| Author | Content |
drumlin
Avon, CT (Zone 6a)
January 17, 2011 5:32 PM Post #8316085
| Has anyone ever used those new-fangled raised bed products? There's orcaboard; there's composit timber and plastic; and then of course just brackets where you provide your own wood. There are some really gorgeous mortise and tenon kits as well that just use wood, but I'm afraid I'd put a lot of money into them, only to have them rot relatively quickly. What do others use? |
Malus2006
Coon Rapids, MN (Zone 4a)
January 18, 2011 4:57 PM Post #8317871
| It seem like no matter what you use, they all seem to go bad in 20 years so it doesn't really matter. |
JAMIESMITH
Decatur, MS (Zone 7b)
January 27, 2011 2:36 PM Post #8333736
| I would be terrified to put wood in the ground so close to my home. It just seems like you're inviting the termites! |
drumlin
Avon, CT (Zone 6a)
January 27, 2011 5:06 PM Post #8334010
| Jamiesmith, that's what I'm thinking! I expect that just about anything will degrade over time, but it just seems that wood is SUCH an inefficient material for this purpose. I'm leaning towards the PVC material. That will break down too. I'm just a little concerned about any chemicals that will leach into the soil. I'm sure it's fine for flowers, it's vegtables I'm a little concerned about. I'm paranoid, I know, I know. |
shune
Burien, WA (Zone 7b)
January 28, 2011 9:21 AM Post #8335095
| There's concrete blocks, but they are not that attractive. |
RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
February 28, 2011 5:58 PM Post #8398799
| Brick-colored paving stones look nice to my eyes. But they cost up to $1 per linear foot, and might only give you 12-16" high walls.
When I'm feeling cheap or want more square feet but haven't made much soil lately, I run 8"x16" pavers the long way, and then the raised part of the bed is at most 8".
Corey
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drumlin
Avon, CT (Zone 6a)
March 1, 2011 4:10 AM Post #8399334
| Don't know how this thread got in to High Yield, but anyway...I'm beginning to be very impressed with discussions about covering cinder block with various stucco or staining products. They're not very expensive, are sturdy to sit on, and can be very attractive when covered with something else. I didn't even think to go there until I read the forums! I suppose they would crumble over time, but so am I, so cross that bridge when we come to it. |
HoneybeeNC
Charlotte, NC (Zone 7b)
March 1, 2011 6:28 AM Post #8399663
| I'm entering a fith season of using plain pine boards. Some of them are beginning to rot, so will have to be replaced next year.
ten-inch wide by eight-foot boards from Lowe's are $5.47 each here - so it's a small investment.
No termites seen as yet. |
RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
March 2, 2011 10:05 AM Post #8402308
| My yard is so small that I would begrudge the square feet consumed by cinder blocks. My paving stones are only 3/4" to 1" thick.
They don't produce a very stable wall, but it takes only a hard tap or kick to nudge them back into alignment. And they deter anyone from walking on the beds!
I keep my beds narrow, except for one about 5 feet wide - that spot gets sun and is well-drained, so I maximised it.
I'm thinking about embedding a few stepping stones into it, to mkake it easier to reach into the cneter. Thaqt is only if I can figure out a way for them NOT to compress the soil under them (or knock the RB walls over!). Something like relatively narrow supports that go down to a hard layer, then 1" pavers set flat on top of them.
Corey
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RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
March 2, 2011 10:07 AM Post #8402315
| >> Don't know how this thread got in to High Yield, but anyway...
The very original request for a new forum was about raised beds, but more people in the Vegetable forum wanted a "high yield" forum. There was an extensive debate about the name.
I think the admins moved many related threads into the new forum, to centralize discussion of things like Square foot gardening, raised beds, intensive practices, inter cropping, succession planting and so on.
Corey
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Gymgirl
SE Houston (Hobby), TX (Zone 9a)
March 2, 2011 12:24 PM Post #8402547
| A "Raised Bed" can be a high yield gardening vehicle... |
Aquannie
Jacksonville, FL (Zone 9a)
March 3, 2011 10:50 AM Post #8404571
| I have traditional landscape timbers for my large beds but love the black plastic small beds that I use for my 3'X3' areas. They just snap together and never rot. I currently am using five of them and had them up and running in 10 minutes apiece. They are called Grow Beds from Gardeners Supply. No rot and no constuction skills needed. I am a gardener, certainly not a builder (but wish I was). Thry are pricey but easy. |
AYankeeCat
Fairfield County, CT (Zone 6b)
April 15, 2011 8:35 AM Post #8497565
| I build 4' x 8' beds out of Trex and they are on their third year and look exactly the same as the day I put them in. |
HoneybeeNC
Charlotte, NC (Zone 7b)
April 15, 2011 11:08 AM Post #8497829
| AYankeeCat - I would have chosen "Trex" too, but I think those boards would out live hubby and me. |
Pfg
Cornwall Bridge, CT (Zone 5b)
April 15, 2011 5:02 PM Post #8498533
| This discussion is so timely for me...today I bought 1x8 pine boards to finish my raised beds. Home Depot didn't have cedar, and pine was the cheapest. I'm really feeling my way here- very old property, once home to a plantsman specializing in unusual perennials and alpines, pretty much on its own for several decades between then and now, I'm trying to make sense of it all. The veggie garden is an extra, not a landscape feature. I decided to keep the investment to a minimum, also minimize the permanence, and make the space I want now.
