Total noob Raised Beds & Soil query

[nizlamb]

Hi All

I've just moved into a new house and now have a garden for the first time. I am very excited about sorting out both the front and back and am going to devote the front garden to veggies (with a large greenhouse that was left by previous owners in the back garden!).

There is already one raised bed in the front but I will be adding more. The existing one is approx 2 metres X 1 metre. There were some broad beans in there but it was pretty derelict and also full of nettles and cat poo!

I cleared it out at the weekend and turned the soil over. The soil doesn't seem that great and there is a fair amount of cat poo in there too. Would I be better off emptying the bed and refilling it (my instinct tells me yes)? What should I fill it with? Is there a good ratio for soil to compost etc.?

I am learning all of this from scratch so please feel free to be as patronising as possible

[bario1]

I wouldn't empty the bed, as filling it back up again will cost you more! However 'bad' you think the soil is, it can be improved - compost, manure etc can be added.

The main thing to worry about is how to stop the local cats using it as a toilet!

Welcome to the vine!

[muddled]

Hello and welcome to the vine!

You won't get patronised here....there are some experts, quite a few newbies and a whole load of people somewhere in the middle who still make mistakes!

Cat poo is full of very nasty pathogens so yes, I would get rid.
Cats are also creatures of habit and very agile so before refilling that bed, I would try out some serious cat defences. When you get to the stage where you think you have prevented access to the moggies but can still get in there yourself to tend your veggies....that's the time to think about refilling it.

What you decide to grow will dictate what you fill the bed with.
Some things like very rich compost and manure....others like fine, sandy loam and some like a hard and firm soil with lime added.

So (while addressing the cat problem) be thinking about the following;
Does the bed get lots of sun or is it partly shaded?
Are you keen to get something in there soon or might it be a good idea to get everything perfect for next year?
What do you and your family love to eat and is it quite expensive to buy?
How much time do you expect to spend in the garden?

And take pictures.
We love pictures!
Before and after shots will also give you bragging rights for years to come!

Good to' meet' you,
Muddled x

[nizlamb]

Thanks for the replies very helpful.

Any recommendations for cat deterring? Ive done a bit of research but would be interested to hear what actually works.

In answer to some of the questions

Does the bed get lots of sun or is it partly shaded?
The bed gets lots of sun pretty much all day.

Are you keen to get something in there soon or might it be a good idea to get everything perfect for next year?
Would like to get something in this bed but the extra beds I put in will really be for getting it ready for next year.

How much time do you expect to spend in the garden?
Quite happy to spend a fair amount of time in the garden. What that actually means though I do not know!

[Dorothy rouse]

The best thing deter cats is either to cover with some chicken wire, (that you can easily remove to get at bed) or stick some little sticks in, so cats can't find comfy place. The sprays dont work.

[muddled]

I used a combination of net and little sticks....but a) it looks ugly for a front garden and b) I was terrified one of my children would trip and poke an eye out on the sticks.

There is no easy answer to this one I fear, it's a case of trial and error and repeat!

[scarey55]

Hello, and welcome to the Vine.

How exciting for you, just starting out in a new garden

If you are not sure about the soil, why not put some flowers in the front bed for this year and use tubs/pots for veggies, that way you can plan (and save) for the new beds next year whilst still using the existing bed for something.

How do I deter cats is a very common question on here so we have put together a thread with lots of useful advice.

Whatever you decide, have fun. There are lots of good people on here who can help.

[chefgage]

This is what i do to stop the cats getting in. The bed on the right has total coverage of netting. The four sides of the bed on the right can be accessed by lifting up the netting which is secured to the top of the bed by metal hooks.

The bed on the right is open topped but the updights around the bed have netting that is low enough to be able to get into the bed but high enough to stop the cats jumping over. Although i know cats can jump over tall things this low netting on the right bed seems to deter them. They do sometimes sit on the flat part around the bed but the netting bit seems to put them off jumping over.

[Bill HH]

All good advice above. A lot depends on how handy you are but I would make up some frames and cover them with debris netting, this will also keep out carrot fly and butterflies etc. I would empty the bed and get off to a clean start, a lot depends on how deep it is of course. But for a bottom layer I would use lots of crumpled news papers, lots of bits of cardboard ets. then home made compost if you have it or even grass cuttings. All this saves money and retains moisture. Then a mixture of purchased MPC (multi purpose compost and top soil. Mix in some manure unless you have a bed for carrots which dont like too mush muck. i would go for at least nine inches deep so you can grow carrots etc. Make your frames either round (using water pipe hoops or square and make them tall enough for carrots and cabbages (about two feet) also easily removable. Lots of designs on you tube.Eventualy the cats will go elsewhere and you could risk removing the frames unless you still want them to deter other pests.Hope all goes well.

[nizlamb]

I did notice a significant amount of newspaper in with the existing soil and wondered what that was about.

I think I will completely empty the bed and start from scratch. Having just moved there is a lot of cardboard still in the shed! The bed is about a foot deep so how deep should my layer of card, paper, grass be?

I'm going to build the other beds out of pallets so will try and make them deeper.

[muddled]

what's underneath it?

If the raised sides are a foot deep and the bed is on concrete....your bed is a foot deep.
But if the bed is on bare ground, roots can push down and your bed is therefore as deep as any plant could want, regardless of deep the wooden edges are. My beds don't have any sides (look up 'lazy beds')

I think you'll be surprised at how much material it takes to fill a bed.
And then surprised again at how far that filling slumps down over winter to need filling again!
Can I suggest you get the first one full before making any hard and fast decisions about the height of of the others?

[nizlamb]

The beds are on soil. So am I right to assume it is less important to make them high unless I want them high for ease of working them?

I am definitely going to fill the first one and play with that before I do anything major about the others

[nizlamb]

So I emptied it out tonight. A good hour or so of shovelling. I now have a nice empty bed ready to start on my adventure!

Photos attached

[Bill HH]

Paper and cardboard crush up to nothing, wet it well, worms love it. I would put in enough to fill the bed by a third then soak it all well. Regarding news paper you can leave some whole and crumple some as individual pages. Dont use the Sun newspaper, it produces very common vegetables.

[nizlamb]

What would be the best netting to use to keep cats off? I saw debris netting mentioned. I'd like to get something made up over the weekend so anything I can pop down to local garden centre and grab would be great.

Best to incorporate onto a frame?