I wish I could grow in-ground. I was able to years ago, and I loved it. My current property ( moved here in 2020) has hard compacted soil and a lot of roots from big old trees that were here years ago. As a senior with mobility issues and limited funds, I can't have the yard done with a rototiller. So I have a couple of raised beds and lots of grow bags. I have yet to be able to physically or financially set up an irrigation system. (I've got those videos saved). So, the watering is the hardest part of gardening for me. I check them with a soil probe (my favorite tool) and water some or all every day!
We have found that lighter colored wicking tubs work well for a few things like tomato, peppers, herbs, etc. Our raised beds get amended each winter with composted cow manure or chicken manure and new potting soil. I have noticed that everything is very lush and green, but some things may be getting a little too much nitrogen. It's always experimental, lol. Some of our beds are three foot tall, made of various materials we have laying around and don't really have much problem with drying out, but they do get hot. . We have two round beds made with cattle panels lined with landscape fabric, but when we change that fabric out, we will try to find something that is not black. Agree that perrinial plants are best in the ground. We also plant a few bean plants and companion plants for all beds. Also I have found that one crop - okra...does very well in raised beds, as they seem to withstand the heat and drought better. Thanks for sharing your experience. Location is NE Texas.
I have gophers and ground squrriels. just use your yard soil to fill them and agumnet them with potting soil and they will NOT dry out like straight potting soil
Woah woah woah!! Raised beds saved my sanity. I could not do the battle of the damned Bermuda grass after a broken ankle. My kids brought in three small raised beds because they saw how sad I was without my gardens to grow in. Since then We’ve built four more and Id love to fill in the entire back yard with them, but my dogs need somewhere to 💩.
So when we lived in central NY, my husband built 12 raised beds, 20X4' out of plain concrete blocks and built it 2 blocks high. We were able to get seconds from the supplier, so they were even cheaper. We didn't grout them, just dry stacked. Not terribly decorative, but that didn't really matter because they were filled with beautiful vegetables, flowers and fruit. Yes, they shifted a little over time, but nothing we couldn't deal with. It was great to have a place to sit on the bed while planting, weeding and harvesting or just to have a cup of tea and I could plant in the holes for even more production. We did really luck out with filling them - had a friend with almost unlimited amounts of horse manure that had been aging in the fields for 7yrs+, so my crops got to grow in pure compost and I hardly ever used fertilizer, even many years later, and the beds were very productive. When we visited our old place a couple of years ago, the neighbors that bought it had torn down the 150 yo house (that was terrible to see) but were still planting in the old beds, some 30 years+ after they were built and didn't look like they had added any soil. Leaving those beds behind was actually harder when we moved to Colorado than leaving the house. Now we are using 3X8/10' stock tanks which do get very hot in the summer, cold in the winter and very hydrophilic if we don't water consistently - they got very dry finally last year - felt fine on top, but 6 inches down was like concrete - and we had to do a total refresh in the fall on most of the beds, digging them out, adding potting soil, compost, perlite and vermiculite, then watering really well and mulching heavily. We originally did logs/sticks to fill the tanks about halfway and then regular soil from a landscaping company -- it was a lot cheaper than the other mixes, but ultimately a bad choice for our raised beds. This year am keeping up better with the watering and testing for moisture with a meter down to about a foot deep and so far, so good. We did plant a new asparagus bed directly in the ground because the ones in the tanks were not doing well, even after 5 yrs, I think because of the soil moisture problems and the freezing in the tanks in the winter. But doing the raised stuff mostly now because of our solid clay/rocks in most of the yard here on the side of mountain and just can't bend over much or be on my knees anymore. Hope this long post helps someone.
@@ponytaclub5539 Stock tanks are usually used by farmers to water out in the pasture. They are usually made of galvanized steel and come in different sizes and shapes. They are usually found in farm supply stores like Tractor Supply, but also places like Lowe's carry them now. They are easy in that you just put them in place and you are ready to go - no building required and they last for a very long time. They have a bottom to them, so if you want contact with native soil, you will have to do something about that, but if you are looking to avoid native soil/animals, they are perfect - no gophers for sure. We just kept the bottoms in, opened the drain, filled them halfway with logs/branches and finished with soil. The steel can get very hot in the summer sun and the edges tend to dry out quickly, so need to keep them watered. Wish we still had our cement block beds, but at our ages, we couldn't level the soil (live on a mountainside) and build them again, so this was the best alternative.
@@sharonknorr1106 thank you! Now I see what they are - checked them online and they are way more expensive than galvanized steel raised beds. If you had them around they are definitely great, could be even keeping more water with small drainage holes in comparison to the open bottom
@@ponytaclub5539 We were hoping that the hugelcultur at the bottom of the tanks would absorb water and then give it back to the soil and plants as needed. That seemed like a good idea here in Colorado with hot and often dry summers. Not sure if that is working, maybe because we didn't keep them hydrated enough in the beginning. We bought the tanks over ten years ago, they are probably much more expensive now. We did check around for the best prices.
I am right there with you Brian on the raised bed issues. I am so sick of them. I have 1 wooden and 2 metal ones and I just got so fed up that I didn't bother adding more soil to any of them this year. Last year I made 2 "raised" beds that are inground but just a little higher than the area around them. And I also just added cardboard and threw 2-3 inches of good soil on top of a new area and they are doing far better than the actual raised beds lol.
It's raised bed gardening ALL THE WAY for us!!! We LOVE it!! Also, we have mostly those gorgeous Vego metal containers, that are supposed to last for a long, long time. We bought them a few at a time, and always on sale or with a coupon code. They are quick and easy to put together, and we've had one for three years, and it still looks brand new! We found it much cheaper to buy a truckload of good dirt to fill them. We also have some animal feed tubs, and a few old cattle watering tubs, which also work great. We installed an auto drip system, and never have to water. There is virtually no weeding, and we get tons of vegetables! Everyone comments on how beautiful our gardens are. You could not pay me to go back to those beds in the ground, that are full of ugly grass and weeds, plus a ton of back-breaking work constantly!
This is my first year with a raised bed and so far I love it! I have struggled so long growing in the ground because of the clay dirt here. I'm not able to till the ground and add stuff to it. And then the weeds and bugs and other critters just ruin it all if I do manage to get something producing. This year I was determined, so I built a 6x6 bed out of wood, I put landscape cloth on the bottom to help deter weeds and bugs from making their way through. Then I made a frame around the whole thing, 6 feet high from the ground, so i could cover that with bug netting. This is partly to keep the rabbits and deer from eating everything. I open it during the day to let pollinators in, then cover it at night. I'm keeping a close watch on the beetles. If they get to be a problem, I will keep it closed all day and hand pollinate. It doesn't keep everything out, but most. Down the center I created a trellis for sugar baby watermelons to grow on. They are absolutely thriving! All the plants in there are, and I'm so happy I finally did this. Next year I will build another, with some changes. Yes, it's expensive to fill, but it's not a yearly expense. I know I will have to build up the soil level every year and amend it, but that won't be near the initial cost. What I'll do differently next time.... I will make inset frames that I will attach the bug netting or screening to, so I can just open and close as needed to access or let bees in. I'll add this to my current setup next year too. Some 2x2's will work well enough, some hinges and an eye hook for good measure. The other thing I'll do differently is really only possible once I have more beds. And that is to space them out better. Maybe watermelons will have a bed of their own, or have some smaller plants at the edges of them. I didn't know how well these plants would thrive and it is very crowded in there! I have 5 tomato plants, 4 Zucchini (tied to stakes), 6 or 7 watermelon plants on the trellis, 6 pepper plants. I put some carrots and chamomile seeds after I transplanted the other plants, but I only see a few sprouts, so I'm not sure where I went wrong there. And the last thing I'd do differently is to not make it 6x6! I did it that way because I was trying to avoid cutting any wood. But boy is it hard to reach the center! The next ones will be no more than 4 feet wide. Maybe I'll do 6x3, so I just have to cut 6 foot boards in half for 2 sides. I do water every day because we've had very little rain. I'm not growing these plants too save money necessarily. I'm growing them because it's far superior to what I can get at the store, and I know there are no pesticides! Plus, it's so rewarding. Nothing beats a home grown tomato, and even better when it's my home 😊
I've had several different types of raised beds. My favorite is the concrete planter wall blocks from homedepot or lowes. My beds are 8 ft by 3ft wide. If you don't have a skill saw, The home centers will cut them to the width that you need. No construction skills needed. Just slide the boards into the slots of the cement planter blocks. The blocks are under $4 each. I went 16" high with my beds, so 3 blocks on each corner× 4 corners= less than $50 each bed plus lumber, but you could go shorter for less expensive (less blocks). Best thing ever to be able to easily do it myself, and I like the looks of them, as well. I'm in Bakersfield CA, hot and dry, up to 115°, and the raised beds do need to be watered daily, in the summers, and there are other drawbacks, but with a bad knee, my raised beds get attention, and my in ground garden gets neglected. I'm converting it to raised beds also this fall.
I've done both and my saving grace is that 1. I have found materials at lower costs to build my beds as it was leftover from previous projects. 2 I buy my soil each year by the pickup truck load locally. It rubs about $30 per load and that fills my full sized truck bed. Yes, I have several raised beds and have to top them all off each spring, but it beats tilling my native soil that is loaded with rocks. I've broken so many rototiller blades due to the huge amount of rock in the ground here. Plus, I have back issues and the local wildlife that will eat anything I grow, so raised beds with attached fencing is my go to. Totally agree on the drying out. My garden would be a goner without timers and soaker hoses and I live in the humid Southeast.
For 40 years, I only had inground beds with 1'x1' concrete tiles as my pathways, which have been sinking and sinking. After 40 years of adding a layer my compost, the beds started looking like fresh dug graves. With every heavy rain shower or storm, my concrete pathways got covered with mud and became dangerously slippery. I was constantly scraping off the mud. Last year, shortly after I planted my seedlings, I saw that metal bed frames of various sizes were on sale. I bought three of them. I simply placed them on my existing soft beds and pushed the the frames in a bit. I am still gardening in the existing, organic-material-rich deep soil. Now, I have more head room to add more compost. I still deep-dig and turn the soil over with a spade in the Fall, but in the Spring, I just perk it up with the biggest hoe that I could find. With the metal frames, my garden looks more neat/organized and my pathways stay clean/safe.
Hi Brian…I have gardened with raised beds for years. I switched to in-ground this year with better than ever results…my plants are very happy and so am I. I’m here in San Diego, too.
I never have had a rised bed and I'm not going to have any in the future either. Just digging it over. I love the freedom that is there with a large digged over space where you can assign your growing lines or spots whichever way you like. I can even have every crop in different direction lined up.
I used to garden in a 1,000 sq. ft. "dirt" plot. I had no end of issues with weeds, animals, excess rain, no rain, and multiple soil fungi, pathogens and crazy pH.. Now that I'm forced to grow in bags, life is so much easier because almost all parameters are controllable. The "soil" is good quality sterilized potting mix with composted cow manure and fish waste, as well as coconut fiber added for moisture retention but good drainage, maintaining near perfect water conditions. It's made a remarkable improvement in repeatable great results, since I can closely monitor soil pH and amend as needed. For fertilizer, I do quite well with yeast/honey/milk solutions at 2-week intervals. No chemical fertilizer at all. A little gypsum for calcium permanently ended my blossom-end rot on tomatoes and peppers. At seedling plant-out I put a handful of FoxFarm Ocean Forest mix with micro-nutrients in the hole, and that's it. Enough produce on a 12 foot deck with 20 bags to fill the freezer. I re-use the soil every year after screening with only the addition of some more composted manure. If I had any blight fungus at all (very rare) I spray the soil with Hydrogen Peroxide full 3% strength as I screen it.
