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Raised bed root crops
Teenrbee
Posts: 57
in Fruit & veg
Morning all,
It will be second year with raised bed (but started late last year). Had fair crop of lettuce, beetroot etc. and carrots to a degree, despite not thinning properly! My question is how do I ensure that my carrots, parsnips etc. have enough nutrients without over doing it? We put manure on 2 of the raised beds at the end of last year but left the one for roots unmanured. Should I put anything on/in the soil before i begin sowing or just leave it as is? The beds were made using a mix of existing soil, garden compost and purchased fruit and veg soil. Any advice gratefully received.
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Morning Teenrbee, I watched an interesting video by Monty Don explaining crop rotation and adding nutrients to the soil. It's in the "how to" section on this site and is called how to practice crop rotation.
Thanks Bright Star, I'm going to take a look right now.
Hi again Bright Star, just watched that video. Although I thought I understood the basic principles of crop rotation that was a great little 'idiot proof' explanation. Good old Monty.
I usualy dig my raised beds over and add a bag of new multi purpose compost and mix in. Mine are about 5'x3'x6" deep and stand on soil but i don't dig into the soil now as i have been topping the beds with compost for a few years now. I put the spent compost from tomato grow bags in there too at the end of the growing season, good luck this year hope you lots of lovely crops?
Thanks Loana. That's a good idea. The beds have settled a bit so do need a top up. Looking forward to using the beds for a whole season this year rather than starting late and making the best of a bad job as last year. As long as.i get nice.Straight (ish) carrots, parsnips etc. I'll be a happy bunny! Thanks again for your helpful reply.
I rotate my crops each year, and all the beds get a topping of compost except the carrot bed. As it's been composted in previous years, I don't think. a year without compost harms the. soil. If you wanted to help them on you could sprinkle some Growmore or blood, fish and bone on the bed, but I don't think carrots are hungry feeders, they'll be fine with no extras. It's worth spending a bit of time forking over the bed, making sure that the soil is smooth, loose and stone-free for a good depth.
I grow super carrots in the raised beds. Parsnips are trickier and last year's were a disaster, but my carrots always do well.
Thanks Green Magpie. Never grown parsnips before, what are the problems I should be looking out for this year? I can't wait for the carrots this year. Nothing like a freshly picked sweet carrot.
I am not very good at parsnips so I'm not best placed to advise you. I do know that they can be very slow to germinate, and that seed doesn't store well from one year to another. In my experience they are a bit of a lottery: sometimes you try to dig some up, and one will be the size of your little finger while the next one is as heavy as the roast chicken it's supposed to accompany. I find they are a lot more inclined to fork into little rootlets than carrots are, which makes them hard to clean and prepare.
Last year I had to dig up a whole row of about 10 to get a single helping, they were so tiny. I thought I wouldn't bother with them again, but I'm having one more go. This is their last chance.
Oh dear Green Magpie. Wondering if it's going to be worth the effort but I am going to give them a go this year. I will know not to waste too much time and precious space on them if they don't work out though. I always find that I want to grow far more different veg. than I have space for so I need to be selective.