Easy Organic Raised-bed Gardening
A few simple yard care practices help with your organic raised-bed gardening plans.
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Typically raised-bed gardens consist of thin, long rows of soil mounds, rising about eighteen inches above the ground soil. They can be either open or encased in fencing or other border materials. Raised-bed gardens provide many benefits to gardeners, including improved water management and increased vegetable production (see Raised-bed Gardens.
The following outline provides an easy two step seasonal process for creating the organic foundation for a raised-bed garden.
Step one begins in the fall and consists of little more than piling your leaves and grass clippings into a compost pile. Plan ahead and place the pile in or near an area with water and sunlight sufficient for growing your summer garden. Please note that placing a compost pile in a sunny area means it will need to be monitored for moisture content. Pile decomposition time depends on pile moisture content, with low moisture piles needing more time to decompose. Gardeners living in climates with rainy winters need not worry as much about compost piles with sun exposure.
Ideally, your the compost pile grows over time with the addition of layer upon layer of grass clippings and leaves. Experts provide recommendations for a range of one to one, up to three to one, leaves (carbon ingredients) to grass (nitrogen ingredients) ratio for the pile. When you reach a pile measuring roughly three cubic feet, it's time to consider pile maintenance.
Cold or slow composting is the easier of the two maintenance methods. You basically allow the pile of organic materials to sit and break down naturally. Plan on a six to twelve month decomposition time, depending on you local climate conditions. Fast or hot composting means investing time flipping the pile and mixing the ingredients. Consistent or weekly compost pile management cuts the decomposition time in half or more.
Compost weed management also need not be an exhausting task. Experts offer conflicting advice, saying keep your pile free of all weeds or do not worry about weeds. Because your compost pile is the foundation of a more comprehensive raised-bed garden strategy, a middle of the road weed management approach offers gardeners a generally high weed control confidence level.
Consider, for a moment, the extreme example of a compost pile composed primarily of weeds. The old accounting adage, garbage in garbage out, might then equally apply to your end result compost. On the other hand, if you practiced due diligence with your compost pile, adding layers of leaves and grass clippings over time, and occasionally turning it, the amount of heat generated in a compost pile is often sufficient to kill most weed seeds embedded in it.
Step two of the organic raised-bed gardening strategy consists of compost pile repositioning. This step also provides additional weed management benefits. The picture on the left shows the fall compost pile, that previously measured approximately three cubic feet, converted into a compost pile approximately six feet long by two feet wide by eighteen inches deep.
When you reposition the compost pile, make sure you also loosen and blend a layer of the top soil into the compost. Cover this repositioned pile with a long piece of plastic, (an old plastic bag) suitable for spring/summer solarization. Solarization is a term often likened to creating a mini-greenhouse on soil. As sunlight penetrates the plastic into the compost pile, it raises the soil temperature. The plastic further acts as a barrier, preventing the soil from emitting the heat. The soil temperature increases, killing most of the remaining weeds, seeds and other plant pathogens in the soil. (see Effect of Soil Solarization on Weeds)
Depending on the outside temperature and amount of sunlight the newly solarized raised-bed compost pile receives, it should be ready for planting in one to two months. During the interim time, two bed maintenance measures should be considered.
Solarization works most effectively in moist soil conditions. You can use anything, from an automatic built in drip irrigation system to a hand held weekly watering can application of water, to maintain bed moisture. Just lift the plastic sheet, irrigate the pile and replace the plastic sheet.
Many different sources suggest that the average compost pile records higher than average ph levels than typically recommended for most common garden vegetables. Measuring the soil ph level and adding amendments to reach a ph level conducive to growing the vegetables of your choice solves the problem.
The end result of this easy two step outline results in a chemical free, healthy, nutrient rich soil ready for planting. You can reduce weeds during the growing season by keeping the plastic sheet on the soil and cutting holes in the areas you want to plant. The remaining covered areas will have the plastic weed protection. Be sure to cut enough holes in the plastic to insure plant appropriate soil temperature.
© 2007. Patricia A. Michaels