We had both early and late blight this year and last. Made improvements this year and controlled most of it by getting rid of infected leaves until I couldn't keep up last week. The stems are also affected and a few tomatoes. Last year I sprinkled baking soda over the worst areas. I'll try the peroxide at the end of the season using a pump sprayer. Would it still work if it's diluted with water? 9:46
We are currently living on the farm I grew up on, and have been slowly working on all raised beds. Where my mother had a HUGE in ground garden, it's just not an option anymore. We don't have a tractor to plow it with, nor a herd of cows and flocks of chickens for fertilizer. We are also on what used to be an ancient glacial lake, and the soil is full of rocks. I remember many summers as a child, picking rocks out of the garden. We grew more rocks than vegetables. Plus, our soil is what I now know is called a Dark Grey Zone; there's just a few inches of top soil, with sand, gravel and rocks below. Great for drainage (almost), but the nutrients leach out quickly. Ultimately, though, raised beds are because I'm in my mid-50's and broken. The goal is to eventually have all high raised beds, but even low raised beds make it easier on the body to reach and work. We are using what material we have on hand to build the beds, and for the main garden area, we are harvesting dead spruce trees. The logs are at least 6 - 8 inches wide (thicker trunks are being cut to side and set aside for another project). Our first raised bed is 4 logs high, and it's the perfect height for me, but it's going to take a while to harvest enough dead trees. For now, most of our beds will be low raised bed just 1 log high, except for some that will be part of trellis tunnels, that will be 2 logs high. Over time, we can add more logs to increase the height, but we will maintain a few lower raised beds for tall crops like corn or indeterminate tomatoes. This year, I've discovered another reason to keep at least low raised beds. We've had an unusual amount of rain this spring, to the point that we had standing water in areas I've never seen before, even when growing up here as a child. We are used to drought, not constant rain. Not even when we had massive spring flooding a couple of years ago, did we have standing water in some of these areas, nor did the water stay on top of the soil as long. Our soil is still so saturated right now that any rainfall results in standing water again, for days. Had it not been for having everything in raised beds - even low ones with no frames - we would have lost pretty much everything in the garden this year. So for our situation, raised beds in a variety of heights, is just the way to go.
Hi Brian. I've been raised bed gardening, GreenStalks too, for five years. Alabama red clay is something that I don't want to deal with, not without a tractor, backhoe, bucket, and plow. I have to do a little additional watering in the summer months, but I don't have to worry about overwatering, especially with multiple days of rain showers. I have family that have lost their gardens from being flooded out from rain. Overall, my experiences have been good. I got a bumper crop of tomatoes this year, and they keep coming-cucumbers and squash too. I have so many that I am having to give them away to friends, neighbors, and familly. Too many for my chickens. LOL
I love the raised beds my husband built for me. With the redwood roots, gophers and ground squirrels on our property, we had to get our vegetable garden completely off the ground. He built them so there is a 2 ft gap between the ground and the bottom of the bed, the top of the soil level is my waist height, about 4 ft. Because we also have tree squirrels he completely enclosed the beds with a cage that has 4 ft wide doors. The cage does mean I need to plant dwarf or bush varieties but the work. I do replenish the soil with mostly compost and mulch twice a year. The system works well and is easy on my back.
That's the only way I've garden using raised beds for over 20 years, some wood some metal but either way I Love them, I agree with you but I'm still sticking with my raised beds
My TSC gets tractor/combine parts shipped to them in heat treated wooden crates, and when they are done with them they have a pile of scrap wood in their parking lot with pallets and those crates. I have a small car, but with ingenuity and determination I’ve brought home 14 wooden crates, ranging in size from 2ft wide 3ft long and 1 ft deep, to 3ft x 4ft x 3ft tall, to 16 inches by 8ft and 18 inches tall. I know the wood won’t last forever but one is on its 4th year with no issues.
I am in a situation where raised beds & containers and I love my raised beds. Took a few years to build up a very good & healthy productive soil. Also, I get almost zero pest pressure, I don't think I would grow in ground even if I could.
Finally honesty on a garden programme, soil is expensive and you need a lot of it especially for raised beds, I compost everything have 2 horses & get manure from my friends stables....it's still not enough!
You can buy a truckload of good dirt for WAY cheaper than all of those bags! We have cows and compost the cow manure and mix it in. It's really fairly reasonable, and sure as heck beats all of that weeding in the ground beds!!
I don't know how big your garden is but if you have two horses providing manure to compost plus manure from other horses I don't see how you don't have enough material to build up your garden over time. In a period of a few years of constant hot composting you can really build up your soil. A horse can poop out 50 lbs of manure a day.
@@arthurwellsjr.4082 Ireland has a lot of rain it seriously gets washed away & I grow a lot in an acre in a short space of time from April to October just as the Atlantic storms come in until the following april
@@sassyherbgardener7154 We did the same thing (except we don't have cows). Locally a place that supplies all kinds of landscaping rock also has high-quality soil of all kinds, at really reasonable prices. They even consult about which kind you need if you tell them what you're going to plant in it. When I told them it was going to be a combination of vegetables and flowers in raised beds, they brought out a truckload of the most beautiful weed-free stuff, dumped it in our driveway, and we wheelbarrowed it to the beds. It was spectacular the first year, and continues to be great with a top dressing each season. Much, much cheaper than all those bags.
My struggle with raised beds is getting the soil quality right. I’ve bought many bags of a variety of mixes and used my own compost but often plants seem to struggle.
The secret to raised beds is to water them frequently, a lot more frequent that in ground beds because they dry out faster. Also don’t forget to fertilize them regularly
🌿 Living about a mile from beautiful Lake Huron, I learned in my 20's that sand was the issue that I had to fight. Also, since the ground heated way up, mulching was a must. I amended the soil, but like my neighbor, that soil and my compost seemed to sift away into the sand. A couple of raised beds worked fine, but had to be removed for a needed home addition. The first thing I did before rebuilding the raised beds was to place 2 large kid's wading pools just slightly above ground level and fill with compost mixed with lots of store-bought humus with lots of worm castings, etc. My cucumbers no longer looked like balloon animals and we finally got to enjoy veggies like squash that had always blossomed before the flower fell off. Delphiniums were tall, strong and beautiful ❣️ Lots of holes drilled in the wading pools provided drainage but didn't let the dirt escape.
I read the square foot garden book 23 years ago and have use what Mel recommends ever since. The mix is 1/3 peat moss, 1/3 vermiculite (perlite is not a good substitute), 1/3 mixture of dif composts. I've tried getting a truckload of "garden soil" and those beds were awful. I use good quality compost but it was so expensive and I have finally found a local place with bulk compost that has just what I want. Every season or when I replant a spot I add some compost. Lowe's cheap compost ruined 2 of my beds. The good stuff is worth it! Every 10 or so years I have had to add some of the other ingredients also. Hope that helps!
It will help if you mix 1/3 clay into the soil. It will help it hold water and add much needed minerals into the soil. Also, be sure not to put meat milk or eggs into the compost or soil.
Here in north Texas I’ve found that my taller 26” raised beds are my favorite. I don’t have to bend down, keeps the rabbits out, and mostly the fire ants stay out as well. They don’t dry out as quickly as shallow raised beds and if I didn’t have the drainage I would have lost my entire potato crop this year due to the abundant spring rainstorms. I agree with the constant replacing of soil being a hassle (but due to the rain, in ground beds would have washed away as well). They will dry out in summer if I don’t keep up with watering, but I’m experimenting with different cover crops because that makes all the difference. We are converting our shallow beds to tall beds this fall.
I have my raised beds in my back and side yards (3 4X8, 5 3X6, 2 4X4 and 5 2X3 as well as grow bags and on my patio I have 4 Green Stalk systems). My back yard is 14 feet wide and 28 feet long with lousy dirt loaded with pine roots and my side yard is 5.5 feet by 19 feet of lousy dirt, moles/voles and neighborhood dogs. I tried gardening in ground 2 years ago with mixed results (most of my biggest successes were in grow bags). I am still learning about the Green Stalks since this year was my first with them. I have some backyard chickens so I do have my own manure (my chickens don't free range but I do pull grass and retired plants to give them as well as growing microgreens and kale just for them to "forage"). I generally make my own potting mix with peat moss, compost and perlite or vermiculite. Having the raised bed help me as my gardening quest began in my 70s and I have a bad back. My next project will be trellising. My area has been really hot and mostly dry the last couple of years so I use shade cloth to keep my plants from extreme sunburn. For the most part, things are working well. I had a bumper crop of squash and zucchini two years ago, an okay crop last year but this year I am loaded with male blooms with fewer than a dozen female blooms for each variety. Others in my area are having the same problems. I have rain barrels so I am using God's water with only minor supplementation of city water. Don't know what the problem is but it is frustrating!
I'm 74 and my grandsons built me raised beds waist high. I can't get up when I get down so they work wonderful for me. We live on a farm with animals so dirt and fertilizer is no problem. I even built one bed myself this spring --I can use a drill!!! The boys were proud of me!!
Great points, we did raised wooden beds in the past. The biggest problems we had with them here in the Netherlands was the slug issues. Slugs seen to use the shelter the vaults in between the beds provided to reproduce themselves. So thats the biggest downside in wetter climates. Humidity of the soil was here less of an issue.
I agree in-ground and raised beds both have pros and cons. I’m 67 with major health issues that affect my ability to do in-ground gardening now. I use to get down on the ground to plant and weed and harvest but I can no longer do that. 😔 So I’m trying to move to raised beds. I do appreciate the height of the raised bed bc it allows me to continue raising our food. I don’t want to give up my hobby. We seldom buy soil. We use the hugelcultre method and we add our own compost and soil each year. However, we have moles and voles. Our beds are built on the ground. I think I will need to add hardware cloth at the bottom in new beds. I hope that is going to help. Thanks for sharing the things you have learned. I enjoy your channel. 😊
My raised beds are made of molded acrylic. I’ve never grown in anything else. I ❤ raised beds. Here in our new home we have moles and voles. So when we established these beds 0:28 we made sure to put wire on the bottom layer to keep them out. On another subject, I want to thank you for your videos on companion planting. I really took your suggestions to heart and have had very few issues with pests. The tomatoes. Peppers, eggplant, squash, onions and herbs really do play well together. I’m looking forward to a very successful growing season.
What a fabulous show. When I was in ground gardening, I had better crops when I made furrows, some furrows 4’ wide. I furrowed 1’ rows for tomatoes, growing them on fencing. I went raised beds for many crops after watching videos during Covid. I find that raised beds don’t wash away and I don’t have to rebuild furrows every year so I like them for most things. Instead of purchasing bags of soil though, I brought in a load of top soil which has worked great. I love my raised beds for tomatoes, peppers, onions and root crops. I still grow in ground peas, cucumbers, beans and potatoes. I’m on the fence with the squash. I’m doing all my squash in raised beds this year. Watering is always a trick here. We have excellent drainage, sometimes too excellent :)) Anyway, great show. Love your sharing your thoughts and experiences. Keepn’ it real :)) Thank you. Soo what happened to the growing a garden on a limited budget. I was curious because you were doing the raised soil beds like I did. Maybe too many gophers, aye?
I have mobility issues, so two years ago I invested in the Vego 17" tall beds and love them! Three years ago I had bought three stock tanks, drilled holes in the bottom and I hate them because they dried out too fast. My vego beds are open at the bottom and hold the moisture better and don't get too hot. I did fill them totally with a quality soil/compost mix from a local landscape company instead of raised bed soil and I put straw mulch (thanks to you) and it has been wonderful. This year I barely topped them off. The soil had only gone down a couple of inches in one season so I didn't think that was bad. I am going to try a Fall/Winter planting this year so I will put a fresh layer of just compost down. I am in SC zone 8a and it has been extremely hot here too this summer so I am grateful that I found you and installed drip to everything and gopher wire just in case!
