LocostUSA.com

Anybody here doing any raised platform, wicking beds with square foot gardening principles?

I built a few from 55 gallon poly drums split in half, at waist height in a 2x4 frame with deck boards around the top for a counter.

Four bricks were added to support the frp panel divider supporting about 9 inches of soil and plants above the resevoir. The center of the frp panel is cut out so a plastic pond basket can sit in the water. Weedblocker lines the interior and basket to keep the soil from falling into the resevoir. The soil in the basket stays wet, wicking water to the rest of the bed.

Each drum has two bungs with 3/4 female water hose thread in the center. The drums were split to put these at the bottom of the bed and black drip fitting plumbing was added, plumbed into a brass manifold and then to a standard waterhose, to fill all the resevoirs at the same time by cutting on the spigot. Drain holes at the full level are drilled in each drum. Once I know how often they need watering and how long it takes to fill them, I can add an automatic timer. The drain holes also prevent rain from over filling the beds.

The soil is 1/3 vermiculite. Big bags are available at feed stores. Chain stores don't have the big bags. Another 1/3 is peat moss. Again, big bags are found at feed stores. The last third is every type of compost available. I used chicken, cow, and mushroom. No fertilizer is used.

Since the soil is only 9 inches deep, the cost isn't that bad.

There is no tilling, minimal weeding, pets can't get to the vegetables/fruits, no bending to get to it, and since it is near the front door and always clean around the area, it's hard to ignore.

I've started seed already, but won't put everything outside until the end of March.
I'm planting:
Asparagus
Butternut Squash
Pumpkin
strawberries
tomatoes
Pepperocini (Pappa Johns type) Peppers
Sugar snap peas
Okra
Brussel Sprouts

I can post some pics of the beds if there is interest.

Last year, I also planted the following fruit trees:

Ischtau, black mission, alma, brown turkey fig trees
three types of cherry trees
two types of peach trees
two types of Paw Paw trees (yep, thats the actual name)
Fuyu Persimmon tree
Tilton Appricot tree
Pear tree
two Granny Smith apple trees
Persian Mulberry Tree
Mission Olive tree
Concord, cabernet Savignon, Merlot, Zinfandel grapes
Scuppernong muscadines
three types of blueberry bushes
two types of paper shell pecans

I also planted a lot of flowering and privacy trees (leyland Cypress, Pink Dogwood, Red Bud, etc) and everything seems to be doing okay.

Any green thumbs instead of just greasy?

_________________
Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12

My wife and a neighbour did a 'square foot gardening bed' within a deer cage, but on the ground rather than raised like you. They had great results the first year but not so good thereafter. I presume that your approach would involve replacing the growing media each year? I suspect that my simple addition of manure and compost each year was not enough to restore the first year's soil composition. Their bed was in the middle of the field behind my workshop, in an area that had once been a market garden - I imagine their first year soil conditions had been quite good after many years of lying fallow.

_________________
Warren
Isuzu Pickup/SR20DE, +401 COLD frame
Build Log: viewtopic.php?f=35&t=11601

I didn't expect to replace the media each year, but maybe fertilze in a couple years. The strawberries are supposed to be good for 3 or 4 years and the asparagus for about 10 years.

I had to add a loop of 6 foot, welded wire fence around the apple trees to protect them from the deer. They are 6 and 8 feet tall. I just added a stake on each side, then slipped the hoop over it. I probably won't need to protect them in a couple more years.

_________________
Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12

Vermiculite is good stuff, it seems harder to get nowadays and they put less of it in potting mix type stuff. Fig trees are fun,my neighbor is greek and gave me a couple I've been keeping going for years now. They don't get pests and grow well, which is basically ideal. Do you get winter in your parts? They won't take much freezing, but will regrow from roots. I'd like to be bale to grow mine large.

Was going to try growing my garden in bales of hay and straw, but life's other requirements got in the way the last few years. Spent last summer taking down some big trees (that's how big!) and now have more sunlight again so perhaps this year. Hope springs ever eternal...

