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help please
brenda shay
Posts: 3
in Fruit & veg
hi i have made a very big veg planter 6x3ft and 20in deep what is the best and cheap are recycling center that has free compost can i use this if yes do i need to add anything with i i do not want to change it every year any help please
0
Posts
Hi Brenda I haven't ever used raised beds but if I was I would use topsoil enriched with manure or compost I wouldn't think that the compost that local authorities provide would be ideal on its own for growing veg in as for one thing it would tend to dry out too quickly and I would imagine that it will not be top quality and hold quite a bit of woody material.
can i use compost and horse manure as i can not get any soil cheap would this work to grow my veg
Brenda, have you thought of digging some of your own topsoil out and replacing it with compost, that way there would be a more solid and enriched mix once you added the well rotted manure, some straw, waste paper torn up and anything laying around the garden that is fibrous, old pots say. Put that into the box over some drainage you need in the base of the box such as broken brick pot or gravel. You do not need fill the box to the top, leave space to hold water or to top up in later years. Anything you add to the mix will in time become good compost for vegetables.
Frank
Look into the "lasagna method" of gardening (Google it) in a raised bed. It's what I've done with brilliant success. It's easy, very little hard labor, and most materials are free. It's best started in fall.. but I started mine in spring, and it worked fine.. you just need to purchase a few bags of compost to put a handful of good soil in where you will be sowing seeds or planting out.