[lucywil]

i personally dont like raised beds but have an area on one of my plots that only goes down about 6inches before hitting hardcore or whatever it is so i am putting raised beds on this area so that i am not as limited in what i can grow there, so they can serve a purpose!

[Alby]

Always used raised beds, mines from the dreaded sleepers and never had a problem



12foot long and 4 foot wide , fleece and mesh fit nicely

      Alby

Sorry thought I had resized the bu**er 

[DD.]

Size is OK Alby - you should see those that go way off to the left!

I have to put on record that I have no objection to raised beds in principle.

They are fine if you suffer from drainage problems, soil problems, access problems.

The site I'm on has good soil & good drainage. I admit it really winds me up when the carpenters come down, spend 100's of quid needlessly just to put on a good show & end up cultivating a quarter of the plot.

[alfman]

[IMG]http://i34.tinypic.com/f4fgy0.jpg[/IMG

I put raised beds in last winter and am very pleased with the outcome. My results are here so you can see that the beds are in blocks of 3m square with a walk way through them. Easy to dig over, easy to reach, very little growing area lost and no muddy shoes. quite a bit of work to get them in place but I'm pleased with the result.

[Alby]

Cheers DD, Im on heavy clay and poor drainage , but , do admit I like raised beds for the ease of use and after initial set up ( which is bl**dy awful ) provides a quite easy garden to manage.

  Also stops the garden from being washed away when my little beck becomes a rageing torrent 

    Alby

[Hoodsie]

I tried raised beds for the first time this year in the garden

I was so impressed with the results i put my name down for a plot in April

I now have 3 raised beds in my new plot and plan to add more next year

raised beds def the way to go   

[Bluedave]

made mine from old pallets, dirt cheap

[Sandrav]

Hi Merry Tiller

I have only had my plot a couple of weeks and was really into having raised beds. Not only do they look nice, but i wasnt sure that i would end up plantig just to use the space. I have alot of nice friendly folk on my site who have helped me alot but not keen on beds as "its a waste of space and you have to upkeep the paths". I think i will do some raised beds in the New Year though.

I was inspired by an allotmenteer from Liverpool, i saw his allotment on You Tube. It's called something like "raised beds August 08", he was showing it just before he was competing in the Best Allotment in Liverpool.

I also feel raised beds come into their own when you need to use netting or even provide a green house. If you look at you tube you will see what i mean. He also uses decking.

Hope it is useful to you

[lucywil]

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looks nice but not my cup of tea

[harry]

I suppose if you put raised beds in you then need a load of topsoil from somewhere?

[zazen999]

I suppose if you put raised beds in you then need a load of topsoil from somewhere?

Not really, depends on how deep. We've just piled any spare soil onto the beds, and as things get planted up the level raises, and the mulches, and the fact that you don't walk on them so the ground is less compacted means that it doesn't take long for well used beds to build up to height.

The main thing is to compost everything that you can and keep mulching, at any time of year.

[Alby]

I dug out the top soil from between the beds and put that on , from then on lots of compost and manure, about 15 yrs of muck now so lots of sympathy for those just starting with them  :blink:

 Alby

[johnwoots]

My allotment is made purely of raised beds i made from old pallets/wood from my local recycling centre. everything in the photo (taken i May) was free other than 10 ton of soil which cost about £70 (Bargin). It has changed a bit now obviously!

I am sure its not as good as going straight into the ground, but i utilised my garden to the side of my house and as the ground was solid due to roots etc i went the raised bed way and did it for next to nothing!!

I see in garden centres 4 bits of wood they call raised bed kits and charge £25!! anyone doing that must be mad!!

[Sue32]

i think most go for about 4foot wide (I can just reach about 2 feet in and actually do the weeding)  and as long as you like.