_________________
Marcus Barrow - Car9 an open design community supported sports car for home builders!
SketchUp collection for LocostUSA: "Dream it, Build it, Drive it!"
Car9 Roadster information - models, drawings, resources etc.

I do raised dirt beds (drain to waste) for my victory garden and do my sprouting in a recirculating system though your setup sounds more like a "deep water culture" than a recirculating system.
Calcium and potassium deficiencies will probably be your biggest issue.
I've had a very good experience with the "General Organics" line in my sprouting beds but it has to be kept stirred up, I use a small aquarium pump and have the output line about 8 inches above water level so the splash keeps the water oxygenated. FoxFarms has a decent product line as well and it's not as expensive.
At minimum I suggest some fish emulsion along with some soluble "cal-mag" supplement periodically, potassium bicarb works great for potassium deficiencies.
I do annual soil amendments and every month or so add a 1/4 teaspoon per gallon of castile soap (Dr Bronners) to the water for the raised beds to prevent nutrient lockout. ..
Actually I shouldn't need to do a soil amendments this year since I added a large amount of 2 year old compost and vermiculite last fall but I haven't planted yet.
Heck I've barely finished with my winter pruning!

_________________
"There are times when a broken tool is better than a sound one, or a twisted personality more useful than a whole one.
For instance, a whole beer bottle isn't half the weapon that half a beer bottle is ..." Randall Garrett

Horizon, in Atlanta, we get about 800 chill hours and an icy storm over a few days that normal shuts everything down for a week. The last day below freezing averages about March 14. I think we won't have anymore frost this year. Figs do really well here, as do the appricots, neither of which need any spraying.

Giovanni seems to have the right recipe for northern fig trees:

http://www.messyandpicky.com/index.php/ ... -the-figs/

I enjoy Messy and Picky's blog. Here is some Paw Paw info:

http://www.messyandpicky.com/index.php/ ... 1/paw-paw/

The massive bag of vermiculite was about $20 and way cheaper than any chain store.

OldeJack, I will be picking your brain as I progress. This is all new to me.

I pretty much finished them today, soil and everything. My single line with Ts to fill all the beds didn't work so well becuase once the first bed was filled, the excess poured out the full line holes instead of going into the next bed. I'll need to add some inline valves to restrict flow to ther first ones to fill or run 6 parallel lines to a 6 port manifold.

I considered hydronics with a pump, clay balls instead of soil, with all the nutrients in the water but then I heard all the water had to be replaced every couple weeks or less. Seems like a waste.

_________________
Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12

Consider crop rotation. Some crops will replenish nutrients needed by other plants. It works well on a larger scale, anyway.

Another up and coming method in hydrofarming is raising fish in the reservoir. .. adds a meat crop in the same footprint.

_________________
"There are times when a broken tool is better than a sound one, or a twisted personality more useful than a whole one.
For instance, a whole beer bottle isn't half the weapon that half a beer bottle is ..." Randall Garrett

Interesting idea. I need to rebuild my raised beds this year as they were rather hastily put up when we moved to our place using rough cut lumber that was in the barn. I was planning on utilizing the 2' square cast concrete patio blocks that they sell everywhere. Putting them on edge with a support of cedar lumber on the top to keep them from splaying out (I have concrete silo staves as the walkways between the beds to keep the bottoms in place).

_________________
-Keith

.

Here's a link to some basic info. ..
Needless to say, I find myself very interested and am looking at the possibilities. .. might be something I try for myself.
http://www.backyardaquaponics.com/Travis/IBCofAquaponics1.pdf

_________________
"There are times when a broken tool is better than a sound one, or a twisted personality more useful than a whole one.
For instance, a whole beer bottle isn't half the weapon that half a beer bottle is ..." Randall Garrett

Thanks for the link. It will take some time to absorb that.

I've seen some really basic indoor hydroponics, using an 18 gallon tote and lid, an aquarium pump, a pond basket in the tote lid and clay ball media. I have hard water from a well that is softened with salt but I also have a bypass. I bought an extra drum to set up as a rain barrel.

