Strategies for Easing Garden Maintenance in Raised Beds: Ideal Materials to Line the Base
Get More from Your Raised Beds!
Swap out the regular soil mix in your raised garden beds for a supercharged mixture, complete with added materials that’ll fend off weeds, deter pests, and even save you a few bucks! Here’s how to make your raised beds work harder for you.
Why Bother with a Base Layer?
By adding layers of organic materials and barriers at the bottom of your raised beds, you’re creating an ideal environment for your plants to thrive and for you to maintain with minimal hassle. Grow some mighty veggies and herbs without breaking the bank by incorporating these top products into the root system of your raised beds.
Bonus Benefits
Many of the items you can incorporate into the base of your raised beds can be sourced from your very own yard, kitchen, or recycling bin, all at no additional cost. Plus, these materials will gradually decompose and enrich the soil over time, making your raised beds more fertile with every passing season.
Weed and Pest Barriers
1. Cardboard
Say goodbye to weeds in your new raised bed by laying down cardboard before installing. The cardboard will smother pesky weeds, preventing them from regrowing.
2. Newspaper
To keep grass at bay, layer thick sheets of newspaper at the bottom of your raised beds. Opt for newspapers instead of magazines, as the latter may contain potentially harmful glossy inserts.
3. Weed Barrier Fabric
Avoid the mess of plastic degrading throughout your beds by using biodegradable cardboard or newspaper to suppress weeds. If you're growing near black walnut trees, consider using weed barrier fabric to reduce juglone exposure.
4. Hardware Cloth
Save your root crops, tubers, and bulbs from burrowing critters like groundhogs and voles by installing a layer of hardware cloth along the bottom of your raised beds. Made from welded wire, this fine mesh material is sturdy and effective at keeping animals at bay.
Soil Amendments
5. Sticks, Twigs, and Logs
Before filling your beds with soil, throw in some sticks, twigs, or small logs. These materials improve drainage, mimicking the principles of hugelkultur gardening, where they gradually break down and provide a slow release of nutrients.
Avoid the Gravel Trap
While gravel can help with drainage, it can negatively impact root growth and potentially create a mess in your raised beds. That's why it's best to stick with the options above.
Nutrient-Rich Options
6. Wood Chips and Mulch
Adding a thin layer of wood chips or mulch to the base of your raised beds is a budget-friendly way to boost the nutrient levels of your soil. Again, be careful not to apply these materials too thickly, as density could interfere with drainage.
7. Autumn Leaves
Rich in nutrients, autumn leaves make for an easy and free way to enhance the soil in your raised beds. If space allows, mulch leaves before adding them to your beds to speed up decomposition.
8. Compost
Usually added to the soil to improve drainage, water retention, and nutrition, compost can also be used as a base layer in raised beds. By incorporating a few inches of compost into your beds, you’ll save money on soil orders, while also giving your plants an extra boost of nutrients.
9. Other Organic Items
From pinecones and pine needles to seed-free weeds, kitchen scraps, and seaweed, just about anything organic can be thrown into a compost bin to create homemade compost. Use these items directly in your raised beds for a nutrient injection and a helping hand in filling up the space.
10. Pinecones and Pine Needles
Acidic by nature, pinecones and pine needles break down over time, becoming harmless to plants. Incorporate these materials into your raised beds for an added nutrient boost.
1. Enhance your edible gardening by starting with a supercharged base for your raised beds, utilizing organic materials and barriers to create an ideal environment for thriving plants with minimal effort.2. With many items for the base of raised beds sourced from your own yard, kitchen, or recycling bin, you can practice sustainable gardening and save money along the way.3. To live a more eco-friendly lifestyle, consider caring for your yard by using cardboard, newspaper, weed barrier fabric, or hardware cloth as natural weed and pest barriers in your raised garden beds.4. Incorporating soil amendments like sticks, twigs, logs, wood chips, mulch, autumn leaves, compost, organic items such as pinecones and pine needles can provide a nutrient-rich base for your raised beds, helping to save you money and promote healthy growth.
