 6a
8 years ago
agardenstateof_mind
8 years ago
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laceyvail 6A, WV