What do you do when...........

[roitelet]

I just wondered what you do when the soil level in the raised beds reaches the top.

When I constructed them there was at least 6 ins free space now after several years of adding compost and manure the soil has reached the top of the boards.

Do I add more boards to raise the height or skim off some of the soil and put it somewhere else, loads of work the beds are 3m x 6m and there are 5 of them! Raising the height would be expensive.

Any suggestions please?

[ginger ninger]

Have you got any friends that you could help out with the excess? Or why not sieve it for when you sow your new seeds? Have you nowhere you could store it i.e pot's etc?

[Shadylane]

You can keep adding height if you like but it's not necessary unless you want them higher for ease of access or want deeper beds. I would think the soil level would drop again in a season or two (I add manure to my un-edged beds and they're not overflowing, they just drop down as stuff rots) so just add more as needed. If you're wanting to add more to add nutrients but there's no room then I guess you could always chuck some chicken pellets in there.

If you have loads of spare compost, just store it covered in a pile or in some compost bags somewhere. I'm sure you'll find use for it.

[Aberdeenplotter]

If your beds are deep enough for what you are growing, there is no point in making them deeper. Under no circumstances give your excess soil or compost away though, just keep it in a pile in a convenient corner. you will need it at some point.

[salilah]

My raised beds get a good covering of stuff (mix of fen soil & well-rotted manure) each year - but still end up going down! I think it's the goodness the veg pick up :-)
Same as others - wouldn't get rid, just keep spare

[Nicos]

Sounds like you're putting in an awful lot more than most of us!!...ours too drop down.
Might be worth transferring some of the top layer onto other parts of your garden- such as flower beds etc to give them a bit of a treat??


( if all else fails we'd take some off your hands!)

[Florence Fennel]

Mine goes down too, pity you're not a neighbour of mine Roitelet, I'd have it!

[roitelet]

Thanks for the suggestions folks.

Think that I will have to store some of it at the end of this year and then find another use for it. Yes, I do put a lot of compost on it, Compost King has 8 metre cube bins which he lovingly tends. The beds have so much soil in then that they only sink to the top of the boards and digging round the edges has to be done very carefully or it finishes up on the paths.