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Whilst we are all being urged by Government to grow our own vegetables, this is one piece of advice that does make sense.

There is no comparison between the price of a packet of seeds and the resultant crop. In addition to being cost effective, the bonuses are numerous.

When growing your own veggies you know just how fresh they are, just how much, if any, pesticide has been used on your crop. You can decide whether you are going to run an organic operation or whether you will be using artificial fertilizers.

Having recently created a raised fruit garden and been totally astounded regarding the success of the venture, this has inspired me to make a raised vegetable plot to match.

A raised plot was chosen for three reasons.

1. In a very formal garden raised plots are more in keeping with the general layout.

2. Several unwanted oak sleepers needed to be used and this seemed an ideal opportunity to put these to good use.

3. A ‘normal’ vegetable plot can be very hard work with annual digging being necessary.

The advantage here is that no part of the raised plot becomes compacted by continual walking between the rows, therefore, this lessens the need for digging. Because of this the rows of vegetables can be sited closer together.

When making a raised bed, all parts of the plot should be accessible from all sides. Old oak sleepers are ideal for forming the sides of the bed, and stacked two high make sufficient depth for accommodating the vegetable roots. The sturdy sides of the sleepers make an easy perch for sitting on when sowing seeds etc. Laziness is no good unless it is well carried out!

If sleepers are used, the internal measurement of the plot is likely to be around 7ft. 9ins. which allows for all parts of the plot to be accessible when stretching.

When making a raised bed dig in plenty of well rotted manure or homemade compost to give your plot a flying start. If the soil has been imported from another site try and relocate some worms from another part of your garden into the plot.

These little creatures are an invaluable addition and will work the soil and the compost, giving you their service for a lifetime. If you can leave the soil for a few weeks before sowing your first seeds, this will give possible emerging weeds a chance to show and be eliminated.

What to grow is the next question? Obviously your favourites, and possibly the more expensive items.

Beetroot are a good starting point. Two good reasons spring to mind. For the beginner the seeds are large and easy to sow and secondly, this is a very quick crop. From sowing to harvesting is normally around 18 weeks. Boltardy is a good variety. Also in the large seed category are broad beans and French beans.

Other very easy crops to grow are radish and turnip. It may well be possible to allocate a corner of space to a courgette plant. These are really spectacular and rewarding to grow. On another corner a wigwam of runner beans is also a possibility.

Having your own plot enables you to grow vegetables that are not often found on display in the shops. The sense of independence is an added bonus. The old war-time slogan ‘Dig For Victory’ could be invoked here.

If you sow carrot seed pick a variety that is short rooted and quick maturing. Onions are also an easy crop, but grow sets rather than seed.
Emerging seedlings and salad crops are particularly vulnerable to bird attack, therefore in order not to watch your efforts go to waste it is advisable to erect a framework over the plot to support bird netting for protection. This will add slightly to your costs but it should be useable for several years.

A way of growing tomato plants is not to plant them in the actual plot but to buy a Grow-bag, which will accommodate four plants, and site this alongside the vegetable plot. Moneymaker and Shirley tomato plants have been grown with great success.

Potatoes have also been grown in large pots in the same position and the yield was very good. Cultivation of plants in this manner will mean that the plants will need watering every day.

Once you have your raised vegetable plot established, it will become obvious that the permutations are endless, and as there is no need to leave large walk-ways between the rows, the yield from such a small plot will be totally amazing. Also it is so easy to rotate your crops, i.e., don’t grow the same type of vegetable in the same space two years in a row. Three year rotation is ideal.

At the end of the growing season clear the vegetable plot entirely of all weeds, lightly fork over with your hand fork, level out the soil spread a layer of well rotted home-made compost over the top and leave it to the weather and the worms to work their magic.

In Spring you will be ready to start again, taking the opportunity to rotate your crops to ensure another healthy growing season.

Wishing you every success.

For more information take a look at the Gardening Diary on the author’s web site at www.save-money-guide.com

About the Author

Traderdog is an experienced author, always writing from personal experience. This makes her articles more relevant and to the point. Her web site is www.save-money-guide.com

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Raised flower beds while being attractive and decorative are also very practical and help to solve troubles such as bad drainage, hard packed earth and numerous more. They are likewise a fantastic way to extend your garden when you have limited space for horticulture. They are among a landscapers top-notch tools, when strategically placed they attract the attention to the beauty of a yard, and away from whatever embarrassing areas you may still have.

Raised flower beds are not only for flowers as the name hints, instead they are an outstanding way to produce herbaceous plants and vegetables as well. A lot of people – if you mention raised flower beds – think of perhaps a stepped flower bed, or something of that sort. In fact, raised flower beds can be nigh any form or design that you want. The kind of material you use to create your raised flower beds might impose a few restrictions on the designs you are able to accommodate.

The design of your raised flower bed can be elegant, simple or anywhere in between. Certain material types can restrict your design options due to their specific characteristics. However, it is possible that you could walk around your property, or that of someone you know who has acreage in the country, and find many materials suitable to build your raised flower bed with.

A very long-lasting material for constructing your raised flower bed that is fetching, durable and widely available, is cedar. It is available at most building centers. The woods appeal and beauty helps compensate for the fact that it is a very pricy material Railroad ties and treated lumber make up the materials in a great number of raised flower beds. Some people have concerns with the chemicals used in the treatment of the wood, they fear the chemicals could leach into the earth and then into the plants.

There are a number of materials that will work just as beautifully and might be accessible at very reduced price. These include, but are not limited to, bricks, blocks, decorative stone, slate or just plain old rock. A few of of these might demand complementary material to make with them, such as mortar, while others may work fine with just the stacking method.

PVC is the “new” material of choice by many for most their outdoor building. It goes without saying that this includes raised flower beds. With a composition of plastic, it outlives wood, with almost zero upkeep at all. One drawback to this is the limited number of options for color. Also it is quite likely that you would have to purchase special tools to be able to cut or assemble this material. It may not be the first choice for the private home owner planning to create a raised flower bed.

While it is a widely accepted practice to limit the height of a raised flower bed to less than eighteen inches, it is certainly not written in stone. There are many ways to build a higher raised bed, including but not limited to, building multiple layered beds, building on the side of a hill, using tie-in methods to ensure stability.

For the 16 – 18 inch bed bed, the design is reasonably easy. Once you have settled on the material and your layout, begin with digging a ditch large enough to sink a couple inches of the material. This serves to secure the material to the ground, giving it the needed stableness. Numerous people prefer to secure their material in the trench, and there are numerous ways to achieve this. For a enduring bed, you should use cement, or you could use a tall piece of iron rod. Simply drill a hole in the material, the identical diameter as the rod, and force the rod down through the material. Then keep on building higher.

About the Author

Further advice and inspiration on creative gardening and Hypertufa molds in particular are given on our website. Once there you will be informed about Hypertufa stepping stones and numerous different imaginative horticulture tips.

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