Raised Beds

[adamS]

Hey guys,

After having a lot of trouble with what I think are weevils in my pots, I've decided to put some raised beds in the garden. I realise that the point of them is better draining and soil control, but the issue is that we have a slabbed patio garden, and I think it's where the pots are too close to the mulch that we have around the slabs that the creepy crawlies are munching my munchies!

I've got a bit of guttering which I've put soil and compost into, raised off the ground and put in spinach, lettuce and radishes today. What I want to do is put together a square of planking and fill it with a mix of compost/topsoil and put in some cucumbers/beetroot/radishes and chard. but the issue is that the aforementioned slabs are the only place I can do this. Would putting down a tarpaulin under the wood stop effective draining ? I don't want to put the soil directly on the slabs, so can anyone think of any other options? / more suitable solution

[Snadger]

Depending on how deep your beds are going to be, and especially if sited on paving flags, you may be best with a layer of rubble or broken pottery on the bottom to stop the growing medium being washed away and give a bit of drainage?

[jayjay giant]

I am with you on the layer of rubble. The main reason for me building my raised beds is that the garden floods quite badly. ( Photographs on the link below )
You wouldn't believe how much water a raised bed can hold when it's wet and on the other hand how much water it can take when it's bone dry.
Try a good mix of rubble at the bottom and a some moisture retaining material just above it. Hopefully that way you will get the best of both worlds.

Good Luck

James

[adamS]

thanks guys, not sure of the height yet, going to see what kind of wood I can get my hands on! - rubble sounds like a plan. any ideas where I can get some cheap/free . being a student the missus already has a go at me for spending so much on gardening !

I don't think we're in danger of the garden flooding, it's in an apartment complex right next to the historic dockyard in Porstmouth and have never flooded, don't think it could flood !

[jayjay giant]

Have a look on freecycle or in the local paper there is usually someone advertising rubble as free to collector.

Good luck and don't forget to keep us updated.

James

[smc999]

I recently built myself a big planter from pallets to stick on the patio. 1.8M length 0.8m width and 0.6m deep on legs 150mm high. This sort of thing might be better than putting a raised bed on your patio. I lined the planter with black plastic inside and made a slated base and glued/sealed the top inch or so of a few 2 litre pop bottles for drainage holes and then added a layer of 20mm gravel to the bottom (about 3 bags worth from B&Q at £1.82 each). I then filled it with compost and topsoil (it took about 300 Litres). I'll try and work out how to get a picture on here over the weekend.

[chris]

There's always the broken bags at B&Q.. ?

They *always* have them when I go there, if you know what I mean?

I used to work there mind, so know a few peeps there who probably suspect that the bags are getting caught on the shelving when I lift them off.. But hey ho, it's worked so far!

[smc999]

The wife has taken a picture of my planter and I just need to get it transferred to the PC.