Hi chaps. I’d like some advice on how to deal with my raised bed soil. Should I buy some new top soil?
Last year I built three 1m2 raised beds and filled them with compost from the local dump.
I planted a host of things: tomtoms, pumpkins, peppers, etc. I had an explosion of foliage but little or no flowers or fruit.
I believe the culprit was too much nitrogen in the soil as I was recently told that the dump compost is famously nitrogen-rich and experienced gardeners use it sparingly.
A bit of reading this year leads me to believe that the nitrogen has probably washed away. However, the beds could benefit for a few more inches of soil this year. I’d like to top them up.
So, some questions:
Should I test the old compost before topping up the beds or is it safe to assume the nitrogen level will have dropped sufficiently?
Would a good quality top soil be a good bet to top up?
Should I mix this through the existing medium or simply lay on the beds?
Hoping to have a more fruitful year this year!
Thanks