Category: Raised Beds

The Upcycled Garden

Larry Opperman
Beds Filled With Soil & Topped With Compost

Many people love the joys that come with gardening.  Are you one of them?  Think about how many gardens you’ve seen in your life and what they looked like.  A little four foot by four-foot box, a 2000 square foot in ground garden with perfectly spaced rows, hydroponic setups, or raised beds perfectly lined up it looks like a surveyor laid out the beds.  Any way you look at it, people build their gardens to their satisfaction and that’s what makes every garden out there the right design.  If it Read More …

Crop Rotation in Raised Beds

Alex Gimarc

One of the fallouts from the Alaska Master Gardener Online course has been an appreciation of crop rotation, yet another thing I haven’t been doing. This is a bit of a planning / thought piece on how to set up a workable system.   What better time to do this than in the dead of winter? Raised Beds Many years ago, I constructed three raised beds in the lowest, wettest part of the yard, affectionately referred to as ‘the swamp’. The goal was to productively use this part of the Read More …

From Rubbish To Radishes

rkboettcher

Growing up in rural Missouri, I never imagined myself ever living in rural Alaska and though there are plenty of differences, my childhood experiences have certainly prepared me for, even made me well-suited to, living off the Alaska road system. I am the product of a Depression-era father and an East German Communist escapee mother which made for an interesting combination of conservatism and organic lifestyle that many long for these days. We reduced, reused and recycled out of necessity before it came into fashion and we were taught it Read More …

Easy Way to Water with a Flow-Through Raised Bed

kemosley

Collecting garden ideas over the years has evolved into an efficient raised bed watering system. The initial concept came from an article in our electrical cooperative’s monthly magazine, Ruralite. At that point in time we were collecting rainwater from the nearly 4000 square feet of roof that covers our house, shop and sawmill shelter to water our gardens. Using rainwater to directly water by redirecting the downspout worked well, but rain comes and goes. The next addition to this model came from Cold Climate Housing Research Center’s Infiltration Planter Guide. Read More …

Elevated Bed Revision

Don Bladow

It seems the 2X2 cross pieces for the elevated beds in post 1, 2, and 3 were not quite enough to support the weight of a cubic yard of soil. I noticed that one was sagging badly on July 17th. I thought that I would have to look into that on Sunday afternoon when I got back to the church. Well by Sunday afternoon all of the squash plants were either buried under the soil that pushed out the bottom of the box or were sitting on top of the Read More …

Adaptive Gardening

Bonnie

At the end of a gardening session do you slowly rise to your feet, stretch, and feel the pains that toiling in the soil bring to your body? How many of us take the time to think about how the same activity level would affect a person with limited flexibility, one who is an amputee, or a person who is wheelchair bound? This summer I have been privileged to look at these issues from an up close and personal perspective. When we are young, bending, reaching, hauling heavy items, and Read More …

Building an Elevated Bed (off the ground) Part 1 of 3

Don Bladow

The beds I will build are actually 3 feet by 9 feet by about 9 inches deep and the tops of them are about 3 feet off the ground. This width lets you easily reach the center of the box from either side for planting, weeding, and harvesting. The height of three feet allows you to use a tall stool to sit on to do the chores required. Materials: (cost of the materials is about $130) (2) 2x12x12 construction grade pine, hemlock, or fir.             Read More …

Building an Elevated Bed (off the ground) Part 2 of 3

Don Bladow

Safety Tip: Always wear safety glasses when working with tools that could make something “fly” around. That actually means anytime your are using tools whether hand or power. You only have one set of eyes, protect them. Next cut 5 pieces of 2×2, 36 inches long. Be sure to clamp the 2×2 to the box before you cut. This is much easier than holding it and much safer even if you are using a handsaw. These will be cross supports for the box. Next we will cut the legs. Treated Read More …

Building an Elevated Bed (off the ground) Part 3 of 3

Don Bladow

Safety Tip: Always wear safety glasses when working with tools that could make something “fly” around. That actually means anytime your are using tools whether hand or power. You only have one set of eyes, protect them. Next finish setting the 2×2 attached to the ends of the box. Drill three pilot holes on each end of the box into the 2×2. One in the center and approximately 1/3 of the way to each end. Complete the attachment by fastening with 3″ screws through each pilot hole. Now you need Read More …