Raised beds: how deep?

[BilboWaggins]

We are now at the 'serious planning stage' for a vegetable plot (happy day ), and I spent a pleasant wet Sunday afternoon playing with coloured paper and different shapes/sizes of raised bed (evidence of my Blue Peter inspired activities is here and has benefited HUGELY from Hazel's suggestions). The area we are going to convert is currently front lawn, relatively flat and faces south east.

Today's question (I suspect the first of many) is about depth of raised beds. I'll be getting timber from the local wood merchant (he's cheap, friendly and delivers for no charge) but I have not decided what width boards to buy.

Current plan is to make and position the beds, then remove the turf inside them (that goes off to make nice loam) and dig over inside the beds, then add compost/soil, etc. Being near a brewery I have access to an unlimited supply of mashed hops if I can work out a viable way of collecting them and that will be a big addition to beds and the compost heaps.

6" deep boards doesn't quite feel like enough, 12" deep is going to require AN AWFUL LOT of soil to fill them, what would you advise please?

[FionaH]

Mine are 12 inches, it did take an awful lot to fill them! However mine are on awful ground so I cant dig down, I would imagine 6 inches would be fine on good soil.

Lucky lucky you living somewhere so beautiful!

[annetteevans]

hi there, i've just bought a link a bord raised bed, i think it looks quite shallow too but it holds a lot of compost. i think what i'm going to do is grow things that are mainly above ground in it i.e. not carrots or parsnips. i'm just going to see how it goes, it's a learning curve, if i discover that things need more leg room then i can build another layer in above the one i've got, they just slot together. wish me luck! , keep in touch

annette

p.s are you on msn?

[lavender lou]

hi we are currently in the position of making raised beds, and the wood that we have to make them are scaffolding boards, and they are 10'' deep when on the ground.
I fine these perfect because you aren't bending down as much, but it does take a lot to fill.

[Hazel at the Hill]

Being near a brewery I have access to an unlimited supply of mashed hops if I can work out a viable way of collecting them and that will be a big addition to beds and the compost heaps.

Bloody hell, Bilbo - you kept that quiet!

*packs bags & looks up train times to Cumbria

You should give some thought to the slope on the land too, btw - you can either go with the slope of the land, or level beds. You might think that the former with 'look funny' - but if you go for the latter, you'll end up with beds deeper at one end than the other.

With regard to filling, I don't think that a couple of tons of topsoil is that expensive - and you can suppliment with your own compost/hops/FYM in due course, perhaps.

[BilboWaggins]

Bloody hell, Bilbo - you kept that quiet!

*packs bags & looks up train times to Cumbria

Rolling on floor . . . ha ha ha, sorry kiddo, in the distance I can just about make out the wonderful Jennings Brewery and when they are mashing we can see the plumes of steam from their chimney (damn fine beer too).

You should give some thought to the slope on the land too, btw - you can either go with the slope of the land, or level beds. You might think that the former with 'look funny' - but if you go for the latter, you'll end up with beds deeper at one end than the other.

Knowing what I'm like then sloping beds are going to irritate the heck out of me. I can eyeball a ¼" seam from across a room so a sloping bed edge isn't going to work. Deeper at one end than the other will be less of a problem for me than sloping sides!

With regard to filling, I don't think that a couple of tons of topsoil is that expensive - and you can suppliment with your own compost/hops/FYM in due course, perhaps.

and I don't have to do it ALL in one go, do I?

[BilboWaggins]

hi there, i've just bought a link a bord raised bed, i think it looks quite shallow too but it holds a lot of compost.

Thanks Annette, I've looked at some of raised beds systems you mention but I think they'll be way too expensive given how many I want, and I'm daft - I want to build them myself. BTW, not on msn on anything like that, sorry.

hi we are currently in the position of making raised beds, and the wood that we have to make them are scaffolding boards, and they are 10'' deep when on the ground.
I fine these perfect because you aren't bending down as much, but it does take a lot to fill.

Thanks Lou, hadn't thought about the bending down bit . . . which is going to become more relevant as I get older (which seems to be happening faster and faster these days!)

Mine are 12 inches, it did take an awful lot to fill them! However mine are on awful ground so I cant dig down, I would imagine 6 inches would be fine on good soil.

Lucky lucky you living somewhere so beautiful!

Thank you Fiona, I think our soil will be OK for the bottom of the beds but still haven't dug that "test pit". Might get a nasty shock when I do. Yes, we are very privileged living with such a wonderful view and the day I start to take it for granted is the day I deserve to be smacked severely and packed off somewhere else.

[snakeshack]

you dont have to fill your raised beds all at once,you can wait for the level to rise gradually as you add your spent hops,a good 3-4 in mulch will suppress weeds and increase fertility,you can always add more as the year goes on.

[BilboWaggins]

you dont have to fill your raised beds all at once,you can wait for the level to rise gradually . . . you can always add more as the year goes on.

As Ron said to Hermione: "you're bl**dy brilliant".

Thank you so much, now you've said it that is so obvious and simple and makes lilfe SO much easier . . . shaking head and wandering off into a darkened room muttering "why didn't I think of that?"

[snakeshack]

I too have 12 raised beds ,2 of which are "lasagne beds" with another 9 planned ,there is no way I could physically move that amount of manure bearing in mind access to my allotment is 200 yards from the gate over a "bridge" made from two wet muddy scaffold boards over the river.My raised beds are 10 in deep (scaffold boards)if I can add 4 inches to each bed this year I will be a happy man.
I have an unlimited supply of very fresh manure and my trailer holds about 50 barrowloads.
After composting I get enogh to put a 4inch layer on 4 beds.
just waiting for the new bridge ,should be coming end of march,then I can get the trailer to the lottie itself.
seem to spend every other weekend shoveling s**t.
logs might provide some variety for me but I suspect you may wish to differ.

[BilboWaggins]

I too have 12 raised beds ,2 of which are "lasagne beds"

OK, I'll "bite" and show my ignorance. What's a lasagne bed?

logs might provide some variety for me but I suspect you may wish to differ.

you could say that {grin}, after the first few tons, the novelty value definitely wears off.

I will probably think otherwise next winter when they are burning merrily in the stove

[snakeshack]

lasagne beds are a form of no dig bed made up of layers like a lasagne (but without the cheese)
I believe there is already a thread here worth looking at.I currently have onions ,garlic and shallots in the two I have built,and no weeds

[BilboWaggins]

Thanks Snakeshack, found the Lasagne thread here

[rana]

Lasgne just isn't the same without the cheese.............