I really appreciate your honest input Brian! I don´t have raised beds but I have a rooftop full of grow bags and I have to be on top of watering almost daily or else my plants wilt super fast. For so long I heard so many good things about grow bags that I bought a whole lot of them and started to store plastic ones thinking it was a no brainer. Big mistake. Honestly, I can´t even grow stuff in the 5 galloon ones due to hidrophobic soil, i´m barely hanging on with the 10 gallon ones. So, I´ve been switching back to plastic pots and plants are doing better in them. I also use to hear that natural predators would take care of plagues in my garden but it was just never like that. By the time I found a couple of ladybugs I was already infested by aphids and my crops were already super damaged. Also, once you find a plague in the garden its almost guaranteed to be a neverending battle until the crop is harvested. So this year I decided install insect netting to close my rooftop and so far I haven´t been attacked by aphids, flies or caterpillars, which has turned out to be a huge save of time, money and peace of mind! Greetings from a huge fan in Peru!
I think in-ground plants do better (in good soil), but root-knot nematodes, moles and tree roots prevent me, not to mention age and a bad back. To garden successfully, I'm forced to use containers. I love my Earthboxes. And I don't miss weeding at all! And thanks to you, Brian, I started my own plants from seed several years ago and haven't looked back!
raised beds allow me to still garden due to physical issues. We got unbelievably lucky here in SD. My husband hauls for a construction company. He got leftover wood for free & built all 6 beds. Plus, our landfill has compost. Free if you shovel. $20 a ton if they load it. made the whole garden affordable. We got almost 5 tons for new front garden for about $80.
I do both. I'm in zone 5A. But with regards to the expense of building raised beds. Personally, I have a source for free lumber. We have a local truss building company and they allow locals to take the cutoffs for free. Now the sizes don't match, and you could have some short ones and some long ones, but if you don't mind a little sawing and screwing, you can end up with some pretty nice beds. However, mine are only 8 inches high. In the bottom, I put a layer of cardboard. (I save my boxes from Chewy just for this purpose.) I then place a layer of yard waste, then a layer of my compost. After that, I have a load of soil delivered. I then screen that soil and mix in peatmoss and bone meal. Then I fill the bed to the point of overflowing. I water it all in and add more soil. Then it is ready to go. Yes, I do have to add more soil in the spring, but I add a mix of fresh soil, bonemeal and my homemade compost. I also mulch with straw. But I do this in all my gardens, raised or not. At the end of the season, whatever straw hasn't already broken down, I just rake in. This along with the snow will help keep the soil healthy during the winter. One thing I would never put in my raised bed is potting soil. To me, this is why your beds are becoming hydrophobic. With regards to fertilizer, I don't find any difference at all for fertilizer requirements between my raised beds and in-ground beds. Maybe that's because I use freshly made compost which contains rotted horse manure in both types of gardens. Now, like I said, my beds are only 8inches tall, and I don't have a gopher problem so I guess you could call them mini-raised beds. The only barrier between the bed and the actual ground is that cardboard box which, I'm sure isn't even there anymore. I'm sure if I were using one of those metal raised beds, it would be a lot different. Finally, like you said, a raised bed looks a lot more tidy. Also, and this may seem weird, I find I have fewer pests in my raised gardens. Not really sure why that is. But it is definitely a fact. Thanks for all the videos. Have a great growing season.
I am very blessed to have very fertile soil to grow in. However, with a joint disease, it is getting harder and harder to garden in ground. I purchased raised beds this year and even though I love them for the relief of getting up and down off the ground and weed pressure, you are 100% correct. I use a lot more water and fertilizer! So, what I'm doing is planting perennials and long season veggies in the ground and using the raised beds for quicker growing and root veggies.
Interesting discussion concerning raised beds and some ideas that I had not previously considered. However for me it is a no brainer as I garden from a wheelchair and 89 years of age. Only solution is 20 inch raised beds and help with the muscle work at times but am happy and productive. Brain many thanks for all the encouragement and advice over the years!
I don’t know if it’s because I’m in Michigan, but I’ve not had most of the problems you mentioned. I put in a bunch of logs and twigs, filled in fall leaves all around the bottom, then dug dirt from my on property and mixed it in with lots of composted wood chips. I only filled the raised bed about 1/3 of the way up the first year. At the end of each growing season, I fill the beds up with fallen leaves and let the winter snow keep them moist. When Spring comes, pull any undecomposed leaves out, and add a layer of heavily composted (made my own) soil, and begin again. I plant my veggies in tight so there are very few weeds, and layer leaves and grass on top as mulch which keeps moisture in. The one thing I DON”T love about the raised bed is that vertically grown summer squash gets top heavy and if you’re not careful can fall right out - destroying the entire plant!
Team raised bed since 2012. Hard clay soil, bad back, bad eyes, n brittle bones r not cpnducive to the labor it would take 2 make a good garden in ground. Thx 4 all ur advice over the yrs. Its really improved my yields n lowered pest pressure. ;)
I like to grow in the ground. Filling raised beds is hard. Store bought garden "soil" is not soil (broken down rocks and minerals). It is more like broken down wood products. Bought soil eventually seems to disappear and needs topping off, and the beds degrade and need to be rebuilt. Raised beds heat up and dry out much quicker. Plants grown in the ground seem to be healthier and if mulched heavily, hardly ever need watering. Heavy mulch is the key. You can make neat and tidy "in ground" beds with edging.
Right materials, right space. Totally agree they can be a pain in hot weather. I crammed 5 , 3 x 10 beds into a 20 foot area. Pet peeve was not having enough space to roll a wheel barrow through. Beds dont dry out as much anymore as Ive gotten more shade. They are just starting to break down after 5 years. Certainly very handy for strawberries with netting out the chipmunks and robins.
Great topic!! i have a combination of in ground raised beds and open plot … its great because I can do spring veggies in the beds while the cover crop is finishing up to get ready for hot weather vegetables … then when the spring beds are done… I have options for replanting those … for the open plot … i lay down thick mulch … this works out for me!!
Have two raised metal beds that after 4 years need to be refurbished before next year. Also have a 12 ft by 3 ft wooden raised bed with cattle panel hoop that is breaking up so I will take it out after the growing season. Not going to keep replacing the wood.
I really like my raised beds but I absolutely agree with everything you said. I just moved to a new place and because it is so expensive I brought every bit of my garden dirt with me. It has taken me a couple of trips and a whole lot of 5 gallon buckets.
San Diego soil is obviously not garden ground friendly. My raised bed has chicken wire under it as well. And now I have squirrels, so I enclosed it. Now the tunneling squirrels are have found a way in via the neighbors fence. The struggle is real.
I went from a container garden to raised beds and the produce output is a world of difference. You're right about the cost of soil, but I made friends with cattle farmers and get a yard of manure for $20. Can't beat it.
Love my raised beds. Our soil is hard clay and so hard to dig in. It’d take a lot of effort and time to amend the soil sufficiently to get good drainage. Also, I have filled them years ago, and every year I just top it off with compost, topped with straw. The next year I layer on top of that, not removing anything. Works great.
Hey Brian! Great video! I’m with you about raised beds, on all points! Although I have some of each, my inground beds require less time, inputs and are more self-sufficient. I agree with you that less watering is the biggest benefit outside of the cost savings. Also agree that sometimes raised beds are preferable. Love the way you analyze things and share your experiences! Thanks!!!
I put in 8 24" high raised beds in my back yard that are 8' long by 4' wide and they took an crazy amount of soil. I filled the bottom portion with sticks and twigs, cardboard and leaves and then purchased a truck load of organic garden soil which was very expensive. The end result was well worth it for me as it saved my old sore back.
Also it’s so true about the soil! My beds all need more soil and I hate having to buy it since my in ground garden is just going to get layers of my goats and chickens clean out this fall and mulched with leaves, and the soil is getting so nice!
Filled the bottom of my new raised beds with mushroom substrate from a local organic grower. It worked pretty well but when you get some freebie oyster mushrooms you have to harvest them right away or you get fungus gnats. We put loads of our own compost on top. This was in our two tomato beds which so far, on July 20th in zone 5a , are awesome. Great info thanks.
Thanks for this, I have been experiencing the very same things. I can grow 50’rows in ground, it is easier for sure, your 7 reasons are spot on. Thanks again, appreciate your efforts to help us grow a better garden.
I have 3 raised beds on wheels, so I can bring them under shelter when the weather gets too cold. I basically grow only sweet potatoes in them, and this year it has taken off! Lots of stir fry with the leaves with Sardines! This has also been my best year for Cumbers, I've harvested about a dozen, and there's about 4 more coming out. The weather here in Central TX. has been getting pretty hot around 96 degrees for the high and 76 for the low. doesn't stay cool very long though, so I water my sweet potatoes just about every other day, along with my cumbers. Both have been doing well. I don't like the inground gardening, since I need to mow the lawn every week, and the plants are not mobile in the cold weather. Great video though, and thanks for the downsides, always good to know!
I live on a mountain.... literally, a giant rock. I wouldn't be able to grow anything without raised beds. But I do agree with everything said here. Soil dries out fast. Bed frames need replacing. It's a conundrum for a hard core gardener. I find that in my climate, shade cloth really helps.
The metal beds last for years and years. If you put in an auto drip, you never have to water. It didn't cost that much, and it was easy to install. If you are a hard core gardener, you should definitely do this!! We never have to weed or water, and we get tons of produce.
@sassyherbgardener7154 yeah.... I know that for building today for long term use, it might pay off.... but I'm 63 years old. The investment for those metal beds is huge. For the potential number of years I have left, and for my space, that would have to be completely gutted and revamped for such an undertaking, it's just not worth it. I've spent 35 years getting this garden to produce the way it does today.... which is incredible. Not only annual veggies, but blueberry bushes, black raspberry briars, red raspberry briars, asparagus, etc. I provide most of the food and herbs that I eat.... and it works well for me. 😉😉
I mixed my native clay soil with raised bed mix. Helps with moisture holding, and provides minerals. I agree with all your points and am developing a traditional in ground garden area.
I have converted my backyard garden to mostly self-wicking containers. It is working wonderfully in the hot summer climate in Southern California. The self-wicking containers allow the plants to have water when ever they want it and I find that I only have to add water every 3 - 7 days depending on type of plant in the pot. Added to the ease is the water indicator showing me just how much water is still remaining inside the water reservoir. Many videos showing how to make them here on CZcams, or you can purchase some off of Amazon which is what I did. The brand I went "Grow - Bucket" with is a little pricey , but I am very pleased with them and they should last for many years as the don't get direct sun exposure.
Very true, here in Arizona the sun is pretty rough on plants in my raised beds, and don’t even think about leaning on those metal sides! But, so far they’re the only solution to all the small animals that want to munch anything green or juicy.
What is the plastic material like? Do You have a name for it? Where do You buy it? I was blessed when I made my first raised bed. My Son worked at Waste Control & someone had torn down some kind of building & I got the 4x8 sheets of plywood with a corrugated plastic material on one side. Those sides have lasted 5 yrs & show no signs of rotting but... one end without the plastic has just about disappeared 😱😰🤯 I don't know how I will replace it without digging a bunch of dirt out of the way! But I will not make a raised bed without plastic on the inside ever again.
@@PinkLady54 I can’t remember the name of it is but it comes in 4’x8’ sheets 1/4” or 1/8” thick ,It has a thin layer of aluminum on each side sandwiching some sort of plastic material. One of the main uses is making these large signs for new developments so over the top it has some murals of house, condos etc… That protects the wood from rotting and bugs living behind I hope 🤞 forgot to mention these sheets are quite expensive but after they use the signage they are asked to take them down by customers and I end up buying them 1/4” for 4x8’ for $30 each. Well worth it!!
