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Making raised bed more moisture retentive - cardboard/ newspaper?

parka66parka66 Posts: 5
edited November 2022 in Problem solving
I’ve just build a raised bed in an area that struggles with dry shade (as a result of next door’s trees). They are 35 cm high on top of soil. I will be filing them with a mix of my compost, top soil and manure. The planting will be flowers and shrubs rather than vegetables. I was wondering about adding some layers of cardboard or newspaper at the bottom to help with retaining moisture but I’ve not managed to find much about it being used for this purpose (vs suppressing weeds). Has anyone done this and did they find it helped? 

Posts

  • KeenOnGreenKeenOnGreen Posts: 1,831
    Personally I don't think that will make much difference. It won't retain water, but will rot quickly. If you have to put anything below your soil, a weed suppressing membrane might be better, as it will slow down water leaching into the ground, but will still allow some water through (don't use plastic or anything non-permeable, otherwise you will be creating a bog garden).

    The best thing you can really do is to keep adding as much organic matter as possible (well rotted manure and compost), and you can mulch the top of the soil with cardboard, bark chippings, membrane. That would more effective than adding anything at the bottom of the bed.
  • LoxleyLoxley Posts: 5,698
    edited November 2022
    Agree with KeenOnGreen, also your planting selection will be key to success. And regular thick mulching will help too. Personally I wouldn't use a membrane though, as that will prevent organic material being worked into the soil as effectively.
    "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour". 
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited November 2022
    Yes, it will retain water.  And rot down and be incoporated into yhe topsoil over time.

    I constructed a ditch for candelabra primulas using a large amount of recycled computerprint-outs, un-scrunched.  It works well on my very dry sandy soil.  It has not created a bog.

    I have constructed a 2-bay compost heap from recycled broadsheet newspaper "bricks". It retained moisture thoughout the 2022 drought, whilst letting worms and the like through.  It seems to take about 5 years to fully rot down, I add to it regularly.

    A couple of words of caution from experience:  The area of shade will remain in shade.  And the tree roots will invade the new moist ground.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • Arthur1Arthur1 Posts: 542
    Any organic material throughout the soil profile will help.  When I create raised beds, if they are deep, I put all sorts in the bottom including woody prunings like raspberry canes. The OM will break down and improve the soil structure. You also need to continually add OM because, as it breaks down, it is eventually lost.
  • Allotment BoyAllotment Boy Posts: 6,774
    On a recent Beechgrove winter special,  George   grew grazing rye in a raised bed. Grazing rye produces a big volume of material above and below ground. He tampled the tops down ,then covered with cardboard and put compost, from his own compost heap  on top of that. The grazing rye will rot slowly but the organic matter, will hold moisture.  This was a veg bed but you could plant ornamentals just as well. 
    AB Still learning

  • parka66parka66 Posts: 5
    Thanks so much all. I’ve decided not to do it and will just focus on looking after the soil. 

    It’s a frustrating site - south facing so gets sun most of the day at certain points in the year, but in the summer is so shaded by trees it only gets sun in the morning. The trees also extract most of the water. The added annoyance is that anything with height leans forward in search of more sun. When I moved in it was the sunny border but the trees have stopped that. Not all bad - lovely birds and they screen me from the houses behind.
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