Oops I meant to say also that since filling the beds will loam the levels have sunk a bit so could I top it up with John Innes No 3 or buy more loam to top it up?
Just a wee sprinkle round the base when you plant is fine for the B,F&B. That's the only problem with raised beds - they always settle over time, so make sure you plant the trees at the same level as they were in the pots, and keep them at enough height that you can keep adding organic matter without the trunks being buried. I think you could just use your JI for that just now. If you put a cane or similar across the top of the beds, and then have the level of the plants about an inch or so below that, that will be fine. That's often the easiest way to judge it. It'll give you room to add every so often as the levels drop.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I use well-rotted manure or soil conditioner both available in bags from the garden centre, or home-made garden compost …. or at a push you can use bagged multi purpose compost but it breaks down too quickly for my liking.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
If you do end up getting bagged multipurpose compost, one that's made mostly from green waste might be the closest to homemade compost in terms of not breaking down as quickly as something based on peat or coir.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
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That's the only problem with raised beds - they always settle over time, so make sure you plant the trees at the same level as they were in the pots, and keep them at enough height that you can keep adding organic matter without the trunks being buried. I think you could just use your JI for that just now.
If you put a cane or similar across the top of the beds, and then have the level of the plants about an inch or so below that, that will be fine. That's often the easiest way to judge it. It'll give you room to add every so often as the levels drop.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
what is organic matter? 🙈
xx
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...