Chomping at the Bit, and a Raised Bed Discussion
May 11, 2011 
I ready.
I'm so ready.
After a strange spring, a dreary and cold spring, our climate has finally warmed. The pastures are growing like gangbusters, the trees are budding, the dandelions are sprouting, and I...
I. Am. Ready.
I'm ready to plant the garden.
Let's get this party started. That's what I say.
But...
After one warm and precipitation-less (precipitateless? precipitless?) day, yesterday, it looks like we're in for some wet weather, off and on, for the rest of the week. Looks like I will have to wait a little longer. But that's okay. After the long winter we had, a few more days ain't nothin'.
In the meantime, I've been getting my garden fix by admiring the seeds we started in the house, and perusing garden-related websites, looking for a little knowledge and inspiration.
Early this morning I watched this video, on raised beds...
Velly velly intellesting. I'm very interested in doing raised beds. I've been chewing on my cud about them ever since we moved to the farm. There are a couple of advantages that appeal to me...
1) They're 'raised' (duh) so you can sit on the edge of them, and they're a little easier to access. I wouldn't think this 6-12" would make much of a difference, but since I put our strawberries in raised beds last summer, I did realize that it's just a bit easier to work with them when you can sit up off the ground a bit.
2) From what I have read, they yield better, because the soil inside ideally doesn't get walked or driven on, which keeps it loose and easier for the plant roots to spread.
There are also a few reasons why I haven't acted on my raised bed ambitions yet, however...
1) The wood to build them (in the amount I would need) ain't cheap.
2) The soil to fill them (in the amount I would need) ain't cheap. Yes, I could use soil we already have here on the farm, but it's full of weed seeds, so...
3) The time to make them (in the amount I would need) ain't available.
4) Once they're in place, they're in place, and it's not easy to move them. This ties back to my issues with deciding where to put things, which I addressed yesterday.
5) Space. Would they actually take up more space than just planting in the regular garden soil? I kind of think so.
In the back of my mind, I'm hoping to try out one big raised bed this year, for the carrots. Maybe give it a try, see how it goes? I'm so undecided on this issue.
I think I'd better go watch some more raised bed videos. If you have any raised bed experience, give a shout out... What do you think?
Reader Comments (1)
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