@@PinkLady54 Sorry I live nowhere near maybe you can google a larger sign maker in your area see what materials they use for there huge billboard signs and buy some of them when they tear them down??? Well worth it in my opinion.
@@PinkLady54 Sorry I live nowhere near maybe you can google a larger sign maker in your area see what materials they use for there huge billboard signs and buy some of them when they tear them down??? Well worth it in my opinion.
Hi Brian, I use raised bed gardening, but I can see they have their place and not so in other places such as your situation. It also depends on the soil mix you fill them with. I have both a raised bed, and 1 board bed, and other in-ground beds. Each have their uses and appeal.
I like my 18" tall raised beds. Last year we had gophers for the first time, so we had to have the beds dug out and lined with hardware cloth, but we don't have gophers any more. As a Sr., it makes it possible for me to sit and garden. Watering with the "center" position of the hose before planting seems to get water to deeper depths of the beds than watering with the "shower" position. Once they're well-watered and mulched, I can water with the "shower" hose position. If they're well-mulched they don't usually dry out. I use grass-cuttings and straw for mulch. Mulching is really important.
I can testify to the temperature changes as I planted garlic bulbs in my raised bed. The first year I had it and I had extra so I put those in the ground. The one in the ground survived the one in the raised bed because it was raised bed with open air underneath that one froze, and I had nothing but mush for garlic bulbs, which I found so interesting that they froze there, but they didn’t in the ground.
I have corrugated metal raised beds. Love them. Easy to put together, lightweight, inexpensive, (not the fancy ones that are expensive) last for a very long time. I put down wire against voles, then compressed straw (I do not do twigs etc.), then soil I already have - I do not buy it. The straw will sink but it has the advantage it soaks up water and even if you forget to water, the roots have moisture. I also put straw around the plants once they are large enough. I have no problem with trying out.Plants thrive.
I love my raised beds! They are made from concrete blocks. I used topsoil and mushroom compost and and branches on the bottom. I have had some sinkage, but I make my own compost to fill them with. The concrete blocks do cause moisture loss around the bed edges. My beds flourish. I love them because they save my knees.
Wow love my raised beds. I have gardened all my life and now in my early 60’s I only use raised beds. I am now disabled so without them I couldn’t garden but even if I wasn’t I would. I use a form of no dig while using the raised beds. I have just put in more for a Mimi orchard and will be putting my fruit trees in them using permaculture fruit tree guilds.
This is my first year of gardening, and I started with building a raised bed. I saw so many gardeners use them; I just assumed that was the superior way to garden. Keep in mind I live on an acre with no gopher problem, so the extra expense on containers was totally unnecessary, but here we are! Soon after installing the raised bed, I noticed a lot of what you mentioned here. Luckily after that I realized I'd be better off just digging rows, filling that with better soil, and growing in-ground. (Our soil is super hard without a lot of organic matter. Terrible drainage.) I like to keep things as simple and cheap as possible. I'm so glad I learned this lesson early on. No more raised beds for me until I'm in my rich old lady phase of life and can afford it and appreciate the ease on my back. Haha! Thank you for all the tips! Especially the gardening for free series you did in the cottage garden. Right up my alley!
I love my inground garden. I am still learning my site so I can and do rearrange the beds for spacing each year. I can run my chicken in it for a couple weeks to take care of a lot of seeds and pest. I have been expanding each year so it is a surface till, form beds and cover with compost before winter and snow hits. The amount of worms and healthy soil life is crazy!
I went from a huge in-ground garden to raised beds, for simplicity. They’re made of wood and I’ve had them about six years. I’m very happy with them, but I’d like to eventually go to metal ones (that’s sometime down the line!). We got lucky this year and our village was offering free compost, and I’m also trying in-ground ollas using terra cotta pots, so I’m very happy with my garden this year!
I just changed over to all raised beds this year. Bought the Amazon metal ones. They’re affordable and easy to put together. We have a lot of property with woods so finding materials to fill them up wasn’t much of an issue. I bought soil on sale Memorial Day so far so good. Hardly any weeds and easy on my bad back.
I have (3) 16' x 4' x 12" raised beds placed on top of sandy soil. The sandy soil doesnt hold water so in order to get healthy productive plants more watering, time & extra work is required. In my raised beds the watering has become more efficient. The 12” deep beds have a nice somewhat sandy loam soil that holds water well. The material they're made out of are made out of cedar & oak tree slabs that I bought for cheap from my local sawyer. I rip cut straight edges on each side so I can double stack them. I use scrap pcs of tree slab to stitch the double stacked slabs on top of each other. I filled them with a mix of leaf mold, homemade compost store bought organic soil, soil amendment soil. If you add Black Cow manure go light on it since there is a lot of coarse bark that can compact the soil ( im experiencing that in my 4th raised bed. Now i have to remove that soil & replace with all orhanic soil). My three big raised beds are doing great this year. The two potato beds are all lusciously growing. Because of their spacing their green foilage provides a canopy for the soil that slows down soil moisture evaporation. The organic soil in these beds absorbs water. With 12 inches of organic soil it takes a while ( depending on the duration of heat duration) for the soil to dry out. Last year & this year I companion planted pole beans with my taters & the pole beans were thriving & producing better than my other plow beans planted in the native soil. I got more beans from from the raised beds than the beans planted in native soil. The roots of the raised bed pole beans spread all over the depth of these raised beds. The roots & stalks of the raised beds were as thick as #2 pencils when I dug them up. A whole lot better than the beans in native soil. I'm a firm believer in raised beds. I don't agree with the host of this channel since my mother & I have a combination of over two decades dmgrowing in this sandy soil. I built a 4th raised bed out of cedar tree slab that is 20' x 1.5' x 1' out odlf double stacked cedar tree slabs with rip cuts on each end. I used the Hugelkulture method with the bottom half of the bed. It will take a few years for the pine, oak & sassafras would to break down. I got it for free by checking the roads for fallen trees. With a little bit of work & some sweat I filled up 7.5 cubic feet of this 15 cubic foot bed. I saved $$$. I only had to buy 7.5 cubic feet of soil to fill the top 6" of bed. I make compost 2-3 times of year so I can top dress every year. I use the dead plants from my garden, grass clipping from the yard, oak leaves that have fallen, kitchen scraps & a huge collection of coffee grounds for hot composting & nutrient cycling. The three raised beds are doing well & are like jungles. We have one or more butternut squash plants that have hijacked one raised bed and are spreading like octopus tentacles all over. The leaves are as big as elephant ears!!! Never seen that before in this garden. You could use one as a hat. That tells me that water is soaking all the way down, is being retained in the soil, readily available for all the plants which are thriving. The vegetative canopy is preventing evaporation from the soil. This method really works.
I agreed with all of your downsides of raised bed gardening. It is quite expensive to keep up. I live in Dallas TX and our soil are clay, so I don't we can plant on ground.
I am team raised Beds! The contaminated soil and stupid chemicals people dumped on this lawn and garden, is more than I can handle. Drip tape and sprinkler systems really help. I do understand growing in the ground. I have critters digging up so many things. I also vertical garden in containers, which I love. I try and do a variety of them. Urban gardening has it's challenges. Happy Gardening Everyone!
I've been battling soil hydrophobia so much! I have two metal raised beds and several big pots. It's best for me since I don't have space for an in-ground garden.
My church wanted gardens but the ground there is almost 100% sand so we made raised beds using cinder blocks. It's working out really great. I don't use cinder blocks or any other type of raised bed for my own gardens but this year I was able to give them a nice thick layer of composted manure. I have beets, beans, Swiss chard, sweet corn, onions and some other things all growing great in my own garden.
I made quite a few raised beds this year all using wood from old pallets. It was hard but I got it done all by myself. All kinds of stores have pallets they're throwing out so you get them for free
I solved the wood replacement problem by using cement blocks and solid cap blocks. The finished depth is exactly 12", unless you decide to add more rows. They are heavy to work with, but I kept reminding myself I would NEVER have to do this again. I also found the cost was less than wood. By the way, they look beautiful!
The homes in our area were built on prior corn fields. We have no idea what pesticides, etc., are in the heavy clay soil. We have several organic raised beds and we used the hügelkultur method to fill them. Every other year or so we add more soil, we purchase on sale at the end of the season. We're seniors, even if we weren't seniors we still would have installed raised beds here. It's a pain in the butt, digging in clay soil to plant landscaping plants. We have no regrets with our raised beds.
We do a mix of both because the soils been amended over the years so it's not too bad anymore but has to be raised to keep critters out and to prevent depletion of nutrients but it saves a lot on buying new soil
Raised beds actually solved for me many of the problems listed here. My native soil is practically beach sand so raised beds make it easier to keep plants hydrated. I do plant tomatoes in the soil in addition to the ones in my raised beds and they’re the ones I really have to keep on top of the watering. I’m not disputing your experience. I guess like so many things in gardening it depends on your particular situation as to what works best.
Also I use metal raised beds which are relatively easy to build. They cost about 3x as much as the wooden ones I used to build but should last 20 years or more.
My main garden is in its 3rd year of raised beds. I made the switch for a couple reasons. My secondary garden on the side of my house is in the ground. Eventually I'll convert it into raised beds too. I'm getting older and it just makes it easier planting certain crops.
We have a deer issue so our garden is plastic totes and buckets on the patio of course holes drilled in the bottom. We use compost then potting or garden soil and plants. We've done this for years and grow basil, tomatoes, potatoes, onions and green peppers.
My experience you absolutely right i went back to inground planting already see a huge difference for the better just thought raised box was better so much more money old way better save your money
I like raised bed a lot because in my area, the local soil is 100% clay, I also had no control on what the previous owner did such as pesticides and rock mulch. So a raised bed was a “quick fix” for me, but yes I confirm all other issues you have mentioned.
I have two raised metal beds and I love them. It is hot here in GA and I have red clay. I have built up the in ground beds by adding organic matter, mostly leaves and now it is workable. The problem is bermuda grass and crabgrass constantly growing into my beds. We try to keep a perimeter around the garden but by this time of year it is taking over. I am 66 and can no longer take the heat to keep up with the weeds this time of year. So I will be buying 3 more metal raised beds and downsizing next year, all because of weed pressure.
In a good growing season, I did better in the ground garden. Then I tryed the rain gutter grow method. It worked. It was better. This year I tried the "gardening with leon" barrels. Its been amazing. However, Alans knowledge has been priceless.
Let me know how you guys feel about gardening in raised beds!
I wish I could grow in-ground. I was able to years ago, and I loved it. My current property ( moved here in 2020) has hard compacted soil and a lot of roots from big old trees that were here years ago.
As a senior with mobility issues and limited funds, I can't have the yard done with a rototiller.
So I have a couple of raised beds and lots of grow bags. I have yet to be able to physically or financially set up an irrigation system. (I've got those videos saved). So, the watering is the hardest part of gardening for me. I check them with a soil probe (my favorite tool) and water some or all every day!
We have found that lighter colored wicking tubs work well for a few things like tomato, peppers, herbs, etc. Our raised beds get amended each winter with composted cow manure or chicken manure and new potting soil. I have noticed that everything is very lush and green, but some things may be getting a little too much nitrogen. It's always experimental, lol. Some of our beds are three foot tall, made of various materials we have laying around and don't really have much problem with drying out, but they do get hot. . We have two round beds made with cattle panels lined with landscape fabric, but when we change that fabric out, we will try to find something that is not black. Agree that perrinial plants are best in the ground. We also plant a few bean plants and companion plants for all beds. Also I have found that one crop - okra...does very well in raised beds, as they seem to withstand the heat and drought better. Thanks for sharing your experience. Location is NE Texas.
I just threw out all of my raised beds! 😂
I have gophers and ground squrriels. just use your yard soil to fill them and agumnet them with potting soil and they will NOT dry out like straight potting soil
@@ram1brnhow are you getting the yard soil, that's a massive job and what do I do with the hole?
