You may remember back in February Woodblocx provided us with one of their raised bed kits for review. If you missed it the first part of my review is here.
The raised bed is to be sited in our restyled cold frame courtyard that is steadily taking shape. As with all garden projects the plans for this area are evolving and now we are intending to erect a new run of fencing along its boundary. We already have the two cold fames in their temporary positions as I posted here.
At the moment we are not in a position to site the raised bed in its intended position (which may change anyway) but we were itching to make use of it and so Martyn decided to set it up with the intention of moving it later.
Martyn was really impressed with the ease by which the kit was put together - thanks in part to the excellent instructions that were provided. He has posted about the construction process on his blog here.
We are both impressed by the finished product. The bed dimensions are 750mm by 1875mm and 450mm high. It took eight bags of compost to fill which will no doubt settle somewhat.
We had decided that we wanted to grow some salad crops where they would be readily available rather than just growing them on the plot. We wanted some lettuce the other day and had forgotten to pick one and things like radish are best eaten just after picking.
Our raised bed has now been planted up as shown below:
Space had been left to allow for more rows of salad leaves and radish to be sown to provide a succession harvest.
Now we just have to hope we can move the bed successfully when we are more organised and who knows we may even have room for a second bed if there is room.
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Very like mine - though I have forgotten what the dimensions of mine are! Your salad planting sounds great. A bed like that can hold quite a lot. I'm sure you will enjoy having it close at hand.
ReplyDeleteI seem to remember that yours was a bit wider Mark, How is it standing uo to the weather
DeleteIt looks great. It will be much more convenient growing salad crops at home than at the plot.
ReplyDeleteWe think so, Jo
DeleteIt looks like a good height off the ground. I have seen them advertised and looking at Martyn's construction photos it looks sturdy. I look forward to seeing it planted up. Marion
ReplyDeleteIt is a good height, Marion but you can have different heights too.
DeleteA good construction. I think the height is so ideal. The media (soil) looks so porous and fertile. I guess it will great for root or bulb crops.
ReplyDeleteThe compose may look better than oit is Endah. It;s difficult to buy good quality compost these dats.
DeleteIt looks great Sue, far easier for you to nip out for a bit of salad now!
ReplyDeleteJust need them to grow now, Jo
DeleteGood luck with the new bed. I guess I'm spoiled by having my whole garden right outside my kitchen door.
ReplyDeleteThat's ideal Daphne our plot is a car ride away.
DeleteThis is great Sue. Look very stylish for a garden too. How much are the beds to bouy??? I like the fact that it's a good size!!
ReplyDeleteWhoops...I mean buy!!
DeleteThat size is £203.26 Tanya but there are just so many sizes and shapes to choose from See this page It is certainly worth the price for the garden.
DeleteGlad someone else as finger indiscipline
Thanks Sue, I have bookmarked it for future reference. Not something I am thinking about right now but maybe next year!!
DeleteI have always had reservations about using raised beds Sue, although yours sounds ideal in that it looks stylish and is keeping salad crops in a controlled and accessible environment, I still can't reconcile this with the price.
ReplyDeleteWe don't generally use raised beds, Rick, Many people on our site put old scaffolding boards around their beds and call these raised beds. Many abandon these after a while. I think there are circumstances where raised beds serve a useful purpose e.g. in water logged ground, for those who can't get down to garden etc. Where we have our bed is in an area where to plant salads directly into the ground would be just to provide slugs and snails with a feast.
DeleteAs to cost - I wouldn't pay that for an allotment bed but the garden were the look of something is important is a different matter. Considering the quality and the fact that it is expected to last 15-20 years I don't think it is over-priced. You certainly seem to get what you pay for.
I get brochures from Woodblocx in my Gardeners’ World magazine now and then, they look great and practical! Love your seed mix, I eat all of this practically every day :-)
ReplyDeleteJust hope everything grows and avoids the slugs, Helene.
DeleteI'm not a great fan of raised beds but yours certainly look good and being used for certain areas and purposes I'm sure they are an asset.
ReplyDeleteI've had half round pine boards surrounding a lot of my allotment beds for a number of years now, not exactly raised beds but they are gradually being removed, along with some of the adjacent grass paths as they are more of a nuisance than a help.
Many people on our site start with edging boards and do away with them Rooko. The Woodblocx type ned would be great for growing alpines and bringing then up to a level where they could be better appreciated too.
DeleteHow I wish I had one of those, yours looks super! I'll look forward to seeing how everything grows in it.xxx
ReplyDeleteThe radish and salad leaves have now germinated, Snowbird.
DeleteVery stylish, Sue, and practical. I have a lot of low raised beds but they're practical rather than beautiful (the soil here is mostly clay). I'd love these as a wall around my veg patch island, rather than the concrete/brick wall that's there at the mo as I could extend the growing area!
ReplyDeleteYou can actually use the blocks for all sorts of things, Caro - it's like Lego for grown-ups. They have a Flickr site with all sorts of ideas.
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