[HilaryP]

I have just taken on a 10x10m virgin plot that has been part of a grass field. The site is windy - prevailing wind from the South West. I want to design my beds to ease the impact of the wind and to make the plot look individual. Any suggestions for shapes and sizes?

[mattwragg94]

hi hilary and welcoem to the site, can you put your location in your profile please as thiswill help us to answer your future questions in more detail.

as for shapes and sizes of the beds the most common is rectangle and square, although triangles and cirlcles are also common - i suppose you can do the bed any shape you want - however plan in it on a piece of paper first so that you know that how much space you are wasting to paths - so that you can get as much space for growing as possible.(thats what ive just done).

all the best with the new plot,
matt.

[adal]

a big hello and wecome to the site 

[HilaryP]

Good to hear from Houghton le Spring. Thank you.

[Yorkie]

Welcome to the site 

I'll move your post over to Grow Your Own for further consideration of the question you've asked.

[Hose A]

Hello and welcome to the site from an exliled Durham,

Yes, I understand your problem with the wind up in Lanchester. That's quite a descent size plot to get to grips with so I suggest you take it easy little by little, I planned and laid out my plot last year with shallow raised beds on my 9x5 mtr plot, I don't know what you are considering but raised beds are very easy to manager, mine are 10'x4' running north to south which for runners and french beans seems to be the natural way to maximise the sunshine ( all morning on one side of the line of poles and the rest of the day on the otherside), if I'd had more room I feel that the bed width could be wider maybe about 5 feet, I think if i had a similar sized plot as yours I would have a mix of raised and traditional beds, potatoes definately don't sit well in raised beds. Regarding the wind issue maybe you could consider a line of soft fruit bushes like raspberries along the prevailing border which would give a measure of windbreak, our site isn't to bad for wind but it did whip up a bit in May June last year so I invested in some debris netting from scaffold suppliers (on-line) and built wind breaks were required. I also use it as netting over my beds and it works great, it's extremely reasonabley priced when compaired to most horticultural options. Well, I hope I haven't rambled on too long and maybe you could pick up some hints from what I've said, anyway best of luck I'm sure you'll get it sorted.    Cheers 

[SnooziSuzi]

Hi HilaryP, welcome to the site from just up the road in Sacriston

[HilaryP]

Hello Essex. I had an allotment in Bury St Edmunds before moving to Durham.
Thank you for your ideas. Raised beds and wind breaks are very helpful thoughts. I will think about fruit bush hedging.
If I go for rectangle beds they will be 4 foot wide for ease of maintenance. I am happy to lose ground to paths at this early stage. Any thoughts on different shapes for the beds?

[HilaryP]

Good to hear from you SnooziSuzi in Sacriston. Where abouts is your allotment field? I will look out for it when driving through. What handy hints do you have for growing  up here? I am used to a cropping season starting in May. Anything not worth trying?

[Matthew Gayles]

why not build the raised beds with a higher back than front? point the back of the bed into the wind, will that not give you protection as well?

[leeks r us]

Hi Hilary p a warm welcome and gud luck with your new plot.

[Benandbill]

Hiya HilaryP.  Welcome to this site.  It's a great site, there are loads of knowledgable people here (not me  ) with useful advice and lots of fun to be had!!

I used to frequent a pub in Cardiff that had an L shaped pool table - that was a bit of a novelty.  Perhaps you could have some L shaped beds?  Anyway, good luck with your new plot and I hope your bean poles don't blow away!

[Plot74]

Welcome to the site.
The length does not really matter it is the width that counts you need to be able to reach the middle with ease. As said previously fruit bushes will make a good wind break. You could even try gooseberry bushes round the boarder they will give a good boundary and give you some fruit . Enjoy your gardening
John

[savbo]

I would invest in a big roll of windbreak netting 1m high... more flexible than designing permanent windbreaks...and fit it around the beds...easy to unhook it for access, esp if you use those 'road pins' the council use around roadworks...

in terms of design - given your plot is square - how about a big circle of triangular beds? with other triangles filling the corners. That way few of the paths or beds will point exactly the same way, so any wind direction shouldn't have too much effect?

sav

[Goldfinger]

Another welcome from me too! 

Just drove through there today, was up at Satley, GETTING SOAKED!