It took a lot of money and work, but we're finally able to enjoy our raised bed gardens. I love this way of gardening.
Woah woah woah!! Raised beds saved my sanity. I could not do the battle of the damned Bermuda grass after a broken ankle. My kids brought in three small raised beds because they saw how sad I was without my gardens to grow in. Since then We’ve built four more and Id love to fill in the entire back yard with them, but my dogs need somewhere to 💩.
dogs can just use the neighbors yard. 😁
@@bluewolf4915 that's a good way to loose a dog. So disrespectful.
@@michaelbond4609 omg. It was a joke!
@@bluewolf4915That’s hilarious! Love your sarcasm and sense of humour.
@@michaelbond4609Triggered🤯
So when we lived in central NY, my husband built 12 raised beds, 20X4' out of plain concrete blocks and built it 2 blocks high. We were able to get seconds from the supplier, so they were even cheaper. We didn't grout them, just dry stacked. Not terribly decorative, but that didn't really matter because they were filled with beautiful vegetables, flowers and fruit. Yes, they shifted a little over time, but nothing we couldn't deal with. It was great to have a place to sit on the bed while planting, weeding and harvesting or just to have a cup of tea and I could plant in the holes for even more production. We did really luck out with filling them - had a friend with almost unlimited amounts of horse manure that had been aging in the fields for 7yrs+, so my crops got to grow in pure compost and I hardly ever used fertilizer, even many years later, and the beds were very productive. When we visited our old place a couple of years ago, the neighbors that bought it had torn down the 150 yo house (that was terrible to see) but were still planting in the old beds, some 30 years+ after they were built and didn't look like they had added any soil. Leaving those beds behind was actually harder when we moved to Colorado than leaving the house. Now we are using 3X8/10' stock tanks which do get very hot in the summer, cold in the winter and very hydrophilic if we don't water consistently - they got very dry finally last year - felt fine on top, but 6 inches down was like concrete - and we had to do a total refresh in the fall on most of the beds, digging them out, adding potting soil, compost, perlite and vermiculite, then watering really well and mulching heavily. We originally did logs/sticks to fill the tanks about halfway and then regular soil from a landscaping company -- it was a lot cheaper than the other mixes, but ultimately a bad choice for our raised beds. This year am keeping up better with the watering and testing for moisture with a meter down to about a foot deep and so far, so good. We did plant a new asparagus bed directly in the ground because the ones in the tanks were not doing well, even after 5 yrs, I think because of the soil moisture problems and the freezing in the tanks in the winter. But doing the raised stuff mostly now because of our solid clay/rocks in most of the yard here on the side of mountain and just can't bend over much or be on my knees anymore. Hope this long post helps someone.
I absolutely love growing in raised beds also! It's the way to go for me.
Appreciate sharing your experience and reasoning!
What is stock tanks?
I adore raised beds, looking to expand them
@@ponytaclub5539 Stock tanks are usually used by farmers to water out in the pasture. They are usually made of galvanized steel and come in different sizes and shapes. They are usually found in farm supply stores like Tractor Supply, but also places like Lowe's carry them now. They are easy in that you just put them in place and you are ready to go - no building required and they last for a very long time. They have a bottom to them, so if you want contact with native soil, you will have to do something about that, but if you are looking to avoid native soil/animals, they are perfect - no gophers for sure. We just kept the bottoms in, opened the drain, filled them halfway with logs/branches and finished with soil. The steel can get very hot in the summer sun and the edges tend to dry out quickly, so need to keep them watered.
Wish we still had our cement block beds, but at our ages, we couldn't level the soil (live on a mountainside) and build them again, so this was the best alternative.
@@sharonknorr1106 thank you! Now I see what they are - checked them online and they are way more expensive than galvanized steel raised beds. If you had them around they are definitely great, could be even keeping more water with small drainage holes in comparison to the open bottom
@@ponytaclub5539 We were hoping that the hugelcultur at the bottom of the tanks would absorb water and then give it back to the soil and plants as needed. That seemed like a good idea here in Colorado with hot and often dry summers. Not sure if that is working, maybe because we didn't keep them hydrated enough in the beginning. We bought the tanks over ten years ago, they are probably much more expensive now. We did check around for the best prices.
I am right there with you Brian on the raised bed issues. I am so sick of them. I have 1 wooden and 2 metal ones and I just got so fed up that I didn't bother adding more soil to any of them this year. Last year I made 2 "raised" beds that are inground but just a little higher than the area around them. And I also just added cardboard and threw 2-3 inches of good soil on top of a new area and they are doing far better than the actual raised beds lol.
It's raised bed gardening ALL THE WAY for us!!! We LOVE it!! Also, we have mostly those gorgeous Vego metal containers, that are supposed to last for a long, long time. We bought them a few at a time, and always on sale or with a coupon code. They are quick and easy to put together, and we've had one for three years, and it still looks brand new! We found it much cheaper to buy a truckload of good dirt to fill them. We also have some animal feed tubs, and a few old cattle watering tubs, which also work great. We installed an auto drip system, and never have to water. There is virtually no weeding, and we get tons of vegetables! Everyone comments on how beautiful our gardens are. You could not pay me to go back to those beds in the ground, that are full of ugly grass and weeds, plus a ton of back-breaking work constantly!
This is my first year with a raised bed and so far I love it! I have struggled so long growing in the ground because of the clay dirt here. I'm not able to till the ground and add stuff to it. And then the weeds and bugs and other critters just ruin it all if I do manage to get something producing. This year I was determined, so I built a 6x6 bed out of wood, I put landscape cloth on the bottom to help deter weeds and bugs from making their way through. Then I made a frame around the whole thing, 6 feet high from the ground, so i could cover that with bug netting. This is partly to keep the rabbits and deer from eating everything. I open it during the day to let pollinators in, then cover it at night. I'm keeping a close watch on the beetles. If they get to be a problem, I will keep it closed all day and hand pollinate. It doesn't keep everything out, but most. Down the center I created a trellis for sugar baby watermelons to grow on. They are absolutely thriving! All the plants in there are, and I'm so happy I finally did this. Next year I will build another, with some changes. Yes, it's expensive to fill, but it's not a yearly expense. I know I will have to build up the soil level every year and amend it, but that won't be near the initial cost.
What I'll do differently next time.... I will make inset frames that I will attach the bug netting or screening to, so I can just open and close as needed to access or let bees in. I'll add this to my current setup next year too. Some 2x2's will work well enough, some hinges and an eye hook for good measure. The other thing I'll do differently is really only possible once I have more beds. And that is to space them out better. Maybe watermelons will have a bed of their own, or have some smaller plants at the edges of them. I didn't know how well these plants would thrive and it is very crowded in there! I have 5 tomato plants, 4 Zucchini (tied to stakes), 6 or 7 watermelon plants on the trellis, 6 pepper plants. I put some carrots and chamomile seeds after I transplanted the other plants, but I only see a few sprouts, so I'm not sure where I went wrong there.
And the last thing I'd do differently is to not make it 6x6! I did it that way because I was trying to avoid cutting any wood. But boy is it hard to reach the center! The next ones will be no more than 4 feet wide. Maybe I'll do 6x3, so I just have to cut 6 foot boards in half for 2 sides.
I do water every day because we've had very little rain. I'm not growing these plants too save money necessarily. I'm growing them because it's far superior to what I can get at the store, and I know there are no pesticides! Plus, it's so rewarding. Nothing beats a home grown tomato, and even better when it's my home 😊
Just bring in good soil and rotiller it I will break up all that clay
Love the above ground gardens . I have many and it's much better than my clay soil . Easy to water also
Love my raised beds, makes a beautiful, structured garden and they are easier to garden in for so many reasons.
We are quite successful using raised bed gardens.
I've had several different types of raised beds. My favorite is the concrete planter wall blocks from homedepot or lowes. My beds are 8 ft by 3ft wide. If you don't have a skill saw, The home centers will cut them to the width that you need. No construction skills needed. Just slide the boards into the slots of the cement planter blocks. The blocks are under $4 each. I went 16" high with my beds, so 3 blocks on each corner× 4 corners= less than $50 each bed plus lumber, but you could go shorter for less expensive (less blocks). Best thing ever to be able to easily do it myself, and I like the looks of them, as well.
I'm in Bakersfield CA, hot and dry, up to 115°, and the raised beds do need to be watered daily, in the summers, and there are other drawbacks, but with a bad knee, my raised beds get attention, and my in ground garden gets neglected. I'm converting it to raised beds also this fall.
I've done both and my saving grace is that 1. I have found materials at lower costs to build my beds as it was leftover from previous projects. 2 I buy my soil each year by the pickup truck load locally. It rubs about $30 per load and that fills my full sized truck bed. Yes, I have several raised beds and have to top them all off each spring, but it beats tilling my native soil that is loaded with rocks. I've broken so many rototiller blades due to the huge amount of rock in the ground here. Plus, I have back issues and the local wildlife that will eat anything I grow, so raised beds with attached fencing is my go to. Totally agree on the drying out. My garden would be a goner without timers and soaker hoses and I live in the humid Southeast.
For 40 years, I only had inground beds with 1'x1' concrete tiles as my pathways, which have been sinking and sinking. After 40 years of adding a layer my compost, the beds started looking like fresh dug graves. With every heavy rain shower or storm, my concrete pathways got covered with mud and became dangerously slippery. I was constantly scraping off the mud. Last year, shortly after I planted my seedlings, I saw that metal bed frames of various sizes were on sale. I bought three of them. I simply placed them on my existing soft beds and pushed the the frames in a bit. I am still gardening in the existing, organic-material-rich deep soil. Now, I have more head room to add more compost. I still deep-dig and turn the soil over with a spade in the Fall, but in the Spring, I just perk it up with the biggest hoe that I could find. With the metal frames, my garden looks more neat/organized and my pathways stay clean/safe.
Hi Brian…I have gardened with raised beds for years. I switched to in-ground this year with better than ever results…my plants are very happy and so am I. I’m here in San Diego, too.
I love raised beds!
Oh Brian!!! Just wait as you get older your beds will get taller! I would not be able to garden without mine.
I never have had a rised bed and I'm not going to have any in the future either. Just digging it over. I love the freedom that is there with a large digged over space where you can assign your growing lines or spots whichever way you like. I can even have every crop in different direction lined up.
I used to garden in a 1,000 sq. ft. "dirt" plot. I had no end of issues with weeds, animals, excess rain, no rain, and multiple soil fungi, pathogens and crazy pH.. Now that I'm forced to grow in bags, life is so much easier because almost all parameters are controllable. The "soil" is good quality sterilized potting mix with composted cow manure and fish waste, as well as coconut fiber added for moisture retention but good drainage, maintaining near perfect water conditions. It's made a remarkable improvement in repeatable great results, since I can closely monitor soil pH and amend as needed.
For fertilizer, I do quite well with yeast/honey/milk solutions at 2-week intervals. No chemical fertilizer at all. A little gypsum for calcium permanently ended my blossom-end rot on tomatoes and peppers. At seedling plant-out I put a handful of FoxFarm Ocean Forest mix with micro-nutrients in the hole, and that's it. Enough produce on a 12 foot deck with 20 bags to fill the freezer. I re-use the soil every year after screening with only the addition of some more composted manure. If I had any blight fungus at all (very rare) I spray the soil with Hydrogen Peroxide full 3% strength as I screen it.
