I had 8 inch beds earlier this year, but my new ones are 12 inch and 16 inch. The 8 just didn't seem like it gave enough root depth and my plants were stunted.

Two of my beds have 2 feet between them. It's enough room now, but I'm not sure how nice it's going to be once things have filled in. I think it may be too tight of a squeeze, but it's what I had to work with.

Wood chips or gravel would be nice! Good luck with your garden!

Good questions one and all... First off, these are my opinions, there are 100 ways to grow a tomato, but I think I've got a good one. Here it goes.

I went 16 inches, which was maybe a tad too high. Too high just means more expensive to fill. You can get away with 6 inches, but for deep rooted crops like carrots and tomatoes, 12 would be a good compromise. But don't let 16 inches of fill (about 5 cubic yards) be the reason you don't go with Mel's Mix (more on that later).

About 100 SF of space is great to start. It is not too much, nor to little. That is, if you can tend to 100 SF of growing space at the peak of the growing season. Trust me when I say it's not hard with SFG, just takes regular 15 miniute maintenance. I started with 130 SF plus various bins and think that was fine.

Now for Mel's Mix. I'm very partial to it, despite it's cost. Shop around for the cheapest price, and don't be afraid to call wholesalers to see if they sell retail too. That's how I saved 50% plus on my components. That said, if you're set on the "premium" mix, maybe get 4 yards of that and 1 worth of vermiculite (in 4 cft bags). Mixing that will better than nothing. Of course if cost is an issue, just get the premium blend or even straight compost.

I wouldn't plant grass around raised beds anyway. It'll be a pain to keep it trim. I used gravel over landscape fabric to keep the weeds out, but wood chips is a good idea, they decompose slowly. Whatever you do just think it over and you'll be fine. As for spacing, I did 2 feet and it seems perfect. I can even stick a Self Watering Container in between, very cool.

Lastly, sorry to say there is probably much more you're leaving out, but only you can figure out what. Feel free to ask, we like to help here...

Good luck with the thaw and let us know how it works out!

Here is a link that might be useful: Sinfonian's garden adventure

I did 2' spacing and wish I had another foot. It was really difficult getting around the beds once the veggies were up and growing....things like bush beans, squash and cucumbers grew over/into the pathways. If those had been trellised and only non-spreading veggies planted next to the paths (carrots, beets, onions, lettuce, etc), then 2' would have been sufficient.

I'm quite happy with my wood chips on the paths, although they will have to be renewed every now and then. I would have a problem with dirt/debris in gravel paths over landscape fabric. I have that for a path along one side of my house and have always regretted it. I've spent a couple of summers slowly removing it, rock's much harder to dig out than it was to pour on! I agree grass isn't the way to go, unless you put a solid mow strip around each box.

Go for as deep as you can afford on the beds. You can have too little soil, but you can never have too much. Of course, if you are building over the top of decent ground, your plant roots will grow down through that and you won't really need such deep beds.

Good luck and good gardening!

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

Check with horse boarding stables in your area. You may be able to get HM in all stages of compost from fresh to finished. You should be able to fill your beds with the best mix free.

John

Here is a link that might be useful: Johns Journal

I've often wondered about soil depth myself. Mel says in his book to use 2x6's. Now that I've used these boxes for two years I really don't think they are deep enough. Next year I will increase the depth of my beds to 10 - 12". I would like to know others opinions on the 6" beds used by Mel. And he recommends weed barrier underneath so the plants can not use the soil underneath.

Jeff

John is right. I have a co-worker who has horses and she's spreading some for me. Ask around....someone's little girl is taking pony lessons and can hook you up. That, or just look in your paper for horse riding lessons.

Thanks for all the great replies ! lots of excellent info.

some people have mentioned that 8 or 12 inches may be high enough if I have decent ground beneath the bed... I'm not sure how to tell what makes the ground decent, but i know for sure that weeds grow like crazy in my yard (since it isn't landscaped yet)... could this be a sign that the ground may be good enough to only require maybe an 8 inch bed ?

thanks again !

I would go with the 8"-10" beds, you can always add to the depth later if you think you need it. The only reason I do not like the weed barrier is it is also a worm barrier. Red worms or NCs are a gardenerÂs best friend. Put a few of those Canadian NCs in your bed/s if you do not already have them in your soil. I did not use the weed barrier, the only place I had a few weeds was in the pathways, and that was only a hand full all year.

John

Here is a link that might be useful: Johns Journal

Mine is 8" deep, and I feel that it's just right. I grew the best tomato plants ever last year, and I used Mel's mix, to the tee. I have professional grade landscaping fabric in the bottom of mine, and the worms are abundant. I really don't know how they get in there, but they just do. You will be surprised how much your 96 sqft of garden will yield, if maintained properly. You will get lots of help from this forum, because everyone is friendly in here. :)

EG

Here is a link that might be useful: EG's garden blog

My beds are either three 2x6's or two 2x8's high. I was happy with the depth. I don't have especially good soil underneath.

One thing you might want to think about is if you really want to make the the 4' wide bed so long since you'll have to walk around it quite a lot. That may be a matter of personal taste, but it's something to think about. I think the 2' wide one will be fine with that length because you can reach into it, but I would be sure to leave a gap if it's along a fence.

I think your overall planting area is a good size to start with. I started my raised bed garden last summer with 80 SF. I've expanded it quite a bit for next year.

I did not use Mel's mix. Mine are filled with aged horse manure, hay, straw, leaves, coffee grounds etc, sort of lasagna style. Only downside was the contents shrank down by about 1/3 by end of season. I've topped them off this fall, so I'll have to see how much they rot down next year.

