Cabbages in raised beds

When planting cabbages / brassicas in raised beds how do you keep a tight head . I have always thought you needed firm soil . Do you just tread all over the bed and then have to redig it for the nest crop rotating in ?

I tread my beds over and then fluff the surface slightly before digging the planting holes and puddling in the plants as deep as their first true leaves.

We have a lot of voles on our site and I find that if I leave soft soil, they tunnel through it and if their tunnels go under the roots of brassicas they either fade away (as last year's PSB did) or don't heart up.

When the crop is harvested I do then have to dig the bed over, but as brassicas are only in the same bed every four years, it is not too much damage to the soil "crumb", and a good opportunity to dig in manure or compost too, ready for the next crop.

Thanks for the replies I will maybe do half the bed trodden and half just planted firmly and see what happens