We had both early and late blight this year and last. Made improvements this year and controlled most of it by getting rid of infected leaves until I couldn't keep up last week. The stems are also affected and a few tomatoes. Last year I sprinkled baking soda over the worst areas. I'll try the peroxide at the end of the season using a pump sprayer. Would it still work if it's diluted with water? 9:46
We are currently living on the farm I grew up on, and have been slowly working on all raised beds. Where my mother had a HUGE in ground garden, it's just not an option anymore. We don't have a tractor to plow it with, nor a herd of cows and flocks of chickens for fertilizer. We are also on what used to be an ancient glacial lake, and the soil is full of rocks. I remember many summers as a child, picking rocks out of the garden. We grew more rocks than vegetables. Plus, our soil is what I now know is called a Dark Grey Zone; there's just a few inches of top soil, with sand, gravel and rocks below. Great for drainage (almost), but the nutrients leach out quickly.
Ultimately, though, raised beds are because I'm in my mid-50's and broken. The goal is to eventually have all high raised beds, but even low raised beds make it easier on the body to reach and work. We are using what material we have on hand to build the beds, and for the main garden area, we are harvesting dead spruce trees. The logs are at least 6 - 8 inches wide (thicker trunks are being cut to side and set aside for another project). Our first raised bed is 4 logs high, and it's the perfect height for me, but it's going to take a while to harvest enough dead trees. For now, most of our beds will be low raised bed just 1 log high, except for some that will be part of trellis tunnels, that will be 2 logs high. Over time, we can add more logs to increase the height, but we will maintain a few lower raised beds for tall crops like corn or indeterminate tomatoes.
This year, I've discovered another reason to keep at least low raised beds. We've had an unusual amount of rain this spring, to the point that we had standing water in areas I've never seen before, even when growing up here as a child. We are used to drought, not constant rain. Not even when we had massive spring flooding a couple of years ago, did we have standing water in some of these areas, nor did the water stay on top of the soil as long. Our soil is still so saturated right now that any rainfall results in standing water again, for days. Had it not been for having everything in raised beds - even low ones with no frames - we would have lost pretty much everything in the garden this year.
So for our situation, raised beds in a variety of heights, is just the way to go.
Hi Brian. I've been raised bed gardening, GreenStalks too, for five years. Alabama red clay is something that I don't want to deal with, not without a tractor, backhoe, bucket, and plow. I have to do a little additional watering in the summer months, but I don't have to worry about overwatering, especially with multiple days of rain showers. I have family that have lost their gardens from being flooded out from rain. Overall, my experiences have been good. I got a bumper crop of tomatoes this year, and they keep coming-cucumbers and squash too. I have so many that I am having to give them away to friends, neighbors, and familly. Too many for my chickens. LOL
What are you filling your raised bed with?
@@agdayem I use Kelloggs Raised Bed Mix and composted leaves, grass, plants, and such from my compots bins.
I love the raised beds my husband built for me. With the redwood roots, gophers and ground squirrels on our property, we had to get our vegetable garden completely off the ground. He built them so there is a 2 ft gap between the ground and the bottom of the bed, the top of the soil level is my waist height, about 4 ft. Because we also have tree squirrels he completely enclosed the beds with a cage that has 4 ft wide doors. The cage does mean I need to plant dwarf or bush varieties but the work. I do replenish the soil with mostly compost and mulch twice a year. The system works well and is easy on my back.
Love the raised beds. No moles, no nematodes Good all around
That's the only way I've garden using raised beds for over 20 years, some wood some metal but either way I Love them, I agree with you but I'm still sticking with my raised beds
My TSC gets tractor/combine parts shipped to them in heat treated wooden crates, and when they are done with them they have a pile of scrap wood in their parking lot with pallets and those crates. I have a small car, but with ingenuity and determination I’ve brought home 14 wooden crates, ranging in size from 2ft wide 3ft long and 1 ft deep, to 3ft x 4ft x 3ft tall, to 16 inches by 8ft and 18 inches tall. I know the wood won’t last forever but one is on its 4th year with no issues.
I am in a situation where raised beds & containers and I love my raised beds. Took a few years to build up a very good & healthy productive soil. Also, I get almost zero pest pressure, I don't think I would grow in ground even if I could.
Finally honesty on a garden programme, soil is expensive and you need a lot of it especially for raised beds, I compost everything have 2 horses & get manure from my friends stables....it's still not enough!
You can buy a truckload of good dirt for WAY cheaper than all of those bags! We have cows and compost the cow manure and mix it in. It's really fairly reasonable, and sure as heck beats all of that weeding in the ground beds!!
Brian is the best!❤❤❤
I don't know how big your garden is but if you have two horses providing manure to compost plus manure from other horses I don't see how you don't have enough material to build up your garden over time.
In a period of a few years of constant hot composting you can really build up your soil.
A horse can poop out 50 lbs of manure a day.
@@arthurwellsjr.4082 Ireland has a lot of rain it seriously gets washed away & I grow a lot in an acre in a short space of time from April to October just as the Atlantic storms come in until the following april
@@sassyherbgardener7154 We did the same thing (except we don't have cows). Locally a place that supplies all kinds of landscaping rock also has high-quality soil of all kinds, at really reasonable prices. They even consult about which kind you need if you tell them what you're going to plant in it. When I told them it was going to be a combination of vegetables and flowers in raised beds, they brought out a truckload of the most beautiful weed-free stuff, dumped it in our driveway, and we wheelbarrowed it to the beds. It was spectacular the first year, and continues to be great with a top dressing each season. Much, much cheaper than all those bags.
I prefer raised beds, but I appreciate hearing the pros and cons!
My struggle with raised beds is getting the soil quality right. I’ve bought many bags of a variety of mixes and used my own compost but often plants seem to struggle.
The secret to raised beds is to water them frequently, a lot more frequent that in ground beds because they dry out faster. Also don’t forget to fertilize them regularly
🌿 Living about a mile from beautiful Lake Huron, I learned in my 20's that sand was the issue that I had to fight. Also, since the ground heated way up, mulching was a must. I amended the soil, but like my neighbor, that soil and my compost seemed to sift away into the sand. A couple of raised beds worked fine, but had to be removed for a needed home addition. The first thing I did before rebuilding the raised beds was to place 2 large kid's wading pools just slightly above ground level and fill with compost mixed with lots of store-bought humus with lots of worm castings, etc.
My cucumbers no longer looked like balloon animals and we finally got to enjoy veggies like squash that had always blossomed before the flower fell off. Delphiniums were tall, strong and beautiful ❣️ Lots of holes drilled in the wading pools provided drainage but didn't let the dirt escape.
I read the square foot garden book 23 years ago and have use what Mel recommends ever since. The mix is 1/3 peat moss, 1/3 vermiculite (perlite is not a good substitute), 1/3 mixture of dif composts. I've tried getting a truckload of "garden soil" and those beds were awful. I use good quality compost but it was so expensive and I have finally found a local place with bulk compost that has just what I want. Every season or when I replant a spot I add some compost. Lowe's cheap compost ruined 2 of my beds. The good stuff is worth it! Every 10 or so years I have had to add some of the other ingredients also. Hope that helps!
It will help if you mix 1/3 clay into the soil. It will help it hold water and add much needed minerals into the soil. Also, be sure not to put meat milk or eggs into the compost or soil.
Here in north Texas I’ve found that my taller 26” raised beds are my favorite. I don’t have to bend down, keeps the rabbits out, and mostly the fire ants stay out as well. They don’t dry out as quickly as shallow raised beds and if I didn’t have the drainage I would have lost my entire potato crop this year due to the abundant spring rainstorms. I agree with the constant replacing of soil being a hassle (but due to the rain, in ground beds would have washed away as well). They will dry out in summer if I don’t keep up with watering, but I’m experimenting with different cover crops because that makes all the difference. We are converting our shallow beds to tall beds this fall.
I have my raised beds in my back and side yards (3 4X8, 5 3X6, 2 4X4 and 5 2X3 as well as grow bags and on my patio I have 4 Green Stalk systems). My back yard is 14 feet wide and 28 feet long with lousy dirt loaded with pine roots and my side yard is 5.5 feet by 19 feet of lousy dirt, moles/voles and neighborhood dogs. I tried gardening in ground 2 years ago with mixed results (most of my biggest successes were in grow bags). I am still learning about the Green Stalks since this year was my first with them. I have some backyard chickens so I do have my own manure (my chickens don't free range but I do pull grass and retired plants to give them as well as growing microgreens and kale just for them to "forage"). I generally make my own potting mix with peat moss, compost and perlite or vermiculite. Having the raised bed help me as my gardening quest began in my 70s and I have a bad back. My next project will be trellising. My area has been really hot and mostly dry the last couple of years so I use shade cloth to keep my plants from extreme sunburn. For the most part, things are working well. I had a bumper crop of squash and zucchini two years ago, an okay crop last year but this year I am loaded with male blooms with fewer than a dozen female blooms for each variety. Others in my area are having the same problems. I have rain barrels so I am using God's water with only minor supplementation of city water. Don't know what the problem is but it is frustrating!
I read that you need to water more to get female flowers.😊
I'm 74 and my grandsons built me raised beds waist high. I can't get up when I get down so they work wonderful for me. We live on a farm with animals so dirt and fertilizer is no problem. I even built one bed myself this spring --I can use a drill!!! The boys were proud of me!!
Great points, we did raised wooden beds in the past. The biggest problems we had with them here in the Netherlands was the slug issues. Slugs seen to use the shelter the vaults in between the beds provided to reproduce themselves. So thats the biggest downside in wetter climates. Humidity of the soil was here less of an issue.
I finally resorted to diatomaceous earth and slug pellets
I have galvanized raised beds and I line them, bottom and sides, with heavy felted landscape fabric. So far it's been working great.
Hello, i like the look of raised beds so if i had the choice, that would be my go to. I just like how they look! Thanks, have a lovely day!
I agree in-ground and raised beds both have pros and cons. I’m 67 with major health issues that affect my ability to do in-ground gardening now. I use to get down on the ground to plant and weed and harvest but I can no longer do that. 😔
So I’m trying to move to raised beds. I do appreciate the height of the raised bed bc it allows me to continue raising our food. I don’t want to give up my hobby. We seldom buy soil. We use the hugelcultre method and we add our own compost and soil each year. However, we have moles and voles. Our beds are built on the ground. I think I will need to add hardware cloth at the bottom in new beds. I hope that is going to help.
Thanks for sharing the things you have learned. I enjoy your channel. 😊
My raised beds are made of molded acrylic. I’ve never grown in anything else. I ❤ raised beds. Here in our new home we have moles and voles. So when we established these beds 0:28 we made sure to put wire on the bottom layer to keep them out.
On another subject, I want to thank you for your videos on companion planting. I really took your suggestions to heart and have had very few issues with pests. The tomatoes. Peppers, eggplant, squash, onions and herbs really do play well together. I’m looking forward to a very successful growing season.
What a fabulous show. When I was in ground gardening, I had better crops when I made furrows, some furrows 4’ wide. I furrowed 1’ rows for tomatoes, growing them on fencing. I went raised beds for many crops after watching videos during Covid. I find that raised beds don’t wash away and I don’t have to rebuild furrows every year so I like them for most things. Instead of purchasing bags of soil though, I brought in a load of top soil which has worked great. I love my raised beds for tomatoes, peppers, onions and root crops. I still grow in ground peas, cucumbers, beans and potatoes. I’m on the fence with the squash. I’m doing all my squash in raised beds this year. Watering is always a trick here. We have excellent drainage, sometimes too excellent :)) Anyway, great show. Love your sharing your thoughts and experiences. Keepn’ it real :)) Thank you. Soo what happened to the growing a garden on a limited budget. I was curious because you were doing the raised soil beds like I did. Maybe too many gophers, aye?
I have mobility issues, so two years ago I invested in the Vego 17" tall beds and love them! Three years ago I had bought three stock tanks, drilled holes in the bottom and I hate them because they dried out too fast. My vego beds are open at the bottom and hold the moisture better and don't get too hot. I did fill them totally with a quality soil/compost mix from a local landscape company instead of raised bed soil and I put straw mulch (thanks to you) and it has been wonderful. This year I barely topped them off. The soil had only gone down a couple of inches in one season so I didn't think that was bad. I am going to try a Fall/Winter planting this year so I will put a fresh layer of just compost down. I am in SC zone 8a and it has been extremely hot here too this summer so I am grateful that I found you and installed drip to everything and gopher wire just in case!
