Gardening for Geeks. Christy Wilhelmi
or overtake one another. Let’s take that same 4- x 8-foot (1.2- x 2.4-m) raised bed and plan out the crops to be planted here.
Note: Reverse this in the southern hemisphere.
Tallest to Shortest
Tall crops such as tomatoes and cucumbers, which can be trellised, are located in the back or at the north end of the raised bed. Medium crops, such as peppers, eggplant, and Swiss chard, are placed in front of the tallest crops, closer to the south. Finally, the shortest crops, like lettuces, spinach, carrots, radishes, and arugula, are placed in the southernmost part at the front of the raised bed. This allows all the vegetables to access full sun.
Strategically placed trellised cucumbers can be a source of shade for plants that need it.
Now, for the cool part—literally. This plant-placement method can also be used to strategize in hot weather to protect plants that can’t handle extreme temperatures in the summer months. For example, lettuces bolt to seed quickly in hot weather, making them bitter and inedible. You can strategically grow cucumbers on a trellis in the middle of the raised bed, in the medium row, and then plant lettuces to the north or behind the cucumbers in the shadows of the plants. Ta-daa! A cucumber sun umbrella. The lettuces will stay cooler during hotter weather and resist the urge to peter out so quickly.
Planting short or trailing crops to the south also has a benefit. When it comes to trailing crops like pumpkins and watermelons, they can take over your entire garden without much effort. Usually, these trailing crops tend to grow toward the sun, so by planting them toward the south end of the raised bed, the vines will gravitate southward, into your pathways, instead of consuming precious space in your raised bed. This will leave room for other crops without sacrificing an entire bed. Vigorous plants will still attempt to sprawl all over the place, but you can easily move the vines out of the way because they only attach to the ground at the roots. Note: Pumpkins can produce roots along the vine, but if you are diligent in redirecting vines before they anchor new roots, it won’t be a problem.
Special Considerations for Wildlife and Extreme Temperatures
If you live in foothills, mountainous areas, or recently developed areas where deer, raccoons, or ground-dwelling animals reside, you may need to take additional steps when setting up your garden. It’s possible you’ll need to construct fencing, underground barriers, or even a walk-in structure in order to protect your garden. If you’re going to put in all the effort to grow some of your own food, you might as well reap the benefit of being able to harvest it all. And let’s not forget household pets. A low barrier may not be enough to keep Scruffy from trampling your raised beds and eating your tomatoes (yep, they do that). Most of these protections will be discussed in Chapter 9 (Pest Control), but keep this in mind as you plan out your gardening area.
If your region experiences frost or high temperatures for extended periods of time, you may want to include overhead protection for your crops. Desert communities often use shade structures to protect their plants from scorching during hot summers. Simple metal frames or PVC hoops can be covered with shade cloth to block out 30 to 70 percent of sunlight. When temperatures drop, you can replace the shade cloth with insulated garden fabric. We’ll talk more about this in Chapter 2 (Garden Beds).
Chapter 2
Garden Beds
Once you have your garden location, orientation, and general area planned, it’s time to get to work on building the garden itself. This chapter will explain the reasoning behind using raised beds as well as the different options for materials. We’ll also cover the specifics of how to build your garden beds and offer tricks for building beds that will last.
Raised beds at Gardenerd HQ
Why Raised Beds?
Raised beds are a great way to organize your garden; they offer a clear delineation between growing areas and pathways, but most of the benefits reach beyond aesthetics. In climates where the ground freezes in winter, raised beds are essential. By elevating the planting area above ground, the bed soil will thaw and drain more quickly in spring, allowing for an earlier start to your gardening endeavors.
If you have heavy clay soil (read more about that in Chapter 3, All about Soil), raised beds can alleviate the days of backbreaking labor required to set up a garden as well as condition the soil each year. Raised beds don’t eliminate work altogether, but they make it much easier to add compost and improve soil structure and tilth as time goes on. In some cases, once you’ve built your raised beds, you may never need a shovel again. A hand trowel will often suffice to work the soil and plant crops.
If you choose to set up your garden with raised beds, you will also notice that they save time and valuable resources. Raised beds concentrate the areas that need water, so rather than watering your entire garden area, you’re only watering what’s in the raised beds. Because water is a precious resource, and droughts are predicted to become more frequent and long lasting in places that already experience them, it makes sense to put water only where it is needed. As a result, your pathways remain dry. Dry pathways mean fewer weeds, which equals less work for you. Mulch those pathways with wood chips or other biodegradable materials (newspaper, straw, and burlap sacks work well), and you will even further reduce the need to weed.
Raised beds are the method of choice for most biointensive gardening methods (more about those in Chapter 5) because they concentrate resources and allow a gardener to maintain the beds without walking on and compressing the soil. Raised beds are also handy for folks with lower back issues or certain disabilities. The elevated surface area makes it easier to garden without bending over as far, and often you can even build beds tall enough to prevent bending altogether. Elevated raised beds (up on legs) can be built for wheelchair accessibility. If you have trees or hedges near your garden area, you can line your raised beds on the bottom to prevent thirsty tree roots from taking over your garden. See? The benefits really do go on and on.
Vegetable garden beds don’t have to be boring.
Materials for Raised Beds
When it comes to deciding what materials to use for building a raised bed, you have a lot of options, depending on your budget and needs. If you strive to recycle and reuse found materials, then “urbanite” or broken concrete might be the way to go. If you’re in a tight space, thinner materials that allow for the most gardening area with the least bulk—wood or composite lumber—are better choices. Let’s take a look at the possibilities.
Wood
Wooden raised beds can be assembled quickly and last for years, depending on the type of wood you use. Douglas fir, which is relatively inexpensive, lasts about three to five years before it begins to decompose (though it can, in some circumstances, last for more than ten years in dry conditions). If you are building a simple frame for an experimental garden, or you plan to move in a few years, Douglas fir is good enough to use.
Redwood is a more durable option for wood-framed raised beds. It is an acidic wood, which makes it naturally antimicrobial. Redwood raised beds tend to last about ten to fifteen years longer than Douglas fir beds.
Cedar, which lasts twenty years or more, is a great option for long-term raised beds. It can be more expensive but is worth the investment if you plan to be in the same place for a while. Cedar resists decay and is often available as rough-cut lumber, which means it hasn’t been milled down to the standard (think thinner) dimensions. The thicker wood is more rustic, but those extra millimeters make it even more durable.
Composite Lumber
Composite