How deep should a planting bed be to grow some summer vegetables?
Friday, March 12th, 2010 at
2:24 am
and what to put in in . planting cukes tomatoes and green onions and squash.using 4.x4 for the borders. hubby says potting soil and manure.is that true.suggestions are greatly appreciated
Filed under: Planting
Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!
For the vegetables you listed, 4 inches will do just fine. The roots will go into the soil under the loose top soil you are providing, in fact the vegetables you list do well using the no till method and just a thick layer of mulch.
If you are going to grow tubers, such as potato’s and carrots, you should till down about 12 inches so the tubers have soft soil to expand in as they grow.
His mixture of potting soil and manure will work well, so will manure and regular soil. Avoid using wood chips or shavings in your garden. The molds that break down the wood chips actually eat all of the nitrogen out of the soil at the same time they eat the wood. If you use wood chips, you will need to add massive amounts of Ammonia Nitrate to replace the nitrogen.
You also grow some radishes, they come up quickly, so sprinkle a few in each row. They come quickly and you will know exactly where the rows are before the other vegetables come up. In three weeks you pull the radishes that marked your rows and eat them. By then the vegetables in your rows are up and you know where they are.
Don’t forget to put out some lettuce or spinach for salads. Loose leaf lettuce is easiest to grow. Put out a lettuce row about feet long every month to insure having lettuce all summer long. Same with Cilantro if you like it, plant a foot long row of cilantro every two weeks for use all summer long. Use scissors to top the Cilantro and make it last longer.
Plants like Tomato’s and Peppers are best bought in a container at the store. Pick a Tomato that bears early in the summer, like Early Girl, a mid season Tomato like Roma or Medford, and a late season Tomato like Beef steak or Brandy Wine. Most tomato’s sold today are called determinate because the reach certain size and then stop growing. They produce a crop of tomato’s and stop making new tomato’s, that is why I recommend at least three types of tomato’s.
I hope this helps you. Retired Gentlman who loves to garden.
Most will do just fine in 6" deep beds. Either use straight compost of 3 – 5 different types or an equal mix of peat moss, vermiculite, and compost. Add more compost everytime you replant.
For more information check http://www.squarefootgardening.com or find the book All-New Square Foot Gardening at your library or almost any bookstore. You will find most everything you need to know.