Big B
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Joined: Sun Jan 23, 2011 7:46 pm
Location: long beach ca

raised bed gardening?

ok

so I have made my 2 beds one is 8x36x12 and the other one in 5x40x12 they look really nice

but now I need to get grate soil to fill them and don't wont to spend 1000's doing it

any one know a place to go in long beach CA

Thank you

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soil
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look up lasagna raised beds. you'll have rich fertile beds with little to no cost.

Big B
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Location: long beach ca

It will take me like 2 years to get that much stuff

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Kisal
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Look for companies that sell landscaping supplies, like topsoil, sand, compost, etc. I googled and found several such companies in Long Beach, but I don't have any idea whether they're actually near your home. They should also be listed in the Yellow Pages of your local phone directory.

You'll need a pickup truck, or else you'll have to pay for delivery. If you need to have it delivered, just spread a large tarp on the ground, so they can dump it there. Then you'll have to wheelbarrow it to where you need it for your garden. I usually spread the tarp in my driveway.

gumbo2176
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I'm looking at the dimensions you supplied in your post. One bed is 8x36x12 and the other bed is 5x40x12. So, is that 8 ft. long x 36 inches wide x 12 inches deep or 8 inches deep x 36 inches wide x 12 ft. long since I'm a bit confused by your not supplying proper dimensions.

Like Kisal said, look for companies that sell topsoil. That is how I filled my raised bed. I got topsoil by the cubic yard and picked it up myself at a cost of $25 for the load. One cubic yard will cover an area 27 sq. ft. with 12 inches of topsoil. Now, this stuff comes fairly loose and it will pack down over time and if you fill your boxes to the top, it will likely be 2 or more inches below that level after a few months of settling and watering.

Now that is prices in Louisiana, no telling what folks in Long Beach want for the same stuff. If comparable to the housing market, what cost me $25 a cubic yard here may set you back a few hundred. :shock:

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Kisal
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The place I go offers 6 different planting mixes, ranging in price from $20/yd to $40/yd if you pick it up yourself.

Having it delivered makes the price almost double.

Bobberman
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Is the bed setting on grass or weeds or plain ground? If its setting on grass I would dig the grass so as to take the top 4 to 6 inches off the ground in one box and use it for the other box to fill it about a 1/3 of the way up with the grass top surface that was dough up! Now face the top of the grass so it faces down which will give you a great mulch and kill the grass in the bed you are now putting it in! The other bed is deeper now and I would take 6 inches of that bed and take the dirt that was under the grassand fill half of that bed with 6 inches of the scrapped off area. Now you have 1-1/2 of both your beds only needing about 6 inches of top soil!! I would now get a cubic yard of or two of a mix of mushroom and strained topped soil and add about 4 inches to the 1-12 of your beds. The area that had the grass layer a double news paper over the grassarea before you add the mushroom mix so the grass cannot grow up! The aper will rot in 3 weeks and expose a great rich soil elow it!! You have 3/4 of your beds done for about $60 nd now look for anything ike leaves or any organic material and take your time filling the other 1/4 of the bed! Idug up grass fromy friend in his yard then dug the dirt under it and put it in a pile. I had a area 6 by nine about a foot deep. I replaced the lower area with the top area of grass and covered itwith the ground that was below the grass. He had a fantastic garden with no weeds or grass! It onl y took me 90 minutes to do it! Its alot of work but I consider it exercise and you will save alot of money and know what your garden is composed off! That last half which is a nice size hole now could be like a big compost for 2 or 3 weeks then top it with a thin layer and put your later crops! Add a little blood meal and you are on your way to a fantastic raised bed!

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cherishedtiger
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If you are just looking for soil to fill, check Craigslist too, sometimes people have mounds of dirt they are looking to get off their property. You will probably need to amend any top soil you get and you never know the quality, but its a great start! Otherwise... yeah that's a lot of $$ I filled my 6x6x12 raised bed with garden soil from lowes and paid a fortune! And that's just one little bed!
Do some searches, post an ad on Craigslist, and browse through there, I am sure you will find some, but you are probably going to need a truck and some shovels!



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