Raised beds versus Open ground?

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KG Emma
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Is growing in raised beds better than the open ground? Do you have any strong opinions on either?
We have Bob Sherman and Edwin Oxlade discussing this topic in the March issue of Kitchen Garden and we would like to add a few opinions from the forum users :D
Catherine
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We have raised beds because our allotment is on quite a steep slope. If we had not put in raised beds all our soil would have been washed down the slope with the heavy rain we suffered last year. Also it means we dont have to stand on the soil to weed. They are wide enough for us to reach across.

The chap in the next allotment has open ground and we see him constantly walking on the soil which looks like he is compressing it.
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Tony Hague
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Raised beds seem rather trendy. I suspect a hangover from the days of gardening programmes on TV being more about civil engineering than growing plants.

It seems to me that raised beds are good if (a) you have a problem with waterlogging (or soil washing away like Catherine), or (b) you have a bad back. They can also look nice and appeal to those who yearn for order.

The downsides include the extra effort and materials, more vulnerable to drought, and edging providing a perfect slug and snail refuge.

Avoiding compaction is good, but you can have beds that you don't walk on without them being raised. Geoff Hamilton talked about "deep beds" rather than "raised beds", with 4' being the best width. Having said that, my beds always seem to end up unintentionally raised because of all the manure added ...
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glallotments
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I think the first thing to determine is what classes as a raised bed. On our site the areas that plotters refer to as raised beds are really just beds edged with boarding which to my mind isn’t a true raised bed which I would expect to be raised several boards above ground level. I agree with Tony regarding the advantages of true raised beds.

From my observations of the edged beds where the soil may be raised about 15 cm above ground level.
• The beds dry out quicker that the surrounding areas and in dry weather (yes we did have a period of dry weather last spring/summer) the young plants dry out and water applied artificially often drains away rather than being absorbed into the soil.
• The edging boards also only last for a limited length of time and will rot and need replacing.
• It can be difficult to weed around the edges both inside and outside of the bed as root get under the boards or need digging out thereby loosening the boards.
• Digging (we are on a clay soil that needs to be dug) is difficult and involves standing on the beds anyway.
• Slugs and snails love hiding under the boarding.
• Many plotters create beds that are very small having more area given over to paths than planting.
• Plotters that have created edged beds when they first got a plot (because it is THE ONLY thing to do) often remove the edging after a while.

Our method is to have paths which divide up manageable sized beds that can be tended either without standing on them or only minimally. This really gives exactly the same benefits as the ‘edged ‘beds. The smaller beds also mean that you can feel that you have made progress as one bed is easily tidied or planted. Our paths are grass which isn’t exactly low maintenance but the grass provides hiding places for the friendly wildlife such as frogs, toads, and beetles and foraging areas for birds. On our site the council delivers loads of wood chips courtesy of the parks department and so those who prefer use that for paths rather than grass.
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Parsons Jack
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Tony Hague and glallotments have summed it very well I think.

It seems to be the 'in thing' that you must have raised beds these days. On our site there are people spending lots of time and money making fancy edged beds without seeming to have any idea what to grow in them or how to look after them. Quite often, after the initial building and planting is done, the plot holder is never seen again. On a plot close to mine last year the plot holder used his beds for potatoes. It took an area almost 20 feet long, including paths, to produce 3 rows of potatoes.

Personally, I prefer open planting. With constant rotation through the year, I have temporary paths where needed at the time. I'm lucky in that we have light soil, but I have always gardened this way, even on clay in the past.
Cheers PJ.

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peter
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Unless you incorporate lots of organic matter at the start and genuinely build up the soil level they are a waste of timber and money.
So many new allotmenteers want to have raised beds cos they've got an idea that its how you grow vegetables and all they end up with is a silly little fence helping weeds to hide, plus its usually scavenged and had to be painted with timber treatment as pallets rot fast.
This because they cannot get extra topsoil or.sufficient rotted manure to bulk it. Many try buying peat based multipurpose compost to fill them, then discover how much iz needed and how much it will cost.

As has often been said on here a real raised bed got higher than the pathsys by being dug, manured, mulched and un-trodden. The timber came later to tidy it up and stop the dug loan and/or added mulch tumbling down onto the path.

Go traditional, notread open ground beds and build them up over time with renewable materials, manure & compost heap, edge them when it becomes necessary.
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peter
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Plus do the maths.

Two beds of 1m x 3m x 0.2m means 1.2 cubic metres of loam/manure. That's one of those builders merchants nylon sacks that have to be craned off the delivery lorry.

A five rod allotment would need a fullsize skipload if divided into beds.

Typical bedders never deal with the pernicious weeds either, bindweed anyone?
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peter
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Sorry, posting via a phone isn't too good for long posts.

Strong opinions?

Yes, I hate them, because newbies rock up to my allotment site convinced they should garden that way and end up wasting time and money, plus peat, then get put off allotments for life, all due to a look what we've made on tv, or a pretty picture in a catalogue.

Keep it simple and then try beds for specific reasons. e.g. deep, soft & sandy for carrots.

Two exceptions.
1 Terraces on steep slopes.
2 wheelchair gardens.
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Compo
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The thing is, it depends on what you want yourself, I started with raised beds....have now taken them out and sunk a path down about 30cm in the middle of the plot, lining the 'trench' (the new path) with the old timbers from the raised beds.

This allows a central highway to walk on in the muddy, it is impossible to avoid compaction but allows some access to the plot from the three paths, one in the middle and one down each side. You dont have to add material to raise beds you just dig the paths down lower if the quality of soil allows you to do so.

