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040 : Defining Your Garden Beds

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In this episode, Greg talks about various ways to define your garden beds.

Vermicompost update

– Lots of worms
– no smell, totaly works in a garage setting
– really not worth the effort IMO, cannot keep up with supply
– would need a wall of them to keep up with houshold kitchen waste
– need a rural solution

Why Defined planting spaces work:

  • Looks nice
  • Keeps you from walking on them
  • Helps to organize crop rotation
  • Some materials can benefit crops

    • Type of defined planting spaces

    Raised beds

    • Don’t need raised beds, and I don’t recommend them
    • 6″ high (including mulch) more than enough
    • Dimension of 8*10 is recommended, no bigger
    • Circles good too, 5 ‘ radius recommended
    • Use rough milled lumber (lasts longer)
    • Cinder blocks can also be used, long lasting, hold heat

      • Free materials

      Tires

      – slow release of toxic compounds
      – ok for short term but long-term look elsewhere

      Bricks

      – more trouble than they are worth
      – just don’t stay in place
      – use them if that’s what you’ve got

      Rocks

      – free
      – long lasting
      – leach minerals
      – attractive natural look
      – retain water – quasi-mulch
      – great place for beneficial organisms to hang out
      – hold heat (important if cold soil is a problem)
      – no good for gardening in grass

      Railroad ties

      – totally toxic
      – only use them if you want to grow your food in toxic soil

      Trees/ Logs (dead or otherwise)

      – I prefer dead
      – not as heavy
      – more nutrients
      – easier to work with
      – smash into mulch when they are totally rotten

      Hay bales

      – work great
      – hold (and generate heat)
      – provide shelter
      – not free, but can be relatively inexpensive
      – can be re-purposed as mulch

      Sod

      – great idea in principle
      – total pain in the ass in reality

      ...more
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