[Ice]

mumofstig - it can get confusing can't it, with so many differant opinons 

will four raised beds measuring 8 foot by 5 foot be big enought to yield a worthwhile crop?

Richard 

It most certainly will.

If you made the width 4 foot could you add another bed?  I only say this as 4 foot is the optimal width to so you can reach the midle without stepping on the bed.  Otherwise, go for it.

[RichardC]

Ice

I went for 5 foot width as that maximised the space, while still leaving enough for paths between. Going down to 4 foot would not allow enough space for another bed / beds.

You are right about 4 foot being best size though ... my wife pointed that out to me just half an hour ago from reading one of my allotment books 

I guess I will make a final decision on size when I know what timber I can get / afford.

Richard

[Ice]

Mine are made from 2.4 metre pressure treated gravel boards.  That's 8 foot in English.  Cut one in half and you have a four foot width.  But, if 5 foot maximises the space then go for it.

Good luck.

[FERDY]

Mine are 3.5m x 1.5 and I have 6 which is plenty for our small family with surplus.
Four will do if you carefully plan.

[Snoop]

will four raised beds measuring 8 foot by 5 foot be big enought to yield a worthwhile crop?
Richard 

Absolutely, so long as the things you grow are not so tempting that you're feeding half the neighbourhood as well. Where I lived before, there were more than a few people who decided to help themselves to my lovely cherry toms growing out the front. Fortunately there were so many it didn't matter to me, but they never liked being caught in the act!

[HugglescoteGrower]

It sounds like an ideal set up. Five foot wide beds will mean quite a stretch to reach into them, but does give extra flexibility in that you can get meaningful rows across the bed.

It's possible to grow quite intensively in limited spaces, the important things to remember are the extra strain on the soil, feed and water effectively and use a good soil conditioner between crops to return the goodness you are taking out.

Think about which crops you like, which can be grown quite densely and mature quickly. Things like peas may be a luxury as they do not crop heavily for the space taken. Sprouts too which take a long time to crop and again are not dense producers.

Plan carefully to make sure you can put fresh crops in as soon as one is removed. Think about those crops that can be repeated in the same location during the same season. If you get an early start with carrots and pull the first row or two quite young you should have time to replant the rows.

Think about crops that can be "cut and come again".

Rotation of crops is even more important when growing intensively, with four beds you have the ideal set up to move crops on a bed each year.

[mumofstig]

Things like peas may be a luxury as they do not crop heavily for the space taken.

 
You get a terrific crop from sugar snaps and mine are in, out, and in the freezer (and my tum) quickly ......(in mid march out by the end of june.  ) so my brassicas can go in 

[HugglescoteGrower]

Good point MOS, and just the kind of succession thats important in this type of growing

[savbo]

That's about what we had in the veg garden at our old house and grew plenty of peas, beans, salad, shallots, courgettes, beetroot, turnips, radishes, strawberries.

Bought onions and spuds from the shop.

So my answer would be yes, 4 no. 8'x5' beds would make a very worthwhile veg garden.

MS

[poppies]

Hi we saw a house last year where they had put their front garden down to veg and it looked stunning they had made raised beds even some weird shaped ones to fit every little  space, then there were sweet peas, marigolds and poached egg plants  inbetween the vegetables everyone was stopping to admire it.

[Salmo]

That size of beds will be equivalent to half an allotment. You will produce more close to home as opposed to a distant allotment as you will be able to give attention to detail e.g. weed a bed when you need 5 minutes relaxation, pop out in the dark to catch slugs.

You do not need to grow a big range of crops. Concentrate on high value crops or those that only taste that good from the garden, such as salads, early potatoes, peas and leave out things like sprouts and maincrop potatoes, which you can buy cheaply and which take up a lot of space.

[HugglescoteGrower]

That size of beds will be equivalent to half an allotment

not sure thats right? 4 beds at 8 foot by 5 foot is just under 18 suare yards.

Standard allotments in our area are 10 yards by 300 - 300 square yards. I have two "half plots" which total about 330 square yards.

[Snoop]

I would support mumofstig's vote for sugar snap peas or mangetouts: the flowers are very pretty and everyone walking by will keep an eye on the developing peas. Plus, because you eat the pods, you definitely get a crop worth having.

[digalotty]

take a look at square foot gardening, it is said that a 1m square if managed properly can provide 1 person with enough salad to have some every day, and the same with veg.
you can also add some veg plants like swiss chard to garden borders if you have them and aif you use some pots around the place your sorted

[Elcie]

Yes Digalotty you are right.  Square foot gardening is very productive and also works really well in a front garden as it optimises space and looks interesting too.  I don't have any pictures of it at the moment, but here are some from last summer which was its first year.







As you can see it got quite big!  I also used pots and hanging baskets with tomato plants.  I am trying to keep it a bit simpler this year and have onions/garlic/cabbage in there are the moment, along with broad beans, PSB, bay tree, blueberry bush and some seeds growing.  I really love it and would recommend it to anyone.