Pam
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SpaceCase418
Annapolis, MD
April 15, 2011 5:26 PM Post #8498618
| i would rather spend $60 on wood and have to replace it every 15-20 years than spend hundreds of dollars on masonry and never be able to move it once its down. i don't know about you but i like having the option of re-arranging things. |
RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
April 15, 2011 6:01 PM Post #8498709
| I thought my paving-stones-on-end were even cheaper than wood, at around $1 per linear foot, 8 or 12 inches high.
Since I don't mortar or glue them together, they can be re-arranged like furniture. (I just lean them inwards a little bit.)
12"x12" - $1.19 - $1.29
8"x16" - $0.89 - $1.19
Corey
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JAMIESMITH
Decatur, MS (Zone 7b)
April 18, 2011 8:19 AM Post #8503804
| I spent $70 on a 40x3' flower bed this weekend made out of 6" stone pavers from Lowes. It looks really nice :) |
SpaceCase418
Annapolis, MD
April 18, 2011 8:24 AM Post #8503816
| Looks like pavers stones win the economy race wish I had known that before I built mine |
Pfg
Cornwall Bridge, CT (Zone 5b)
April 18, 2011 1:37 PM Post #8504383
| I agree about being able to move things around...I just started my beds last fall and already re-arranged! I finally got to plant a few things yesterday- hallelujah! Spinach, peas, radishes, beets, lettuce...and lots of starts indoors waiting for the nights to stop dipping back into the 30's. Spring is springing, construction is over...at least for a while.
Pam |
RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
April 18, 2011 7:42 PM Post #8505267
| I rent in a manufactured home park, and one neighbor and I never quite agreed where the spaces' boundary was.
After she moved out, I moved that wall of the raised bed about two feet her way, in 5 minutes!
If the next residents have a different opinion about the boundary, AND want to plant things, they can plant in that part of the bed.
Corey
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bariolio
Houston, TX (Zone 9a)
April 19, 2011 8:42 AM Post #8506322
| Hey, hey, hey. Pictures, please!! I have a hard time visualizing dimensions, measurements, etc. (which is why I did so poorly in organic chemistry in the late 70's, before computers!). I'd love to see paver gardens, and trex and grow beds and whatever else people have used and are happy with. We just have green, peeling, 4-5 inch steel strips, supposed to be used to keep weeds out? Doesn't make much of a raised bed. Thanks for sharing PICS!! Janet |
RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
April 19, 2011 3:24 PM Post #8507019
| Here's a work in progress, showing a deep trench with corrugated, perforated drainage pipe.
Corey
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
April 19, 2011 3:25 PM Post #8507022
| Part of a series of conencted beds, walls not yet very tidy:
Corey
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
April 19, 2011 3:27 PM Post #8507029
| Here's a 3-foot by 3-foot 12" tall bed for bulbs.
Corey
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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JAMIESMITH
Decatur, MS (Zone 7b)
April 20, 2011 8:14 AM Post #8508613
| This is the flowerbed I started working on over the weekend. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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JAMIESMITH
Decatur, MS (Zone 7b)
April 20, 2011 8:17 AM Post #8508620
| Another angle. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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JAMIESMITH
Decatur, MS (Zone 7b)
April 20, 2011 8:18 AM Post #8508621
| From the back door. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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JAMIESMITH
Decatur, MS (Zone 7b)
April 20, 2011 8:19 AM Post #8508622
| And a close up. 
Click the image for an enlarged view.
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AYankeeCat
Fairfield County, CT (Zone 6b)
April 20, 2011 10:33 AM Post #8508883
| I did a little powerpoint presentation of my raised beds. http://youtu.be/z6vq7nuH-c8 Take into account that the before pictures were in the winter and the after pictures in early September - so the change isn't quite as dramatic as it seems. The beds are all 4' x 8' trex. |
cathy4
St. Louis County, MO (Zone 5a)
April 20, 2011 12:41 PM Post #8509167
| great pictures and powerpoint. My hubby insists on a lawn so I can only plant the borders. |
RickCorey_WA
Everett, WA (Zone 8a)
April 20, 2011 12:52 PM Post #8509186
| Hmm!
I never thought of raiding the metal-recyling bin at work for painted steel shelving. If corrugatewd "tin" works as walls for rasied beds, painted steel should do even better.
Corey
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AYankeeCat
Fairfield County, CT (Zone 6b)
April 20, 2011 12:59 PM Post #8509196
| I hate to mow the lawn and pull weeds so I put the whole back yard in raised beds and walkways. :) |
