Need Advice on Soil Mix for New Raised Beds

[gtaus]

Just a little update. I got my two new 16 inch tall raised beds put into place and leveled off. I decided to go the hügelkultur method and put old rotting logs and wood chips in the bottom 8 inches. Quick pic follows...

Today I picked up a load of black Red River Valley topsoil. I decided to spend the $50 for the load because that soil is just so much better than my native sandy soil. I plan on mixing that soil with my sifted chicken run compost in equal parts as recommended by the local nursery owner when I talked to him.

That is one Bobcat bucket full load in the trailer. I was estimating about an 11 cubic foot load, I think I got a little more than that. At this time, I'm glad I just bought the soil because it saves me all the effort in digging up my inferior native sandy soil, sifting it out before mixing it with the compost, and then I'd still have to backfill all that soil I dug out. I have a ton of projects on my To-Do List, so I took the easy way out on this project. But, not really, as my native soil is nowhere as good as this stuff I just bought.

 

[BReeder!]

Just a little update. I got my two new 16 inch tall raised beds put into place and leveled off. I decided to go the hügelkultur method and put old rotting logs and wood chips in the bottom 8 inches. Quick pic follows...

View attachment 2666303

Today I picked up a load of black Red River Valley topsoil. I decided to spend the $50 for the load because that soil is just so much better than my native sandy soil. I plan on mixing that soil with my sifted chicken run compost in equal parts as recommended by the local nursery owner when I talked to him.

View attachment 2666314

That is one Bobcat bucket full load in the trailer. I was estimating about an 11 cubic foot load, I think I got a little more than that. At this time, I'm glad I just bought the soil because it saves me all the effort in digging up my inferior native sandy soil, sifting it out before mixing it with the compost, and then I'd still have to backfill all that soil I dug out. I have a ton of projects on my To-Do List, so I took the easy way out on this project. But, not really, as my native soil is nowhere as good as this stuff I just bought.

Happy you decided what the best route for you is. I am curious to see how the pile of wood chips and rotting wood impacts your garden. Some claim the carbon rich materials will rob nutrients from the soil. I think it will, but if you continue to fertilize with rich compost and other sources of nutrients for the first few years, there well be plenty of nurtures for the wood and your plants. Then as the wood breaks down slowly it should release nutrients back into the soil, right where roots need it, with the aid of beneficial bacteria.
That's my theory at least... wondering if it works for you.

 

[gtaus]

Happy you decided what the best route for you is. I am curious to see how the pile of wood chips and rotting wood impacts your garden. Some claim the carbon rich materials will rob nutrients from the soil. I think it will, but if you continue to fertilize with rich compost and other sources of nutrients for the first few years, there well be plenty of nurtures for the wood and your plants. Then as the wood breaks down slowly it should release nutrients back into the soil, right where roots need it, with the aid of beneficial bacteria.
That's my theory at least... wondering if it works for you.

I know there is a lot of discussion about wood chips robbing the soil of nitrogen to use it to decompose the wood. However, most people state that if you use wood chips as a mulch, then the nitrogen lost is only at the surface and does not affect the plant's roots growing underneath. Likewise, in a hügelkultur bed, the wood is breaking down below the soil/compost layer so again the roots have plenty of room to grow into the soil/compost layer, and only dip down into the wood layer to drink up stored water in the wood. As far as I know, everyone states that you should not mix wood chips into the active growing soil layer because then the wood chips would be robbing the soil at the very place the roots are also looking for nitrogen.

I think my plants will be OK with a soil/compost top layer that is 8 inches deep. From what I understand, most vegetable plants do well with 6 inches of soil.

Some people recommend growing plants like beans in a hügelkultur bed the first years because it puts nitrogen into the soil. In theory, as the hügelkultur wood breaks down, it releases more and more nutrients back into the soil and becomes self fertilizing. I have dug out some logs from a 2 year old hügelkultur bed and it was like a sponge. So there is great water retention in all that rotting wood and that helps the plants above to thrive without much top watering/rain. And if you get lots of rain, the rotting wood soaks it up and holds it for future use.

I have only had hügelkultur beds for about 3 years. They do better in my garden than a normal raised bed or in ground planting, and each year those hügelkultur beds seem to be getting better. Of course, as the wood and other organics decompose, the level of the hügelkultur bed gets lower, which I replenish with compost. So the bed is getting better from both below and above.

Let me also add that my main garden does not have running water, so the water retention properties of the hügelkultur beds is a big bonus in my situation. If I could water my garden whenever I wanted, or when it needed it, then maybe the hügelkultur beds would not be that much more productive.

 

[Sally PB]

On a more positive note, I found a number of worms in the garden soil I sampled, which is a great sign because years ago, before I started dumping all that organic material as mulch, there were hardly any worms in the sandy soil. So there is progress going on.

My sandy garden used to have very few, if any worms. I find some in the squash bed now, which is a big, flat, not-raised bed. I've been piling on the leaves in the fall, and grass trimmings whenever I have some. That area's soil has a much better look and feel to it now.

I left that area flat so that I can put stuff there that really likes to sprawl, like squash. I also use it for potatoes, so that I can dig the up and not have to worry about messing up a nice raised bed.