I made little green house lids from 2x4 with a pvc tube across the center to provide a slope roof rather than a bowl. They are heavy enough that wind won't affect them and separate for each bed so they can easily be stored under the house, keeping the uv from destroying the plastic as quickly. I left a gap on each one to help prevent it from getting too hot in there. I can also space them upward if I need to use them with older plants.

The trellis is a compromise. The idea is not to shade the rest of the bed with the trellis. If it were on the other side of the bed, it would be in my way. I can walk under the trellis at ground level. It is 1/2" electrical conduit over rebar in the ground, with welded wire fence run vertically with a few wires bent around the conduit. Deck screws attach the upper end to the railing.

_________________
Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12

Here is an update on the garden. I was overwatering, trying to keep the resevoirs filled until I check the soil with a tester. I then drained the resevoirs and waited for it to dry out, but there is a lot of vermiculite mixed in. The soil an inch down is still too wet but everything is coping. I have not watered in about a month.

05/08. Took pics. I have not added anything but water up to this point. I just added some Holly Tone and will be looking for a change in a few weeks. The squash beds are getting refilled every few days.

I have 5 strands of sugar snaps, and try to grab one to eat raw everytime I walk by to stay ahead of the growth rate, so they don't get tough.

Wish I had a way to check the water level other than the over fill holes. I should have added pvc tubes vertical in the bed, with a cork and stick to float in to show the depth.

I also made it a bit too dense /over planted, IMHO, but as long as I stay ahead of it with water, maybe it will be okay to the end of the season.

There is a raised bed at the bottom of the trellis too, that is overflowing. It is about 2 x 10 feet and a foot high, pressure treated wood with plastic liner on the sides and over the top edge. 4x4 make the corners and middle to which the trellis attaches with U clamps.

_________________
Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12

Always nice to have fresh produce.

With what you've got setup, I'd be hard pressed to not just go full on hydro. I go the old time route of timber framed raised beds spiked anually with compost / rotate out some of the soil. I do occasionally grow hot peppers in a bubbler to great effect as well, with a single shop light and cool bulbs. (Plant sits suspended above the nutrient bath in a net pot filled with perlite, aquarium pump feeds an airstone that continuously splashes the root ball. Root systems tend to get huge. I can then easily transplant half inch thick stemmed plants with a packed gallon bucket sized root ball to soil first thing in spring.)

Huge fan of figs. Very little maintenance for such a tasty snack.

Not hydroponics but I did rebuild one of my raised beds. Did the largest and most difficult one first to try out the method. Wait...I probably should have done one of the smaller and easier ones first, huh?







The red pavers are 16” square from Menards (@2.99 when not on sale). The lighter colored side pavers are some 18” square ones that a friend gave me. Unfortunately I didn’t note the color of them when I went to get the new ones…I thought the old ones were red. So now I have a mix and have to decide what I’ll do for the other beds…do I go red or go with the grey. Oh well. The rim is made up of treated 2x4 on the sides, 1x4 cedar on the top (I didn’t want treated anywhere where it might touch the soil or the plants) and the corner braces are from 1x8 cedar. We’ll see how this works before doing any more. I noticed that they have 12" square pavers on sale for $0.99 each and I may do that for some of the smaller beds that are not on as much of a side slope.

I have a bunch of window sashes that I want to use to make a semi-permanent cold frame so that need to happen before fall.

_________________
-Keith

I love figs too. I have figs this year on the Alma, Brown Turkey, and Black Mission. I just planted Ischtau this year, but it is already established and leafing out, completely ignored. Very maintenance here as you said, like the muscadines, elderberries, and scuppernongs.

Neat design Acer! I used all pressure treated, but stapled plastic down the sides and over the top edges.

_________________
Miata UBJ: ES-2074R('70s maz pickup)
Ford IFS viewtopic.php?f=5&t=13225&p=134742
Simple Spring select viewtopic.php?f=5&t=11815
LxWxHt
360LA 442E: 134.5x46x15
Lotus7:115x39x7.25
Tiger Avon:114x40x13.3-12.6
Champion/Book:114x42x11
Gibbs/Haynes:122x42x14
VoDou:113x44x14
McSorley 442:122x46x14
Collins 241:127x46x12