I would try to go with about a 3' spacing between beds if you can. I agree that with 2' once things grow and mature, you'll want the space. It's hard to imagine how much space some of those plants will take up. I planted my poor onions WAY too close to the tomato, zuchs and cukes. They were over-run by mid summer.

I used wood mulch between my beds. I can get it free from the county though.

Below is a link to some info and pics of my garden last summer, and some of the yields I had.

Here is a link that might be useful: My 2008 Garden Story (lots of pics)

I did not use Mel's mix. Mine are filled with aged horse manure, hay, straw, leaves, coffee grounds etc, sort of lasagna style. Only downside was the contents shrank down by about 1/3 by end of season. I've topped them off this fall, so I'll have to see how much they rot down next year.

That is why I like to compost in bins away from the garden. Most of the shrinkage will take place before you put it in your beds. There still will be some though but you want that so you can add compost and cover any weed seeds that may have blown in the previous year.

John

Here is a link that might be useful: Johns Journal

Everything you put in there will shrink a little bit, but that's ok. Just make sure it doesn't shrink below 6". That's why I made mine 8".

EG

I made all of my beds 12", but I knew I wasn't going to fill them all the way with mel's mix. 16" is ALOT of Mel's mix. Also, the ones I'm building for the front yard will only be 10" because I'm putting them on regular front yard soil. I'm trying to picture the 16", would that be hard to reach into for you? I often find myself lying next to the beds and looking up into the tomatoes to see if any bugs have perched on the under side of the leaves. I'm little in every sense of the word (short of stature, tiny of frame, and SMALL minded, lol, says the hubby) and I'm not sure 2 feet would be entirely comfortable. The two feet all around your yard sounds very cool! I'm excited to see pictures.

thanks again for all the replies ! this is great... nice to see such an active forum.

What I may do now is make the 16x2 a deeper bed, 16 inches high since it will have the deeper root stuff such as tomatoes and pole beans, then make my 16x4 (or two 8x4) only 8 inches high for veggies that need less root depth and see how it all makes out.

Does anyone know how I can tell if my soil is very good in the backyard ? We moved in 3 months after the house was build (moved in end of Aug) and the yard was a jungle of tall weeds. Could this be a sign that I may have good soil for a garden ? Or would weeds do very well even in soil which is too sandy or too much clay ?

You will need to get a soil sampling kit from your county extension office, and probably have a local agricultural university analyze it. Mine was analyzed by Auburn University, and only cost around $15. They told me everything I needed to add, to meet the proper requirements for various plants/trees. Although I wasn't planning on using the soil for a garden, it was valuable information for my fruit orchard.

Weeds will grow in any soil, I would think. Hope this helps!

EG

My 8" deep beds do just fine for everything that I have grown. I grow my tomatoes in homemade SWC (self-watering containers) though so...

I would definitely go with 3' between the beds -- even with planting bush snap beans you'll need the extra space, believe me. And if you're stooping down or on your knees, a little bit more room between the beds sure does make it easier LOL

Definitely go with landscape fabric covered with mulch or bark chips, etc. You won't regret it even if it costs a little more. No mowing inbetween the beds so no blowing weed seeds into your ft2 beds! Less weeding!

The size that you're starting with is great. I agree with Sinfonian, you'll find that with the square foot method, you'll spend so much less time weeding and working in the garden. The time you spend in the garden will be doing fun things like harvesting and planting (or just watching your veggies grow).

I went with Mel's Mix and haven't looked back. It's good stuff. Just keep amending it on a regular basis by adding more compost.

Congrats on the decision to start your garden!

Here is a link that might be useful: Judy's Square Foot Garden Blog

Another thing. You say your home was built last year. Rest assured that all the topsoil was scraped away during the grading process, so your soil is immediately suspect. Weeds grow just about anywhere in any conditions, so they're no help.

I agree that you should have it tested if possible. If you can't find anywhere to take it, then assume it's horrible and add copius amounts of compost, maybe lime, greensand, etc. Or just build with Mel's Mix and ignore your soil like I did. hehe.

Here is a link that might be useful: Sinfonian's garden adventure

I used 2x12 douglas fir and it worked great. The first pic is the garden under construction, the second is the garden in the summer.

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Gorgeous! I had to fence mine, 'cause my doxies like to eat the veggies! They have a passion for lettuce and carrots, and will pull the carrots right out of the ground to munch on.

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

thanks again for all the responses !

I think I've settled on the following:

one 16x2 foot bordering my yard with the neighbor and a support structure for vertical growing items such as tomatoes, pole beans (long edge facing south). height of approx 16 inches for deeper roots

two 4x8 perpendicular to the 16x2 2 feet bellow it and seperated by 3 feet. Only 8 or 10 inches of height, will increase height following year if needed.

I'll go under the assumption that the soil is no good as per sinfonian's comments (makes perfect sense)

I've got all winter now to figure out where/how to make/find what i need for a good amount of mel's mix.

thanks again everyone for the responses and photo's !

Granny,
I like your journal layout you made.
When I was little, I remember my great-aunt writing down the weather every day in her book. Your spots for the highs and lows reminded me of that.

BTW, Mr. H looks cute in pink :-)

Greenbean, Mr. H is going to strangle his daughter for putting him in pink tights, but I thought he looked kinda cute!

I have about 20 little daily planners that belonged to my mother-in-law. She wrote in them every single day without fail. She always made note of the weather, and added a notation on what she did on that day such as "washed clothes", "ironed", "baked". It's fun to go back and read through the entries of the 50s and 60s!

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden