tdump
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:40 am
Location: US North carolina peidmont

Raised beds for 2016

well they seem to be doing well this year. Cabbage,I am putting the diatomaceous earth on it and still getting a couple holes here and there. Onions doing well. Radishes are not growing very big. I used seed strips from Burpee.
Tomatoes, well, the plants were getting TALL in the pots and they were put over a foot in the ground last month and now they are really growing. The first 1 to bloom was the Ambrosia gold cherry tomato on the far right in the small bed.
The White Beefsteak and Red Beef steak are already almost 3 foot tall!

The little bed I built from lumber I found on the side of the road, has herbs in it and they seem to be happy. I had to buy them as the 1's I tried to grow from seed did not work out.
The 2 little grey pots have last years ornamental hot peppers in them. I ate some last night and they are really coming out and producing again. Better than they did last year actually.
I planted some of my purple taters in the little patch outlined by the phone pole along with a few tomato plants and my sweet tater slips I started in January.
Thanks for the help and ideas you all gave me in regards to last years post so this could work better for me.
I need to get up to the big garden tomorrow and try to get it cultivated and the watermelons planted.
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imafan26
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Posts: 13961
Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2013 8:32 am
Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

Looking good. I could not have that much wood in direct contact with soil and water, the termites would have a party.
I have sprinklers in my gardens too, it makes watering so much easier and I have them zoned so I can work on one part of the garden while watering the others. In my borders where I have permanent plants like the roses, glads, lillies and geraniums I use a drip system.

The sprinkler in the garden can be changed out to be higher or lower or I can switch out the head for a multi head. I did have soakers at one time in the vegetable garden but they clog over time and I don't leave them on long enough to soak the ground evenly. I also had to move them out of the way every time I harvested or amended the garden otherwise I would have to repair the leaks.

tdump
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:40 am
Location: US North carolina peidmont

My plan is to move the rain water collector barrel out from where it is and run some hose over to each bed. Then turn using a tire pump,pressurize the barrel so it will help water flow out of a pipe with holes drilled in it over the plant base. Kinda along the lines of a sprayer but not with that much force.
that is later down the road. at the moment the old metal watering can seems to work ok.
I eat the last lettuce saterday night. For whatever reason I don't get but about 4 salads worth from my lettuce and it withers away.Perhaps I need to set out some more?
I think next year I will replace the phone pole bed with another raised bed. I can grow the same stuff, but be able to work it better.

j3707
Green Thumb
Posts: 306
Joined: Sun Jul 12, 2009 10:11 pm
Location: Pacific Northwest, Zone 8, 48" annual rainfall, dry summers.

I like the idea of using scrap or found lumber to build raised a raised bed or box. The first thing that comes to mind is pallets. I built my first chicken coop from pallet lumber...takes quite a bit more effort than using dimensional lumber. I still keep my eye open small pallets that are in good shape.

tdump
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:40 am
Location: US North carolina peidmont

I did some yard work and the used treated lumber for the 2 large beds was part of what I needed to clean up and haul off. So I only had to buy a couple pieces. I cleaned out a garage and got the decking screws that were left over from that guys projects, so they didn't even cost me. :)
I was green before it was the thing. I have always repurposed stuff,rebuilt,reused,repaired. Then when I was suddenly on fixed income, I was able to adapt and still enjoy life.

tdump
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:40 am
Location: US North carolina peidmont

Well I kept the dio- earth stuff on the cabbage all I could with it raining as much as it has lately. But the cabbage went south in a hurry last week. No slugs that I could find under a board either. Radishes, plants were huge, nothing on the end big enough to eat. So those 2 things got jurked out of the ground yesterday and put in the compost tumbler with some green grass clippings . I am giving up on cabbage. Dang it,I wanted to make my own slaw.

The tomato plants in the smaller bed ,2 are now over 6 foot tall. Growing over the top of the fence panel.

tdump
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:40 am
Location: US North carolina peidmont

Peppers and tomatos seem to be doing ok.
The Sunsugar in the short bed is over 9 feet tall now! :()
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catgrass
Green Thumb
Posts: 532
Joined: Thu Jun 19, 2014 2:56 pm
Location: Southwest Louisiana

Do you have enough sun? Usually when tomato plants get that big they are more foliage and don't fruit well. At least 6 hours of sun for tomatoes.

tdump
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:40 am
Location: US North carolina peidmont

There is sun on them from about 7 am till 3 pm
There is a bunch of the cherry tomatoes coming on now. My first ripe 1 is going to be a Ambrosia gold cherry, it is almost ready today. I hope the 3 in the other bed start putting on more.There is some green 1's on them but not many.

tdump
Cool Member
Posts: 91
Joined: Sat Jul 11, 2015 10:40 am
Location: US North carolina peidmont

my first ripe tomato for 2016 :D
Also,what I did last night with some of the zucchini squash I started from seed,along with my first purple bell pepper,my first banana pepper ,alot of my onions and some stuff from the store of course
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