Nice rustic looking raised garden bed

[Mark]

This is a nice rustic looking raised garden bed for a fair price considering some similar sized colorbond or galvanised beds on the market. It's just a pity it's only avail in Victoria!

Rustic Gardens Raised Garden Beds

I suppose it wouldn't be too hard for a person to make their own framework and source some scrap or old iron and build their own rustic bed like this...

 

[Letsgokate]

You could whip them up no worries Mark

Actually we will mostly likely end up building our own, using corrugated iron and some sort of timber posts.

 

[Mark]

Yeah, that'd look nice I reckon!

 

[Nemesis034]

Look nice but would require a lot of soil/compost

 

[Mark]

Look nice but would require a lot of soil/compost

Not if you fill the bottom half with garden waste then it's more economical.

I use logs, weeds, leaves, etc to fill the bottom of my higher raised garden beds and this not only saves on fill but it makes the base of the garden bed a living ecosystem for worms and other organisms, which in turn enrich the topsoil over time.

In the example below, I have cut logs, weeds, bark, sawdust, and leaves from down the back of the property. In the top half I used a garden soil mix purchased in bulk from landscaping supplies at $40-60 per trailer depending on the blend. It's not that expensive really...

 

[Letsgokate]

And it saves your back

 

[Ash]

I like the fact that these things keep invading grasses and weeds away. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Daniel.Mav]

Nice one mark. I did the same with my tall beds. Jusy have to keep topping them up as it all breaks down. Feeds the plants and saves filling with so much soil.

 

[Mark]

Thanks Dan, yeah I actually like the fact that the beds need topping up as it gives the opportunity to boost the nutrients.

 

[Daniel.Mav]

Yeah good point Mark.
Hey quick question. Do yoy use wicking beds at all?

 

[Mark]

. Do yoy use wicking beds at all?

Nah, I have thought about it and I do like the concept but I get good results from normal raised beds.

I concentrate on the soil structure more than the watering method because if the soil has good moisture holding qualities then keeping water up to the plants isn't very difficult by hand or a watering system.

 

[ClissAT]

My Mother has an oval raised bed made of rolled corro about 2.5m long & the bottom half of that is filled with sugar cane mulch.
I just recently got it loaded up again for her.
She makes excellent compost from her kitchen scraps all during the year & tops up the growing part of the bed as needed.
But over time it does drop well down to about half filled.
So I have to come along, dig out all the good soil including the rotted mulch from previous year which I mix with the soil & her compost which she makes in one end of the bed, refill the bed right to the top with can mulch. I get a round bale on my landcruiser & peel half the webbing off it & that fills the bed.
Then I shovel the soil back in which compresses the mulch right down, replace the divider that separates the soil from the compost & replace the compost ready to start the process all over again for another year.

Another way to fill the bed with mulch is to buy square bales of lucerne or sugar cane & just stuff them tightly into the bottom half of the bed. Then put the soil back on top.
It's supposed to be a reduced energy input method of growing veg but I think that only applies to the person growing & eating the veg, not the person who has to dig out & refill the bed at year's end!!

 

[Mark]

The concept of the "no dig" bed has always raised my eyebrows because it is often touted as not requiring any effort to maintain.

But I do think adding organic material to a raised bed is a good way to build up nutrients and create a really excellent growing medium for plants.

 

[Daniel.Mav]

Nice explaination on refilling the bed!
I recently refilled my beds with a mixture or choir, composted chook poo, dynamic lifter, sugar, epsom salt, nematoad stuff, potash, carcoal and potassium sulfate.

Prob a bit of an overkill but this bed hasnt been refilled for over a year so hopefully itll give me a great crop

 

[Sasha Bushell]

And it saves your back

And look at your beds now! How amazing.

 

[Letsgokate]

I suppose it wouldn't be too hard for a person to make their own framework and source some scrap or old iron and build their own rustic bed like this...

We did it only on a much bigger scale http://www.selfsufficientculture.com/threads/my-raised-veggie-beds.1040/#post-9863

 

[Sasha Bushell]

We did it only on a much bigger scale http://www.selfsufficientculture.com/threads/my-raised-veggie-beds.1040/#post-9863

Cant believe i saw this after your post about yours.. woohoo. They look fantastic. They are like the poster girl for all veggie gardens