The Message Board

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1603 days ago

Wendy
The raised garden bed doesn't have to be too high. About 25cm is enough. Most people use either bricks, or timber sleepers, to create the frame for the raised bed. The main thing is to choose a sunny spot - one that gets eight hours a day of direct sunshine. Almost all vegies thrive on sunshine.

As for soil, it's probably cheapest to get a landscaping supplies company to deliver enough soil to fill the frame. (Doing it with bought bags of soil would cost a packet). What you'll need to do is measure your raised bed (height, width and length) to calculate its capacity, then let the landscaping supplier figure out how much you'll need when you give them the figures.

September is the perfect time to get started with vegies. The cheapest way is to grow plants from seeds, and this isn't as hard as some people think. The seed packets tell you how deep to sow seeds (it's never very deep) and how far apart the seeds should be.

Growing plants from seedlings is a bit easier, but it costs a lot more per plant. If you're not sure what to plant, just visit the local garden centre. Anything that is being sold there now is OK to plant. Don't be shy about asking the garden centre staff about what to grow, and what you'll need. For example, if you grow tomatoes, you will also need to buy a stake to support the tomatoes.

Don't forget to buy some liquid fertiliser (eg, Nitrosol) because vegies love being fed.

Good luck!
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I'm a blogger! http://gardenamateur.blogspot.com

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1602 days ago

It's not advised to use treated pine when building a raised garden bed as they chemicals they use to treat the timber are not nice! Use Hardwood sleepers instaead.
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from little things, big things grow!

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1601 days ago

Hi Benh

I just used a new edging system called Edgn. It was really easy to use and I think it looks great. My vege patch is in the middle of the yard and this system has a mower edge so it will be easy to maintain in the future. I got it online from edgn.com.au

Hope that helps, good luck.

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1599 days ago

We use raised beds in our vegie patch and have wonderful success with them. Before planting, lots of organic goodies were added to the soil and crops are rotated after the existing plants have finished.

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1599 days ago

I have sucess also with raised garden beds. Started with one and now have three. They are only small 1.5x2metres. which is great for crop rotation.
I initially filled mine with one bag of manure, one cube of straw and then emptied the compost bin on top.

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1569 days ago

Hi I just got some redgum sleepers from bunnings and 1 meter of mushroom compost ( mind you i only needed half this amount to fill the beds) The sleepers were like $13 each from bunnings and the compost I got from a garden soil company was $65 a meter.. I went home and dug up the grass then laid the sleepers oot to form a bed then filled with the compost. I mixed in a bag of manure and watered in well and waited a week for it to settle. I now have seeds sprouting everywhere and I was not that fussy with distance of planting , not all seeds came up so i just transplanted the ones that grew in clumps and thinned them out. So far so good. Hope this helps :)
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Too much soil... not enough plants

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1560 days ago

Hi Wendy,
Just wondering how your raised beds went??? Hoping you too have many little seedlings springing up?? Regards Sue
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Too much soil... not enough plants

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1486 days ago

Sanity

I never have any luck with seeds .... the seedlings come up ok ... but then they either die or don't grow ... what am I doing (or not)?

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1466 days ago

hi we have two old spud boxes for our tomatoes they work a treat we lined them with weed mat so the water would drain then good grade topsoil worms were then put in mushroom compost and lots of home compost we have no weeds no bad back and lots of tomatoes you must get hard wood boxes not treated pine if space is a problem then this is great just pop them in a corner of the back yard also we use our tank water on them

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1118 days ago

I'm also looking to add some raised garden beds to my suburban garden on the Gold Coast and am wondering how important daily sunlight is for the growth of some veggies and herbs? The area where I would ideally like to locate the beds in my garden only gets sun for the middle part of the day and is shaded the rest. Am I as well to not bother with so much shade or are there any specific veggies and herbs that will suit or adapt to this shaded area best?

Thank you in advance for your help.

P.S. I am a complete novice gardener and was intending to use some treated timber to construct up to 3 beds, roughly 3x1m, 2.5x1m & 2x1m.
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RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1075 days ago

If you look for 'raised garden beds' on the internet you'll find a company that delivers one directly to your door, which probably looks great but is probably expensive too. We had an old watertank which we cut horizontally into 3 sections, filled each with soil, grass cuttings, horse manure and compost and they are the best veg gardens.
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Outback Gardener

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1063 days ago

Hi everyone,

Well, they do not have to be expensive. I do appologise for mentioning this here, but the product that I have been using for years and last year started selling in NZ and Australia is perfect for that - collapsible pallet collars, made of natural heat treated (NO CHEMICALS!) scandinavian spruce, light (9 kg) and sturdy, stackable in height. Have a look at www.kiwicollars.co.nz, or join us on Facebook ("kiwi collars" page). I simply could not resist letting you know that great looking quality raised garden beds do not have to be expensive at all (one collar is $39 + s&h).

