We are making a new garden with a block of four, square metre beds on some very rough ground. So far the weeds have been cleared and the vegetation taken off to the bare soil. The beds are marked out and should be in place in the next few days.
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The ground was cleared of weeds using a strimmer. Note: do not use any sort of weed killer if you want organic, chemical residues free food. The debris was cleared and the weeds were strimmed again right down to the bare soil. The grass and weeds soon die off, especially in hot weather.
The next stage was to mark out the beds and paths using canes. The soil in the bed areas was then forked over to break up any compaction. If you feel really energetic then you could ‘double dig’ the beds, see this page for more information.
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Assembling the edging kits was quick and easy even without reading the instructions! The first edging was then placed on the soil and checked for level. Geting the beds reasonably level not only looks better but it also stops water running off the surface. The ground in the garden slopes to the south which means that if the surface of the beds is not level water tends to run off or pool at the south end.
The edging kits are supplied with pins that secure corner pieces to the board and also act as ground anchors.
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Once the edging was secured to the soil the surface was roughly levelled and watered. Then compost was added to fill the beds to the top of the edging. This needed two 60 ltr bags for each bed.
The next step was to make the second bed so that both were ready for planting.
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Last year proved it was possible to grow 68 onions in a square metre bed, see this page, so this year we wanted to try 36 leeks, which is 6 inch (152mm) spacing. So the first of the new beds was planted up with 36 leeks, 18 ‘Musselburgh’ and 18 ‘Jolant’.
The leeks have been grown in Rootrainers which we have used with great success for many years. The plants were carefully separated and the compost removed from the roots. A hole was then made with a dibber and the plants dropped in making sure that all the roots were gently pushed to the bottom of the hole. Before transplanting the compost was watered well.
When all the leeks were planted the holes were watered in i.e. watering filled the holes with compost. This is the usual way of planting leeks.
The second bed was sown with a row of ‘Hispi’ cabbage; they are the small pointed head types which are ideal for intensive bed growing. There should be enough seedlings to fill the bed (9 in a 3 x block) and provide some for the rest of the garden.
There are two more beds to complete, check back soon.
Update 31 July 2010
The very dry and breezy weather means the beds need watering every day until the plants establish. There is now a hose from the water storage tanks which provide a good flow of gravity fed recovered water.
The leeks had suffered damage from pheasants. They either peck at the leaves or pull out the seedlings, 5 had to be replaced. The bed has a temporary covering of chicken wire until we can fix something more permanent.
The good news is that the cabbage (Hispi) has germinated, that is just 5 days since they were sown! I guess they will also need to be covered to keep the pesky pheasants off!
Update 06 September 2010
See a progress report and photographs of the beds after 8 weeks here.
Our thanks to the following companies who have supplied the edging kits and compost for this trial.
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“Link-a-Bord is manufactured by Armillatox Ltd, who have over 40 years experience in the gardening and horticultural products industry. It is made from 98% recycled plastic, and is unique in that it is double-skinned, keeping warmth trapped inside a Link-a-Bord structure and maintaining a stable growing temperature.” |
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“We use a bespoke process that harnesses nature and technology to create a range of composts, fertilisers and soil improvers, which are of a consistently high quality.
Learn more about how we Process, green and kitchen waste, reducing Britain’s landfill while providing peat-free, organic, UK sourced environmentally friendly growing media.” |
