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How raised is raised
On 11/3/2008 3:43 PM, SteveB wrote:
We are ready to till up our garden, and want to raise it in beds or platforms so us old people don't have to bend over so much. Is it practical to raise them to desk level, or is just a foot or two sufficient? I would think that whatever you made the raised bed from would rot from water and gook within a few years. And then, if you use cinderblock or cement, you're talking high cost and a lot of skilled labor. Help appreciated. Steve Raised beds are generally done to improve drainage in heavy soils, not to make the beds convenient for people. If you wish to raise your beds for your convenience, do them as high as you want. Just remember that the higher you make a bed, the stronger you must make the frame. I have one raised bed, a square just about a foot high and 40 inches on a side. This is for a Mineola tangelo because citrus needs soils that draing very well while my soil is adobe clay. The bed is framed with a single layer of unmortared cinder blocks. I filled the holes in the blocks with potting mix and planted wax-leaf begonias in them. I also have a raised miniature circular bed that is about 6 inches high and 15 inches in diameter. This is for a foxglove plant. The bed is framed with a cereal box that I cut apart and stapled to create a ring. I expect this frame to decompose, by which time the foxglove roots should hold the raised soil together in a mound. The rest of my garden is at the original level. I'm 67 and have a bad back. I work much of my garden on my knees. I use a step bench that can be turned upside-down; under the step is a 1-inch pad of foam rubber for my knees. The legs (for when it's right-side-up) assist me to stand up. Right-side-up, it's very handy for sitting and resting. See my http://www.rossde.com/garden/tools.html; scroll down a little past half-way. -- David E. Ross Climate: California Mediterranean Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19) Gardening pages at http://www.rossde.com/garden/ |
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