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 1056 days ago

TO ALL OUT THERE. DON'T BE FOOLED OLD HARDWOOD SLEEPERS BEING UNTREATED. OFten product used in treatment of the old sleepers years ago are more toxic than new. Use bricks or landscaping blocks preferably. Last forever.
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GROW HARD OR GROW HOME

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 982 days ago

My husband & I bought a raised garden bed from a company on the gold coast and it's beginning to rust already. It's made from roofing iron. We did some research and found that Aquaplate doesn't rust which is what they make rainwater tanks from.

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 777 days ago

Here is a product that won't rust; ezyGrow Garden Planters

It is a raised garden planter that is 1mt by 1/2 a mt in size. It sits 700mm off the ground so you dont have to bend over to garden.

The beauty of this product is that it has a built in water receptical in the base of the planter so it captures the excess water and nutrients. You can then drain this out and recycle it back onto your garden.

The ezyGrow Garden Planter is made of UV Stabalised, Food Grade Poly, the same product they make rain water tanks out of.

Check out this site for some pictures: http://www.ezygrow.com.au

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Happy Gardening Grant Davies http://www.ezygrow.com.au

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 758 days ago

Hi Wendy
We are a company called Birdies Garden Products and we produce a raised garden bed system which makes vegetable growing eaiser for the Backyard Farmer. The bed can be set up in 4 different sizes and is available in three heights and colours. Bunnings stock them but you can also get more information and purchase them directly from our website http://www.birdiesgardenproducts.com.au


Hope
that helps, if you have any other questions don't hesitate to get in touch.

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 271 days ago

If you are one of the many people who loves their garden and tending to it then you could be on the lookout for ideas to give your garden a whole new look. Lots of people get pleasure from their garden whether it is a small urban garden or a large lawn garden and it’s easy to spruce up the look of your outdoors space with a few simple ideas.
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http://www.envisionlandscapes.com.au/

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 270 days ago

I am looking to build a Raised Garden bed mainly because I
find it difficult bending. One about waist height would
suit, all ideas greatfully appreciated.
Thanks..Brissy4Gardener
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I am a Brown Thumb!!

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 266 days ago

Gidday all,
Old watertanks are great for raised beds,you can cut them to the height that suits you.Abit of paint slows up the rust problem.I,ve had mine up and running for 5yrs& to start with it was a really old tank.I cut it to make 5 beds & so far no sign of rusting.Living in Crookwell might help not having any salt air to contend with.
regards Roofy.
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RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 204 days ago

Hiya all,

I made raised vegie beds out of corrugated iron, supported with star pickets, perfect height, cheap, and really take a long time to rust.The one i am using now is about nine years old and no rust yet, this is the second garden we have used this system. If you bend the iron using something as a guide, it makes the structure strong and neat, i put garden hose, or plastic pipe with a split on the edge to protect from the sharp tin edge. Mine is in an E shape, 3 meters long. filled with soil from the landscaping center, mixed in some manure and sand......i use seeds both planted where they are to grow and raised under glass and transplanted. Also get seedlings from the garden center sometimes. Have fun, try different things, lots of ways to grow things, plants are very forgiving :-)

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 82 days ago

Another great product especially for beginners in the home grown veggie market.

<a href="http://www.thevegepod.com.au" target="_blank">The Vegepod</a>

A large plastic container that comes with a greenhouse canopy and water management system.

It recycles excess water and promotes rapid growth.

It makes growing your own veggies simple, so now anyone can give it a try

See more about <a href="http://www.thevegepod.com.au" target="_blank">raised garden beds</a>
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Matt - Vegepod

RE: Raised garden bed

Posted 82 days ago

Another great product especially for beginners in the home grown veggie market.

The Vegepod -

A large plastic container that comes with a greenhouse canopy and water management system.

It recycles excess water and promotes rapid growth.

It makes growing your own veggies simple, so now anyone can give it a try

See more about raised garden beds
http://www.thevegepod.com.au
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Matt - Vegepod