Vegetable Gardening with Raised Beds

We started our first vegetable garden about 20 years ago when a coworker handed my husband, Bill a bag of his left over seeds and said, "plant these".

The vegetable garden in late July.

We chose a sunny spot in our yard, Bill borrowed a rototiller from my parents and broke ground.  It was hard work!  I planted the seeds and when the weeds sprouted, tried to keep them under control. With weeds growing in the garden rows and the walkways, I found it impossible to keep up and soon my garden was over run with weeds.

 Click Read More to see the complete post.

After struggling for several years, I came upon a book titled; Lasagna Gardening; A New Layering System for Bountiful Gardens: No Digging, No Tilling, No Weeding, No Kidding! by Patricia Lanza.

This raised bed gardening system is recommended for those who have soil conditions, such as clay, that are not ideal for growing vegetables.  And for those who don't have hours each day to pull weeds.

I decided to give it a try.  My husband used redwood 2 x 4 boards he salvaged from a friends old deck and made 4' wide beds in the garden.  

The raised bed method has made maintaining a large garden possible, even when working full time.

Tips for Designing a Raised Bed Garden

• Choose a sunny location.  Most vegetables require about 8 hours of direct sunlight to grow.

• It is important to use only untreated wood for vegetable garden beds.  Wood that has been treated to resist rotting can leach chemicals into the soil which may contaminate your produce. Redwood and cedar naturally resist rotting and are good choices for constructing raised beds.

• The wood frames for the garden bed should be a maximum of 4 feet across so the entire space can be reached from the sides.  The idea is to stand in the walkways, not directly in the beds.  This reduces compaction which helps plant roots grow with less resistance and makes pulling weeds much easier.  It also allows beneficial soil organisms to thrive.

Planting garlic in the fall.

• If you are creating a new garden using a layering system, cover the ground inside the beds with wet newspapers, then layer peat moss with leaves, grass clippings, and finished compost.  This material will smother the turf and eventually compost down into dark rich garden soil with the help of earthworms and other micro organisms.

• To enrich the soil a layer of finished compost can be spread on top of the beds each fall or spring.  You can make your own organic compost by layering manure (I use chicken and horse) with grass clippings, leaves, weeds and any other dried or fresh plant material that you have on hand.

• Always cover any bare soil with a layer of mulch.  This will help prevent the germination of weed seeds, reduce soil compaction by dispersing the force of rain drops, and keep the moisture level steady by limiting evaporation.  Because the soil is so loose, pulling any weeds that may grow is an easy and surprisingly enjoyable job.

• Cover the walkways around the garden beds with wood chips, which will help prevent weeds from growing in the walkways.  To move comfortably, walkways between the beds should be at least 24 inches wide.

Compost ares is in the left corner.

• Consider making room in your garden for a compost pile or container.  Having your compost location close to your garden beds will save time and effort when the compost is finished and ready to be added to your garden.

• Perennial plants such as rhubarb and asparagus can be incorporated into the garden plan and, once established, will provide produce each year.

Rhubarb, edible and makes a nice border!

• Blueberry bushes also grow well in a vegetable garden setting as they require full sun and, because they are short, do not create unwanted shade.

• If your garden is in an area where deer or rabbits are prevalent, a fence may be needed to protect your crops.

• Incorporate flowers or flowering herbs in your garden beds to attract pollinators.

Feverfew, used to attract bees and relieve pain.

• To extend your growing season consider adding cold frames to your garden plan.  These covered planting beds will protect plants from the wind and cold and extend your harvest season in both the spring and fall.

Cold frames in the winter protecting hearty greens.

• If your garden is surrounded by lawn turf, you will want to figure out a way to keep the grass from growing into your garden beds.  Barriers such as pavers, bricks, rocks, or landscape edging placed around the perimeter of the garden can slow the progression of grass and weed roots.

Cement 16 x 16 inch pavers create a nice border.

Advantages of a No Till Gardening

Once your layered garden beds are established, the earthworm activity and the top layer of mulch will prevent the soil from becoming compacted thus eliminating the need for tilling.  A broad fork can be used to loosen up the soil if it does become compacted or you want the soil extra loose for root crops.

Broad forks are also handy for digging root crops like garlic.

As soon as the soil is at the right temperature you can plant your seeds, no need to wrestle with a tiller to prepare the garden.  You also save the cost of purchasing and maintaining or renting a tiller.

Mulch

After the garden beds are planted and the new growth appears, cover the soil with mulch as a weed barrier.  You can use whatever is readily available to you. I have used grass clippings, straw, last year's leaves, and cocoa bean hulls for mulch.

Once decomposed the mulch adds nutrients and organic matter to the soil.   Organic matter not only fertilizes the soil, but also retains moisture making it readily available to plant roots.  This creates a constant supply of moisture which enhances the health and productivity of growing plants.

Crop Rotation

Crop rotation is used to prevent the soil from degrading and to slow down the progression of plant born diseases and insect populations.  Different plants absorb different combinations of nutrients as they grow. Rotating crops will provide a balanced use of nutrients and help maintain soil fertility.

Garden plans; one for each year.

A diagram of your garden beds can be used to plan your garden each spring. Make several copies of the diagram for future use.  Simply print the name of the vegetable you plant in each bed and keep the diagram from year to year.

Pull out the diagrams for the last two years and use them to place your vegetables in different beds. Tomatoes and potatoes should not be planted in the same bed two years in a row.  Heavy feeders like corn or cabbage can be rotated with beans that replenish the nitrogen in the soil.

Vegetable garden takes time and effort, but with some strategic planning you can work smart, not hard, and harvest wonderful produce.