I did raised beds on concrete once and loved it. No weeds! Loved that I got some use out of an old sidewalk by the house that was useless otherwise. ❤
I really appreciate your honest input Brian! I don´t have raised beds but I have a rooftop full of grow bags and I have to be on top of watering almost daily or else my plants wilt super fast. For so long I heard so many good things about grow bags that I bought a whole lot of them and started to store plastic ones thinking it was a no brainer. Big mistake. Honestly, I can´t even grow stuff in the 5 galloon ones due to hidrophobic soil, i´m barely hanging on with the 10 gallon ones. So, I´ve been switching back to plastic pots and plants are doing better in them.
I also use to hear that natural predators would take care of plagues in my garden but it was just never like that. By the time I found a couple of ladybugs I was already infested by aphids and my crops were already super damaged. Also, once you find a plague in the garden its almost guaranteed to be a neverending battle until the crop is harvested. So this year I decided install insect netting to close my rooftop and so far I haven´t been attacked by aphids, flies or caterpillars, which has turned out to be a huge save of time, money and peace of mind!
Greetings from a huge fan in Peru!
I think in-ground plants do better (in good soil), but root-knot nematodes, moles and tree roots prevent me, not to mention age and a bad back. To garden successfully, I'm forced to use containers. I love my Earthboxes. And I don't miss weeding at all!
And thanks to you, Brian, I started my own plants from seed several years ago and haven't looked back!
raised beds allow me to still garden due to physical issues. We got unbelievably lucky here in SD. My husband hauls for a construction company. He got leftover wood for free & built all 6 beds. Plus, our landfill has compost. Free if you shovel. $20 a ton if they load it. made the whole garden affordable. We got almost 5 tons for new front garden for about $80.
I do both. I'm in zone 5A. But with regards to the expense of building raised beds. Personally, I have a source for free lumber. We have a local truss building company and they allow locals to take the cutoffs for free. Now the sizes don't match, and you could have some short ones and some long ones, but if you don't mind a little sawing and screwing, you can end up with some pretty nice beds. However, mine are only 8 inches high. In the bottom, I put a layer of cardboard. (I save my boxes from Chewy just for this purpose.) I then place a layer of yard waste, then a layer of my compost. After that, I have a load of soil delivered. I then screen that soil and mix in peatmoss and bone meal. Then I fill the bed to the point of overflowing. I water it all in and add more soil. Then it is ready to go. Yes, I do have to add more soil in the spring, but I add a mix of fresh soil, bonemeal and my homemade compost. I also mulch with straw. But I do this in all my gardens, raised or not. At the end of the season, whatever straw hasn't already broken down, I just rake in. This along with the snow will help keep the soil healthy during the winter. One thing I would never put in my raised bed is potting soil. To me, this is why your beds are becoming hydrophobic. With regards to fertilizer, I don't find any difference at all for fertilizer requirements between my raised beds and in-ground beds. Maybe that's because I use freshly made compost which contains rotted horse manure in both types of gardens. Now, like I said, my beds are only 8inches tall, and I don't have a gopher problem so I guess you could call them mini-raised beds. The only barrier between the bed and the actual ground is that cardboard box which, I'm sure isn't even there anymore. I'm sure if I were using one of those metal raised beds, it would be a lot different. Finally, like you said, a raised bed looks a lot more tidy. Also, and this may seem weird, I find I have fewer pests in my raised gardens. Not really sure why that is. But it is definitely a fact. Thanks for all the videos. Have a great growing season.
I am very blessed to have very fertile soil to grow in. However, with a joint disease, it is getting harder and harder to garden in ground. I purchased raised beds this year and even though I love them for the relief of getting up and down off the ground and weed pressure, you are 100% correct. I use a lot more water and fertilizer! So, what I'm doing is planting perennials and long season veggies in the ground and using the raised beds for quicker growing and root veggies.
Interesting discussion concerning raised beds and some ideas that I had not previously considered. However for me it is a no brainer as I garden from a wheelchair and 89 years of age. Only solution is 20 inch raised beds and help with the muscle work at times but am happy and productive. Brain many thanks for all the encouragement and advice over the years!
I don’t know if it’s because I’m in Michigan, but I’ve not had most of the problems you mentioned. I put in a bunch of logs and twigs, filled in fall leaves all around the bottom, then dug dirt from my on property and mixed it in with lots of composted wood chips. I only filled the raised bed about 1/3 of the way up the first year. At the end of each growing season, I fill the beds up with fallen leaves and let the winter snow keep them moist. When Spring comes, pull any undecomposed leaves out, and add a layer of heavily composted (made my own) soil, and begin again. I plant my veggies in tight so there are very few weeds, and layer leaves and grass on top as mulch which keeps moisture in. The one thing I DON”T love about the raised bed is that vertically grown summer squash gets top heavy and if you’re not careful can fall right out - destroying the entire plant!
Done both, but now in my 5th season, in ground all the way. I don't mind a framed in-ground bed... holds in the mulch!
Team raised bed since 2012. Hard clay soil, bad back, bad eyes, n brittle bones r not cpnducive to the labor it would take 2 make a good garden in ground. Thx 4 all ur advice over the yrs. Its really improved my yields n lowered pest pressure. ;)
I like to grow in the ground. Filling raised beds is hard. Store bought garden "soil" is not soil (broken down rocks and minerals). It is more like broken down wood products. Bought soil eventually seems to disappear and needs topping off, and the beds degrade and need to be rebuilt. Raised beds heat up and dry out much quicker. Plants grown in the ground seem to be healthier and if mulched heavily, hardly ever need watering. Heavy mulch is the key. You can make neat and tidy "in ground" beds with edging.
Right materials, right space. Totally agree they can be a pain in hot weather. I crammed 5 , 3 x 10 beds into a 20 foot area. Pet peeve was not having enough space to roll a wheel barrow through. Beds dont dry out as much anymore as Ive gotten more shade. They are just starting to break down after 5 years. Certainly very handy for strawberries with netting out the chipmunks and robins.
Great topic!! i have a combination of in ground raised beds and open plot … its great because I can do spring veggies in the beds while the cover crop is finishing up to get ready for hot weather vegetables … then when the spring beds are done… I have options for replanting those … for the open plot … i lay down thick mulch … this works out for me!!
Have two raised metal beds that after 4 years need to be refurbished before next year. Also have a 12 ft by 3 ft wooden raised bed with cattle panel hoop that is breaking up so I will take it out after the growing season. Not going to keep replacing the wood.
I really like my raised beds but I absolutely agree with everything you said. I just moved to a new place and because it is so expensive I brought every bit of my garden dirt with me. It has taken me a couple of trips and a whole lot of 5 gallon buckets.
San Diego soil is obviously not garden ground friendly. My raised bed has chicken wire under it as well. And now I have squirrels, so I enclosed it. Now the tunneling squirrels are have found a way in via the neighbors fence. The struggle is real.
Squirrels!!!!😂
I went from a container garden to raised beds and the produce output is a world of difference. You're right about the cost of soil, but I made friends with cattle farmers and get a yard of manure for $20. Can't beat it.
Love my raised beds. Our soil is hard clay and so hard to dig in. It’d take a lot of effort and time to amend the soil sufficiently to get good drainage. Also, I have filled them years ago, and every year I just top it off with compost, topped with straw. The next year I layer on top of that, not removing anything. Works great.
Hey Brian! Great video! I’m with you about raised beds, on all points! Although I have some of each, my inground beds require less time, inputs and are more self-sufficient. I agree with you that less watering is the biggest benefit outside of the cost savings. Also agree that sometimes raised beds are preferable. Love the way you analyze things and share your experiences! Thanks!!!
I put in 8 24" high raised beds in my back yard that are 8' long by 4' wide and they took an crazy amount of soil. I filled the bottom portion with sticks and twigs, cardboard and leaves and then purchased a truck load of organic garden soil which was very expensive. The end result was well worth it for me as it saved my old sore back.
Also it’s so true about the soil! My beds all need more soil and I hate having to buy it since my in ground garden is just going to get layers of my goats and chickens clean out this fall and mulched with leaves, and the soil is getting so nice!
Filled the bottom of my new raised beds with mushroom substrate from a local organic grower. It worked pretty well but when you get some freebie oyster mushrooms you have to harvest them right away or you get fungus gnats. We put loads of our own compost on top. This was in our two tomato beds which so far, on July 20th in zone 5a , are awesome. Great info thanks.
Thanks for this, I have been experiencing the very same things. I can grow 50’rows in ground, it is easier for sure, your 7 reasons are spot on. Thanks again, appreciate your efforts to help us grow a better garden.
I have 3 raised beds on wheels, so I can bring them under shelter when the weather gets too cold. I basically grow only sweet potatoes in them, and this year it has taken off! Lots of stir fry with the leaves with Sardines! This has also been my best year for Cumbers, I've harvested about a dozen, and there's about 4 more coming out. The weather here in Central TX. has been getting pretty hot around 96 degrees for the high and 76 for the low. doesn't stay cool very long though, so I water my sweet potatoes just about every other day, along with my cumbers. Both have been doing well. I don't like the inground gardening, since I need to mow the lawn every week, and the plants are not mobile in the cold weather.
Great video though, and thanks for the downsides, always good to know!
I live on a mountain.... literally, a giant rock. I wouldn't be able to grow anything without raised beds. But I do agree with everything said here. Soil dries out fast. Bed frames need replacing. It's a conundrum for a hard core gardener. I find that in my climate, shade cloth really helps.
The metal beds last for years and years. If you put in an auto drip, you never have to water. It didn't cost that much, and it was easy to install. If you are a hard core gardener, you should definitely do this!! We never have to weed or water, and we get tons of produce.
@sassyherbgardener7154 yeah.... I know that for building today for long term use, it might pay off.... but I'm 63 years old. The investment for those metal beds is huge. For the potential number of years I have left, and for my space, that would have to be completely gutted and revamped for such an undertaking, it's just not worth it. I've spent 35 years getting this garden to produce the way it does today.... which is incredible. Not only annual veggies, but blueberry bushes, black raspberry briars, red raspberry briars, asparagus, etc. I provide most of the food and herbs that I eat.... and it works well for me. 😉😉
It is very hot in my garden, I have a large in-ground garden. Was thinking about raised beds, yet see that they will be a lot more work. Great video.
I mixed my native clay soil with raised bed mix. Helps with moisture holding, and provides minerals. I agree with all your points and am developing a traditional in ground garden area.
I have converted my backyard garden to mostly self-wicking containers. It is working wonderfully in the hot summer climate in Southern California. The self-wicking containers allow the plants to have water when ever they want it and I find that I only have to add water every 3 - 7 days depending on type of plant in the pot. Added to the ease is the water indicator showing me just how much water is still remaining inside the water reservoir. Many videos showing how to make them here on CZcams, or you can purchase some off of Amazon which is what I did. The brand I went "Grow - Bucket" with is a little pricey , but I am very pleased with them and they should last for many years as the don't get direct sun exposure.
Very true, here in Arizona the sun is pretty rough on plants in my raised beds, and don’t even think about leaning on those metal sides! But, so far they’re the only solution to all the small animals that want to munch anything green or juicy.
Best drainage ,use best soil you can find, no more sore back mine are 2’ high. My wood beds are lined with 1/4” plastic material
What is the plastic material like? Do You have a name for it? Where do You buy it?
I was blessed when I made my first raised bed.
My Son worked at Waste Control & someone had torn down some kind of building & I got the 4x8 sheets of plywood with a corrugated plastic material on one side.
