Help with raised beds
- To: m*@ucdavis.edu
- Subject: Help with raised beds
- From: N* S*
- Date: Sun, 28 Nov 1999 10:30:01 -0800
Hi Folks -- this is only slightly OT, but I hope you can help anyway.
Last year, my children's school built four raised beds for a children's
garden. They intended to grow mostly veggies and some flowers. The beds
are about 16 feet long, 23" high and 4' wide. They are lined with some
kind of horticultural cloth and sit on a concrete pad. They face a western
exposure, but there is a 6" high wall on the western side so that they get
full sun for only the middle of the day. The beds are currently filled
the beds with 90% composted redwood (or some other kind of composted wood
product).
Within a few months of their construction, the xchool acknowledged that the
beds did not support plant growth and they have been largely abandoned.
My daughter's teacher asked me to work on revitalizing the beds so that the
kids can plant in them. Clearly the first thing to do is to replace the
mix in the bed. I intend to replace at least part of the mix with soil and
then add manure and earthworms. What do you all think of this plan? Can
anyone suggest what proportions to use? What else can I do to improve the
situation?
Thanks so much for your help
Nan
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Nan Sterman Minds Over Matter
205 Cole Ranch Road
Olivenhain, CA 92024 760.634.2902 (voice)
nsterman@mindsovermatter.com 760.634.2957 (fax)
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