My raised beds are just mounded, with rocks to bolster the sides a bit. They're about 12-16" higher than the pathways.

 

[BReeder!]

My sandy garden used to have very few, if any worms. I find some in the squash bed now, which is a big, flat, not-raised bed. I've been piling on the leaves in the fall, and grass trimmings whenever I have some. That area's soil has a much better look and feel to it now.

I left that area flat so that I can put stuff there that really likes to sprawl, like squash. I also use it for potatoes, so that I can dig the up and not have to worry about messing up a nice raised bed.

My raised beds are just mounded, with rocks to bolster the sides a bit. They're about 12-16" higher than the pathways.

Can you post a pic of your rock work to reinforce the sides? I don't have a huge amount of rock available, but I am curious to see what you did. I have metal and wood raised beds, but I formed a number of raised rows (dirt mounded like you mentioned) this year. The ones with tomatoes, cucumber and corn I may decide to keep long-term. The others have potatoes, so those will be getting utterly destroyed come harvest.

 

[BReeder!]

Let me also add that my main garden does not have running water

The dream... running water in the garden. My spigot is just ~50 feet from the garden, but that's a lot to have to run a hose every time I want to water the garden. I'm determined to run a waterline to the garden, but it's not happening this year as the to-do list is just too long already. I do have a duck pond next to my garden. I'm thinking I'll rig a hose to the pump for the pond and use "fertilized" water every now and then. That will save me from having to run the hose across the yard, over the garden fence and around the beds carefully to avoid damaging growing plants. I can go from the duck pond right down the center walkway of the garden and water everything without weaving around beds and rows.

 

[gtaus]

The dream... running water in the garden.

Well, I used to have a water pump close to the garden. I trenched in some black pipe and made a spigot right at the corner of the garden. I used an automatic water valve at the pump and had it set to run the sprinklers for 30 mins at 6 am and 6 pm. That was the best my garden ever did.

Unfortunately, the pump burned out and the well guys told me it would cost me $500 to replace it. At the time, I did not have $500 laying around. and, in truth, I don't get $500 worth of food out of my garden anyway. So, I just decided to hand water some of the plants that needed it and switched over to raised beds and hügelkultur beds. My garden is not as productive as when I had the automatic waterer set up, but it is starting to get better again.

I set up two 55 gallon drums on an elevated stand to hold water by the main garden. I drop a hose into the creek or the lake and fill up the drums using a 12v pump. I use a garden hose from the drums to water the garden. It just is a low pressure set up using only gravity. But it is easier than filling up a bucket at a time to water the plants.

Someday I might replace the burned out pump, but Dear Wife wants me to move the entire main garden closer to our house in the backyard. That is where I have the chickens, so it makes sense to just move the garden too. I started building those raised beds and putting them out by the chicken coop and run. Was going to sift some compost today and mix with the top soil I bought to fill the new raised beds, but currently it is raining. So, rain delay.............

 

[Sally PB]

Can you post a pic of your rock work to reinforce the sides?

@BReeder1, calling it "rock work" is putting on airs!

The first two pics are the garlic bed. The third shows where the beans will be this year. I put cinder blocks on the ends. The east side of the beds are closer to the fence, and I have or will have some herbs along the fence. The cinder blocks give a place to step to get around the bed with out stepping on the herbs.

I did the same idea at the west side, but did leave enough room between the end of the bed and the fence for a path that will accommodate my cart.

The purple and red cloth are my frost sheets. I'll cover up the strawberries one more time!

 

[Sally PB]

The dream... running water in the garden. My spigot is just ~50 feet from the garden, but that's a lot to have to run a hose every time I want to water the garden.

I think I have 200 feet of hose from the house out to the garden. To turn on the hose, either remember to turn it on when you leave the house, or walk back uuuuupppp the hill. I fill up a 5 gallon bucket half way and haul that around the garden for watering purposes.

I got one of those spigot divider thingies. One port has the garden hose, the other has a 50 foot hose for everything up by the house. Usually we don't have the 50 footer attached; so I can use it to fill up gallon milk jugs to haul to the uphill garden.

When we need to water up there, DH fills his 5 gallon jerry can, and we fill the dozen milk jugs we've accumulated for this purpose. They go in the Jeep, and he drives them to the uphill garden for me. Bless his heart. But, that is where the habanero peppers are planted, so he does have an interest...

 

[gtaus]

@BReeder1, calling it "rock work" is putting on airs!

The first two pics are the garlic bed. The third shows where the beans will be this year. I put cinder blocks on the ends. The east side of the beds are closer to the fence, and I have or will have some herbs along the fence. The cinder blocks give a place to step to get around the bed with out stepping on the herbs.

I did the same idea at the west side, but did leave enough room between the end of the bed and the fence for a path that will accommodate my cart.

The purple and red cloth are my frost sheets. I'll cover up the strawberries one more time!

Good use of those rocks to outline the garden bed. Much better than having them inside the garden bed. I have seen some pictures of people using trees trunks in a similar method. I approve of using whatever you have available. Also, looks very natural. Great job.