Agnote

629 No. B33 May 1995 Agdex No: 250/20 ISSN No: 0157-8243

Raised Beds for Home Vegetable Gardens

K. Blackburn and M. Traynor, Horticulture Division, Darwin

The use of permanent raised beds for home vegetable growing has many advantages apart from the obvious one of providing good drainage during heavy rainfall when wet season crops are grown. Some advantages are: Easier management and access to the bed due to the concentration of the growing bed to a specific area - easier compost addition, fertiliser application, less waste. Less damage to crops from external factors such as domestic animals and children, and they do not require fencing. Beds can be constructed from relatively cheap scrap building materials such as Kliplok roofing panels although beds built from treated pine poles and sleepers are very attractive and make an excellent landscaping feature on a home block. The high density plantings of vegetables on raised beds tends to crowd out weed growth and the bed height tends to reduce disease and insect transfer from dust and weeds particularly when pathways are grassed, mown and kept moist.

2 SITE SELECTION The placement of the raised beds in the home block is important and should meet the following criteria: Build on a flat or gently sloping surface, Have good protection from drying winds, Locate the bed beyond the range of roots and shade of trees that might compete with the vegetables for light, water and nutrients, Be near a source of water for irrigation.

BED CONSTRUCTION There are three common methods of construction. These are treated pine poles (12.0 m x 0.9 m), railway sleepers (12.0 m x 1.0 m) and kliplok roofing panels (12.0 m x 1.2 m). The soil under the beds is cultivated prior to bed erection to ensure adequate drainage underneath the growing medium. A 12.0 m bed contains approximately 3.6 cubic metres of growing medium at a depth of 300 mm. Bed sides are approximately 300-400 mm high. GROWING MIX OF SOIL A suitable growing medium is made up of: 70% sandy loam soil 25% black Finnis peat (Thunder Peat) 5% processed chicken manure (ground and dried) 1.5 kg dolomite/m3 of mix.

Compost may be used instead of the expensive peat component in the growing mix. Depending on the nature of the compost and how it was developed up to 50% of the growing mix can be compost. The proportion of compost will depend on how much nitrogen was used in the breakdown of the organic matter and the type of materials used. Getting this right will only be achieved with experience and if high N composts are used, the chicken manure would have to be eliminated from the growing mix. The inclusion of 25% finnis peat in the growing mix will lead to excellent moisture holding characteristics. FERTILISER MANAGEMENT A mixture with 5% chicken manure will require very little fertiliser at all - no basal fertiliser and only two light side dressings of NPK fertiliser on the fruit and vine crops. The cabbages and leaf vegetables need no additional fertiliser at all apart from the initial inclusion of chicken manure. In a system using compost and soil with or without chicken manure very careful management of inorganic fertiliser additions will have to be carried out. Fertiliser recommendations contained in DBIRD Agnote B31, "Vegetable Fertiliser Guide for Top End Gardeners" can be followed but with caution or excess nutrients may cause fertiliser burn. The use of organic material such as high N composts and chicken manure make fertiliser recommendations difficult to determine owing to the variable nature of these organic additives. Careful observations of plant growth and

3 the experience gained over time as well as the development of a standard compost making procedure will lead to rewarding results. IRRIGATION MANAGEMENT A bed for cucurbits may be irrigated by drip-tape to prevent moisture reaching the leaves of the plants which leads to mildew problems. Other beds may be irrigated with overhead microsprinklers. A surface mulch of hay or wood chips can be used to reduce evaporation of water from the soil surface and to control weed growth. When plants are small and the weather mild the drip tapes are timed to irrigate four times per day for a total of 1.0 hr/day but this will increase up to 2-3 hours/day when the plants grow larger and temperatures and evaporation increase. Sprays irrigation beds should be watered four times per day for a total of about 40 minutes/day as they have a higher water discharge rate. Some general guidelines on irrigation are found in DBIRD Agnote D18, "An Introduction to Irrigation of Horticultural Crops". GENERAL COMMENTS It is a good policy to give all plants a drench of a complete trace element mix as well as a drench of a soluble complete fertiliser soon after transplanting to stimulate growth. Vegetable transplants can be purchased from a nursery or retail outlet or home grown using peat pellets, peat pots or the commercial system using the peatlite mix and trays (DBIRD Agnote B18, "Raising Vegetable Seedlings in Containers"). The number of say, 10.0 m long raised beds, required for the average family will depend on requirements and the amount of time available to manage the garden. One bed with high value crops such as tomatoes, capsicums, beans and spring onions and herbs may be sufficient. Low value crops such as cabbages, cauliflowers and other greens, which have to be planted progressively over time, take up a lot of bed space. Cucurbit crops (melons, cucumbers and squashes) also are low value crops and take up space but some of them can be trellised and so space can be saved. Average per capita consumption figures of a wide range of vegetables have not been compiled for Australia, to use in planning garden size. For example, it is generally accepted that 5 or 6 tomato plants is sufficient for an average family for a period of about 2 - 3 months. Careful planning is required to fully utilise the restricted growing area. Pest and disease control may be necessary from time to time. On such an intensive area leaf and fruit eating caterpillars could prove to be troublesome. Advice on pest control can be obtained from the Plant Pathology and Entomology Officers at Berrimah Farm (Telephone: 89992211).

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