Those sides have lasted 5 yrs & show no signs of rotting but... one end without the plastic has just about disappeared 😱😰🤯
I don't know how I will replace it without digging a bunch of dirt out of the way!
But I will not make a raised bed without plastic on the inside ever again.
@@PinkLady54 I can’t remember the name of it is but it comes in 4’x8’ sheets 1/4” or 1/8” thick ,It has a thin layer of aluminum on each side sandwiching some sort of plastic material. One of the main uses is making these large signs for new developments so over the top it has some murals of house, condos etc…
That protects the wood from rotting and bugs living behind I hope 🤞 forgot to mention these sheets are quite expensive but after they use the signage they are asked to take them down by customers and I end up buying them 1/4” for 4x8’ for $30 each. Well worth it!!
@@4Runner123 WOW! I guess it's worth it!! I live near Portland OR... Any chance I can buy an extra or 2? 🤔🤩
@@PinkLady54 Sorry I live nowhere near maybe you can google a larger sign maker in your area see what materials they use for there huge billboard signs and buy some of them when they tear them down??? Well worth it in my opinion.
@@PinkLady54 Sorry I live nowhere near maybe you can google a larger sign maker in your area see what materials they use for there huge billboard signs and buy some of them when they tear them down??? Well worth it in my opinion.
Hi Brian, I use raised bed gardening, but I can see they have their place and not so in other places such as your situation. It also depends on the soil mix you fill them with. I have both a raised bed, and 1 board bed, and other in-ground beds. Each have their uses and appeal.
I like my 18" tall raised beds. Last year we had gophers for the first time, so we had to have the beds dug out and lined with hardware cloth, but we don't have gophers any more. As a Sr., it makes it possible for me to sit and garden. Watering with the "center" position of the hose before planting seems to get water to deeper depths of the beds than watering with the "shower" position. Once they're well-watered and mulched, I can water with the "shower" hose position. If they're well-mulched they don't usually dry out. I use grass-cuttings and straw for mulch. Mulching is really important.
I can testify to the temperature changes as I planted garlic bulbs in my raised bed. The first year I had it and I had extra so I put those in the ground. The one in the ground survived the one in the raised bed because it was raised bed with open air underneath that one froze, and I had nothing but mush for garlic bulbs, which I found so interesting that they froze there, but they didn’t in the ground.
I have corrugated metal raised beds. Love them. Easy to put together, lightweight, inexpensive, (not the fancy ones that are expensive) last for a very long time. I put down wire against voles, then compressed straw (I do not do twigs etc.), then soil I already have - I do not buy it. The straw will sink but it has the advantage it soaks up water and even if you forget to water, the roots have moisture. I also put straw around the plants once they are large enough. I have no problem with trying out.Plants thrive.
I love my raised beds! They are made from concrete blocks. I used topsoil and mushroom compost and and branches on the bottom. I have had some sinkage, but I make my own compost to fill them with. The concrete blocks do cause moisture loss around the bed edges. My beds flourish. I love them because they save my knees.
Wow love my raised beds. I have gardened all my life and now in my early 60’s I only use raised beds. I am now disabled so without them I couldn’t garden but even if I wasn’t I would. I use a form of no dig while using the raised beds. I have just put in more for a Mimi orchard and will be putting my fruit trees in them using permaculture fruit tree guilds.
This is my first year of gardening, and I started with building a raised bed. I saw so many gardeners use them; I just assumed that was the superior way to garden. Keep in mind I live on an acre with no gopher problem, so the extra expense on containers was totally unnecessary, but here we are!
Soon after installing the raised bed, I noticed a lot of what you mentioned here. Luckily after that I realized I'd be better off just digging rows, filling that with better soil, and growing in-ground. (Our soil is super hard without a lot of organic matter. Terrible drainage.)
I like to keep things as simple and cheap as possible. I'm so glad I learned this lesson early on. No more raised beds for me until I'm in my rich old lady phase of life and can afford it and appreciate the ease on my back. Haha!
Thank you for all the tips! Especially the gardening for free series you did in the cottage garden. Right up my alley!
I love my inground garden. I am still learning my site so I can and do rearrange the beds for spacing each year. I can run my chicken in it for a couple weeks to take care of a lot of seeds and pest. I have been expanding each year so it is a surface till, form beds and cover with compost before winter and snow hits. The amount of worms and healthy soil life is crazy!
I went from a huge in-ground garden to raised beds, for simplicity. They’re made of wood and I’ve had them about six years. I’m very happy with them, but I’d like to eventually go to metal ones (that’s sometime down the line!).
We got lucky this year and our village was offering free compost, and I’m also trying in-ground ollas using terra cotta pots, so I’m very happy with my garden this year!
I just changed over to all raised beds this year. Bought the Amazon metal ones. They’re affordable and easy to put together. We have a lot of property with woods so finding materials to fill them up wasn’t much of an issue. I bought soil on sale Memorial Day so far so good. Hardly any weeds and easy on my bad back.
I agree with you. The soil here in Texas is completely clay so raised beds work the best. Garden naked, Garden happy
Fabric Pots FTW!
I have (3) 16' x 4' x 12" raised beds placed on top of sandy soil. The sandy soil doesnt hold water so in order to get healthy productive plants more watering, time & extra work is required.
In my raised beds the watering has become more efficient. The 12” deep beds have a nice somewhat sandy loam soil that holds water well.
The material they're made out of are made out of cedar & oak tree slabs that I bought for cheap from my local sawyer. I rip cut straight edges on each side so I can double stack them. I use scrap pcs of tree slab to stitch the double stacked slabs on top of each other.
I filled them with a mix of leaf mold, homemade compost store bought organic soil, soil amendment soil. If you add Black Cow manure go light on it since there is a lot of coarse bark that can compact the soil ( im experiencing that in my 4th raised bed. Now i have to remove that soil & replace with all orhanic soil).
My three big raised beds are doing great this year. The two potato beds are all lusciously growing. Because of their spacing their green foilage provides a canopy for the soil that slows down soil moisture evaporation.
The organic soil in these beds absorbs water. With 12 inches of organic soil it takes a while ( depending on the duration of heat duration) for the soil to dry out.
Last year & this year I companion planted pole beans with my taters & the pole beans were thriving & producing better than my other plow beans planted in the native soil. I got more beans from from the raised beds than the beans planted in native soil. The roots of the raised bed pole beans spread all over the depth of these raised beds. The roots & stalks of the raised beds were as thick as #2 pencils when I dug them up. A whole lot better than the beans in native soil.
I'm a firm believer in raised beds. I don't agree with the host of this channel since my mother & I have a combination of over two decades dmgrowing in this sandy soil.
I built a 4th raised bed out of cedar tree slab that is 20' x 1.5' x 1' out odlf double stacked cedar tree slabs with rip cuts on each end. I used the Hugelkulture method with the bottom half of the bed. It will take a few years for the pine, oak & sassafras would to break down. I got it for free by checking the roads for fallen trees. With a little bit of work & some sweat I filled up 7.5 cubic feet of this 15 cubic foot bed. I saved $$$. I only had to buy 7.5 cubic feet of soil to fill the top 6" of bed.
I make compost 2-3 times of year so I can top dress every year. I use the dead plants from my garden, grass clipping from the yard, oak leaves that have fallen, kitchen scraps & a huge collection of coffee grounds for hot composting & nutrient cycling.
The three raised beds are doing well & are like jungles.
We have one or more butternut squash plants that have hijacked one raised bed and are spreading like octopus tentacles all over. The leaves are as big as elephant ears!!! Never seen that before in this garden. You could use one as a hat. That tells me that water is soaking all the way down, is being retained in the soil, readily available for all the plants which are thriving. The vegetative canopy is preventing evaporation from the soil.
This method really works.
I agreed with all of your downsides of raised bed gardening. It is quite expensive to keep up. I live in Dallas TX and our soil are clay, so I don't we can plant on ground.
I am team raised Beds! The contaminated soil and stupid chemicals people dumped on this lawn and garden, is more than I can handle. Drip tape and sprinkler systems really help. I do understand growing in the ground. I have critters digging up so many things. I also vertical garden in containers, which I love. I try and do a variety of them. Urban gardening has it's challenges. Happy Gardening Everyone!
I've been battling soil hydrophobia so much! I have two metal raised beds and several big pots. It's best for me since I don't have space for an in-ground garden.
My church wanted gardens but the ground there is almost 100% sand so we made raised beds using cinder blocks. It's working out really great.
I don't use cinder blocks or any other type of raised bed for my own gardens but this year I was able to give them a nice thick layer of composted manure. I have beets, beans, Swiss chard, sweet corn, onions and some other things all growing great in my own garden.
I made quite a few raised beds this year all using wood from old pallets. It was hard but I got it done all by myself. All kinds of stores have pallets they're throwing out so you get them for free
I solved the wood replacement problem by using cement blocks and solid cap blocks. The finished depth is exactly 12", unless you decide to add more rows. They are heavy to work with, but I kept reminding myself I would NEVER have to do this again. I also found the cost was less than wood. By the way, they look beautiful!
The homes in our area were built on prior corn fields. We have no idea what pesticides, etc., are in the heavy clay soil. We have several organic raised beds and we used the hügelkultur method to fill them. Every other year or so we add more soil, we purchase on sale at the end of the season. We're seniors, even if we weren't seniors we still would have installed raised beds here. It's a pain in the butt, digging in clay soil to plant landscaping plants. We have no regrets with our raised beds.
We do a mix of both because the soils been amended over the years so it's not too bad anymore but has to be raised to keep critters out and to prevent depletion of nutrients but it saves a lot on buying new soil
I love my raised beds!
Raised beds actually solved for me many of the problems listed here. My native soil is practically beach sand so raised beds make it easier to keep plants hydrated. I do plant tomatoes in the soil in addition to the ones in my raised beds and they’re the ones I really have to keep on top of the watering.
I’m not disputing your experience. I guess like so many things in gardening it depends on your particular situation as to what works best.
Also I use metal raised beds which are relatively easy to build. They cost about 3x as much as the wooden ones I used to build but should last 20 years or more.
My main garden is in its 3rd year of raised beds. I made the switch for a couple reasons. My secondary garden on the side of my house is in the ground. Eventually I'll convert it into raised beds too. I'm getting older and it just makes it easier planting certain crops.
We have a deer issue so our garden is plastic totes and buckets on the patio of course holes drilled in the bottom.
We use compost then potting or garden soil and plants. We've done this for years and grow basil, tomatoes, potatoes, onions and green peppers.
My experience you absolutely right i went back to inground planting already see a huge difference for the better just thought raised box was better so much more money old way better save your money
I like raised bed a lot because in my area, the local soil is 100% clay, I also had no control on what the previous owner did such as pesticides and rock mulch. So a raised bed was a “quick fix” for me, but yes I confirm all other issues you have mentioned.
Thank you for posting a cheap and easy way to make raised beds. We did cloth container gardening this year and I'm already over it 😅
I have two raised metal beds and I love them. It is hot here in GA and I have red clay. I have built up the in ground beds by adding organic matter, mostly leaves and now it is workable. The problem is bermuda grass and crabgrass constantly growing into my beds. We try to keep a perimeter around the garden but by this time of year it is taking over. I am 66 and can no longer take the heat to keep up with the weeds this time of year. So I will be buying 3 more metal raised beds and downsizing next year, all because of weed pressure.
Solarizing is the answer to kill all your weeds seeds forever
I am at a point where all I want is raised beds. But I’m here to have you change my mind. I got voles and I just want to have some control.
I love raised beds because it rains so much here. My garden used to be flooded, and nutrients washed away. It gives me more control.
In a good growing season, I did better in the ground garden. Then I tryed the rain gutter grow method. It worked. It was better. This year I tried the "gardening with leon" barrels. Its been amazing. However, Alans knowledge has been priceless.