For years I've been recycling mixtures of old grow bags, compost heap diggings, used bags of seed and other composts, etc etc. But I thought for next year I'd prepare some raised beds for salad crops, especially carrots, radishes, beetroot and spring onions, and fill the frames with brand new "growing medium".
Can anyone give me a "recipe" for this, please. Grow bag contents? John Innes? Bags of "top soil". What fertilisers? Lime?
Also, does it risk the crop to use tannelised rot-proofed timber for the frames. If so, what best to use?
Many thanks - John N
New soil
Moderators: KG Steve, Chantal, Tigger, peter
-
Nature's Babe
- KG Regular
- Posts: 2468
- Joined: Tue Nov 03, 2009 6:02 pm
- Location: East Sussex
Hi John, if I were you, as it is autumn, I would take the top soil from the
paths to raise the beds, I doubt if anything you buy would be as good as what you have made over the years by adding organic matter, then if you want it deeper add a good soil conditioner on top, layer straw on top to keep weeds at bay and prevent leaching by rain and let the worms do the work over winter, in spring rake off the straw and you will have a perfect planting medium. I do this every winter and it saves work and sometimes i leave the straw in place and plant through it, depending on what I plant as it helps conserve water. If your beds are not too wide you don't need to dig again provided you don't walk on it, as the worms come up right under the mulch and work the topsoil for you. Others have different ideas, but this works very well for me and stuff flourishes. I also put rootgrow under when I plant seedlings, this extends the plants root system and gives a further boost in times of drought, of course in deluge the surplus rain just runs down onto the paths. brassicas are the only crop that don't have symbiosis with the rootgrow fungi. If weeds are a problem layer cardboard before adding the top layer, it will slowly decompose and disappear over winter.
paths to raise the beds, I doubt if anything you buy would be as good as what you have made over the years by adding organic matter, then if you want it deeper add a good soil conditioner on top, layer straw on top to keep weeds at bay and prevent leaching by rain and let the worms do the work over winter, in spring rake off the straw and you will have a perfect planting medium. I do this every winter and it saves work and sometimes i leave the straw in place and plant through it, depending on what I plant as it helps conserve water. If your beds are not too wide you don't need to dig again provided you don't walk on it, as the worms come up right under the mulch and work the topsoil for you. Others have different ideas, but this works very well for me and stuff flourishes. I also put rootgrow under when I plant seedlings, this extends the plants root system and gives a further boost in times of drought, of course in deluge the surplus rain just runs down onto the paths. brassicas are the only crop that don't have symbiosis with the rootgrow fungi. If weeds are a problem layer cardboard before adding the top layer, it will slowly decompose and disappear over winter.
Sit down before a fact as a little child, be prepared to give up every preconcieved notion, follow humbly wherever and to whatever abyss nature leads, or you shall learn nothing.
By Thomas Huxley
http://www.wildrye.info/reserve/
By Thomas Huxley
http://www.wildrye.info/reserve/
-
Nature's Babe
- KG Regular
- Posts: 2468
- Joined: Tue Nov 03, 2009 6:02 pm
- Location: East Sussex
John, I didn't answer the second part of your question because i had no idea, but my partner works in a sawmill and he says they used to use copper and cyanide which is banned, no longer used now, says the modern process is water based and done by vacuum and should not be harmful.
Sit down before a fact as a little child, be prepared to give up every preconcieved notion, follow humbly wherever and to whatever abyss nature leads, or you shall learn nothing.
By Thomas Huxley
http://www.wildrye.info/reserve/
By Thomas Huxley
http://www.wildrye.info/reserve/
-
Fair Weather 33
- KG Regular
- Posts: 66
- Joined: Sun Aug 29, 2010 5:03 pm
- Location: Wick, Caithness
Hi John
I have for a few years now grown my carrots in pots out of the reach of the dreaded carrot fly, and for this have used John Innes No2. This is because it does not have a too much neutrients in it to make the carrots produce a lot of growth and not much root. This also means that you can start them off a bit earlier inside a non heated greenhouse.
Also I built a few raised beds a few years go and used sarking. It is a bit rough but did not cost the earth. I held it together with posts 2 by 2 screwed to the ends with copper screws so they do not rust. So far so good.
Hope this helps.
I have for a few years now grown my carrots in pots out of the reach of the dreaded carrot fly, and for this have used John Innes No2. This is because it does not have a too much neutrients in it to make the carrots produce a lot of growth and not much root. This also means that you can start them off a bit earlier inside a non heated greenhouse.
Also I built a few raised beds a few years go and used sarking. It is a bit rough but did not cost the earth. I held it together with posts 2 by 2 screwed to the ends with copper screws so they do not rust. So far so good.
Hope this helps.