The bottom line is that it is down to the individual but these two rules apply always

1. You will never find a maintenance free path, set aside concrete or large slabs

2. Unless you have access to sleepers or good condition scaffolding planks you are going to spend a lot of money, for something that will not last long or look good for long.

But it is your choice and you should make it based on waht you want rather than peer pressure of others or fashion.
If I am not on the plot, I am not happy.........
Colin Miles
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6 years ago I started to create an allotment out of my back garden, which had essentially been a meadow for many years. I left grass paths to create beds - not particularly raised but along those lines. However, mowing the paths was time-consuming and over the next couple of years I got rid of them. Result, an amazing amount of extra space and no mowing.

Seems noone is really in favoured of raised beds.
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Elle's Garden
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Well I am a bit of a fan. I don't have an allotment, just my garden which is also used by 2 boys and 4 dogs! So for me the raised bed has protected the plants that would otherwise be flattened and allowed me to use every inch of the beds very successfully last summer. :D I also suffer with a rather bad back and the raised bed reduces the bending - slightly - it is only 2 planks high! In our situation it has worked well, and allowed use to be made of an area that otherwise seems to work as a soak-away for rain off the main road. :evil:
Kind regards,

Elle
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richard p
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i acquired a quantity of 2 inch thick paving slabs a few years ago so spit the veg patch into beds, it allows access when the ground is wet to walk on bare earth.... every inch of the ground ive dug is used to grow something... i dont see the point of digging up ground.then using it as an unproductive pathway.... then digging it again next year.
for me with limited time to garden the relitavly small beds means theres an easy measure on what youve acheived in a small space of time... theres nothing worse than spending a couple of hours working and finding youve only done an insignificant blob in the middle of an expanse of garden... far more satisfying to be able to say youve finished one bed .
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glallotments
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Elle's Garden wrote:Well I am a bit of a fan. I don't have an allotment, just my garden which is also used by 2 boys and 4 dogs! So for me the raised bed has protected the plants that would otherwise be flattened and allowed me to use every inch of the beds very successfully last summer. :D I also suffer with a rather bad back and the raised bed reduces the bending - slightly - it is only 2 planks high! In our situation it has worked well, and allowed use to be made of an area that otherwise seems to work as a soak-away for rain off the main road. :evil:


But opinion here seems to be that where raised beds serve a purpose as in your case they do they can be a good thing. Your beds do also go some way to being raised beds rather than edged beds being two boards high. To add a point about the edged beds on our site the soil level isn't even raised to the top of the single boards.
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oldherbaceous
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Dear Lady Lettuce,

I really do think there is an arguement for both sides in this matter.
There are so many points that can swing the thoughts one way or the other, depth of existing soil, drainage, ease of reach, soil compaction, working large areas of ground quickly and many other reasons to take into consideration.

My whole allotment is like one large raised bed, but whithout anything to retain the soil, it's at least a foot higher than the existing paths, so drains a lot quicker in the Sping and has a high fertility with all the muck and compost that has been added over many years. I don't have permanent paths, as i try and get two, sometimes three crops per season off the plot, so the paths always seem to end up in different places.

So to sum my thoughts up, this debate is like so many things in gardening, there is definately more than just the one way to do most jobs.

Hope to meet you on one of the K.G stands one day. :wink: :)
Kind Regards, Old Herbaceous.

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Clive.
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Our vegetable garden at home here is fully cultivated open ground.
The basic layout was established more or less as advised in 1955/56 by a free design service of Amateur Gardening magazine. :shock: :wink:

The slab path on the South side which was on their plan was omitted but the main access path was put in using good quality 3'x2' slabs....set 2ft wide at first...later turned, added to and set 3ft wide when I appeared and then got a pedal go-cart.!!... and by chance now ideal for dad to maintain access with his 4 wheel walker.

The plan included a line of cordon Apples/Pears..these remain in location but are now replacements for the originals. Other fruit trees/bushes have moved location over time with additions/deletions.

The plot was formerly a large chicken run in its previous ownership...cleared and dug clean by Dad...with a grass/twitch pile burning for weeks.

The ground has been much improved over years with dad having access to free mushroom compost at one time and these days horse manure enriched compost.
Compost gets added in our system as the Strawberry patch annually moves up the garden...and compost addition along rows of Potatoes at planting.
This improvement has seen the soil height raised..and when the South fence was replaced, slotted concrete post type, we added an extra gravel board to retain the soil on that side. There is also a slight down slope South down our road.

So perhaps we again have one large deep bed.??. With it being quite light soil above greensand I enjoy digging "down to the makers name" on the spade. ie; deeper than the blade of the spade.

Yes, there perhaps is potential for some temporary compaction along the side of rows..but with the light soil type, compost improvement and deep cultivation this is not a problem. We do often use temporary placed boards in Winter to access Brussels Sprouts etc.

Meanwhile,...An "Uncle" of mine who was used to open ground growing converted his vegetable garden to narrow deep beds in his latter years..it helped him continue gardening with easier access and he liked the idea of no walk improved deep beds....that was after he had done a major task of laying the hefty roadside type concrete kerbstones bed edgings.!! that I'm sure he had no doubt acquired by the lorry load at a good deal.....

Another elderly Uncle has done a similar edging of his small vegetable beds using slabs on edge to retain his improved clay based soil and to help his access again to ease continuing with a little bit of gardening. He again was previously used to open ground working and at one time operated a vegetable growing smallholding alongside his main building business.

Clive.
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