Everything Old is New Again

We are on a roll as we prepare to move from March to April 2013. Putting the disaster of '12 behind us...and learning from our experiences...we are ready to have a successful gardening year. How about you?

One of the things we learned is that raised bed gardening has an important place in the scheme of things...and we were missing out here in the Way Back Garden. The opportunity to improve the soil conditions, increase production without increasing the size of the Kitchen Garden, and add to the beauty of our property were just three reasons we considered this change. The clincher? Our daughter has a fabulous 2-raised bed garden at her KY home (where I spent almost all of the gardening year last year), and I learned to appreciate their many values. Would we find a place in the Kitchen Garden for one or two?

Actually, we decided to redesign the Cool Season Garden to accommodate 5 new raised beds! We measured, I drew them up & placed the order for materials, and Mr. T brought them to life. Here he is with puppy Abbie putting together the Center Square...

And look how they turned out? We added the fill today and look forward to planting some tomorrow.

So, what did we use for our soil recipe for filling raised beds? After much research, we went with a basic 1/3-1/3-1/3 formula: 1/3 native soil, 1/3 top soil, and 1/3 amendments in the form of a combination of chopped leaves, mushroom compost and Black Kow composted manure.

Our "native soil" is a Carolina clay with a (soil-tested in 2011) rather anemic pH of 5.2-5.5, which is one of the reasons we did NOT add peat moss (high acid) as suggested by many sites. Still, clay soil typically has a high mineral content, so we Mantis-tilled the base of each bed thoroughly, down about 6". To grow full, healthy root systems, the transition from "added" soil to native soil should be a smooth one by creating a "roughened" surface on the native soil.

Then we added a large helping of leaves collected last Fall (mostly oak), which were partially composted and then chopped. Four of the beds are six-sided, with 27 square feet; the Center Square is 4x4 (16 square feet)...and they are all 12" deep. We added 2 bags of mushroom compost (40 lbs each), and 4 bags Black Kow composted manure (50 lbs each). We topped that with 5 (40 lb) bags of top soil, 1/4 cup 10-10-10 fertilizer, and 3/4 cups bone meal (since "top soil" has little nutrient value by itself). Then we gave each bed a thorough mixing with the Mantis before raking the surface smooth.

I am so looking forward to growing some decent carrots and beets this year! Can't wait to get growing!