Monday, February 18, 2013

RAISED GARDEN BEDS, STEP TWO COMPLETE

When I got to the farm, all the beds were exactly where I left them, no one had moved them for me, ha.  But what I thought would be easy, turned out to be much more time consuming than I realized.  You see, on paper, I drew it out as a rectangular piece of property.  Then I realized that the back fence is at an angle so my plans wouldn't come out exactly as I anticipated.


So I had to move them, again and again.  Over three feet?  No.  Forward two feet?  No.  Back two feet? No.  Is it lined up with the fence?  Yes, but wait, now it's crooked.  Let's move them oh wait, now future expansions run into the brush.  That won't work.  So, I kept moving them around.  Thankfully with the corner brackets, I could just roll them like square tires!



I had to make sure they were all three feet apart as that was part of the design plan, but with that, if I had to move one, all had to be moved.  Ugh.  But I finally got them where I wanted them and then went around making sure there was exactly three feet on each side, except for the entrance, which I made six feet wide.



Here it is finished!  I leveled the three in the foreground but the three in the background need a bit more digging to get them level.  I just started to run out of daylight by the end of the day and had to give up.  But that's ok since I'm not going to have to till anything, I'll have time to level them next weekend.  


This view is from the back of the garden (standing in what will be the future expansion area) looking toward the driveway and the future barn waaaay over on the other side of the property.  Don't ask me why, but I just wanted the garden to be lined up with the barn.  It looks so small on such a big piece of property doesn't it?


 I thought I'd throw in this picture to give you some frame of reference.  This is standing just in front of the garden looking toward the other side of the property.  This is what I was talking about above.  The 'entrance' (once we have it fenced in) to the garden is directly behind me, so I just turned around and snapped this picture.  The barn will be over there on the other side with some citrus trees there along 2nd Family's back pasture fence
(lemon, lime, orange).  I guess I have a thing for symmetry, ha.

Next step is some cardboard and paper in the bottom of the beds and a load or two of soil.  Then it's planting time!



26 comments:

  1. i can't wait to see how this all turns out. i think i will be reassembling some of my raised beds in the lower garden this year.

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    1. Me too! Ha. I want to see your raised beds too.

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  2. You and me - symmetry fiends LOL But it's looking good - well done :)

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    1. Ha, I love it! Yes, I always like things to be in balance. That's going to cause me problems when I start planting random trees, ha.

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  3. You have a good start, stores here already have tomato, eggplant, squash, etc in stock.

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    1. I know, i'm starting to see them here. We're still having some freezing nights, so I'm hoping that means I'm not too late getting started. :-)

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  4. You're ambitious! I wish my yard was big enough to do some raised beds. Can't wait to see pictures when you have something growing in them!

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    1. Or foolish? Ha. We'll see. Go big or go home, right? LOL! Pictures, good or bad, as it happens.

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  5. Lookin' good! Just remember to slightly over fill them with the soil, as there will be some settling. You'll want the soil to be as deep as possible for those early roots. I've seen too many 12" deep beds that only have 6" of soil in them! It won't take too long for the cardboard and paper to turn to compost, then the veggie roots can go as deep as they want.

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    1. Yes, definitely. I have seen that too. A neighbor once put in a raised bed and it was probably 10" high, but he had about 5 inches of soil in it. I didn't really understand that. I will fill and then let settle after watering and then adding some more. This is the weekend for putting in the cardboard and paper and then next weekend will be soil filling.

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    2. Good advice. I look forward to a season of food! You growing/roasting chiles??

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  6. A ha......your as bad as I am. Making sure things measure up to the tee!

    Great 2nd step, can't wait for the next steps and pictures.

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    1. I moved and adjusted and moved and measured and moved them 10 times, ha. It's hard work getting things just perfect. :-)

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  7. just an after thought, if you have problems with gophers or ground squirrels you may want to put some chicken wire with small holes in the bottom before the cardboard/paper layer.

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    1. Good idea. not sure if we have those out there, I will have to research that. Thanks for the tip, much appreciated!

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  8. I guess one can be imaginative and rigid at the same time, I know I am. Once I get a vision EVERYTHING has to fit. I like symmetry too, its peaceful.

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    1. Oh, so true. I day dream and draw and doodle and plan and look at pictures and draw some more and plan and then once I start doing it, it has to come out as close to my 'vision' as possible, ha.

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  9. I know what you mean about perfect layout - there isn't a square inch of our garden that wasn't tripple checked when it was build

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    1. I double checked but didn't triple....that's probably why my plans were off, ha.

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  10. Looking good FM! I wish I could say my beds are symmetrical but sadly they are not. That's is what happens when the hubbs helps me. I suppose I could always dig the dirt out and move them...haha, yeah not gonna happen. I am happy with them (for now).

    I can't wait to see your progress!

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    1. Hey, there is no rule to gardening (other than maybe 'you must water regularly', ha). Enjoy your gardens however they look. The end result is the same, ha.

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  11. Looks so much nicer when it is symmetrical. Vegetable garden beds can be a pretty view. Remember LOTS AND LOTS of overlapping cardboard is the key to success. As well as overfilling as Annie's Granny said.

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    1. I think it's all the 'inspiration' pictures I've saved over the years, seems they are all symmetrical. I'm looking for cardboard boxes now. Going to hit up some liquor stores and grocery stores. Thanks for the tip. Fingers crossed!

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  12. Looking great, I too am a stickler for symmetry but sometimes have to accept its not practical :)

    I wish those brackets were available here in the Uk they look ideal for raised beds

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    1. I wish they were were available for you too. And yes, I'm going to have to give up symmetry at some point, I know I can't expect it to be all the places I want it to be, LOL.

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  13. Your soil will settle, but I wouldn't get too worried about overfilling the beds (it can get expensive) because lots n lots of folks have great results with 6 inch beds. But hey, if you got the time, energy and money...go for it.

    Me, I usually just amend and/or top mine off each year.

    Here's an idea: get yourself some clear plastic and some PVC pipes n get you some seeds going now :-)

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