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Raised Flower Beds - watering question

ShepsSheps Posts: 2,236
in Problem solving

Hi everyone...on Tuesday my new raised flower beds should be ready, they will roughly be 6ft x 2ft x 2ft and each one will hold about 650L of soil / compost.

So the question is, once planted up and thoroughly watered, how long will they last before I need to water again?, I know this is a difficult one to answer, but at the end of May I have to go away for 4 days and I don't want to plant them up if the water is not going to last.

Would you say that the 650L of compost will hold sufficient water to last 4 days?

Cheers

Sheps

Posts

  • Guernsey Donkey2Guernsey Donkey2 Posts: 6,713

    I have found that my raised bed needs watering about twice as much as a normal flower bed - the raised bed drains very quickly.  We have something like mypex at the bottom of the raised bed to help prevent so many weeds from growing through. Other people may have different experiences.

  • ShepsSheps Posts: 2,236

    Thanks for the advice, Tetley...I think I'm going to struggle to find some rubble, so will Cobbles and 20mm Gravel work instead to aid the drainage?

    I have decided to fill the beds with Wickes Top Soil ( 300L ) and Wickes Compost mixed with horti grit ( 350L ) so I'll try mixing in some water retaining crystals as well.

  • ShepsSheps Posts: 2,236
    Guernsey Donkey2 wrote (see)

    I have found that my raised bed needs watering about twice as much as a normal flower bed - the raised bed drains very quickly.  We have something like mypex at the bottom of the raised bed to help prevent so many weeds from growing through. Other people may have different experiences.

    Thanks GD...my raised beds will be lined at the bottom with woven heavy duty landscape membrane, but they will be sat on about 10cm of 20mm gravel, so hoping weeds won't be a problem.

  • ShepsSheps Posts: 2,236
    Tetley wrote (see)

    Yes, cobbles and gravel will work.  I have used bulk bags of topsoil from builders merchants, and base my home made compost on them.  I find they need lots of added grit or sharp sand to aid the watering.  If you can add some well rotted horse manure on the top at some stage  it would help - if not throw in some slow release fertiliser  image

    Cheers Tetley...will use both the Grit and the SRF  

  • WelshonionWelshonion Posts: 3,114
    Your main problem will not be drainage. They will drain faster than you can believe. Your main problem will be drying out.
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