Raised Bed Borders

I just occured to me that those bins in the subterrainian storage space would be natural places to compost and not just store gardening stuff. All the heat from the composting under the ferrocement would heat the hotbeds. I could gather all the leaves I could in the fall and compost them steadily through the winter. I would need a vent of course I think my dryer vent could vent out there also, perhaps directly into the active composting bin. How much BTU are actually released by composting? I would guess that it wouldn't be the same as burning even if the composting was complete because there would be a lot of methane and water vapour driven off. You might have to be careful with what you used for manure in such a confined space. I think I would prefer to just store the dry stuff there, but maybe have a closed composting system where I add manure or urine to leaves and the dryer vent provided heat and oxygen and it is vented up through the hotbeds somehow. to grow vegetables through the winter, except mid-Dec to mid-Feb maybe, unless I could incorporate a green house in winter, perhaps in the patio between the house and terrace. I think I could compost all the compost I would need if I could gather 180 bushells of leaves, which is 8 cubic yards, of 4 cubic yards compressed, and 1 cubic yard shredded. I think if I did all the composting in a controlled 1 cubic yard bin, perhaps 15 bushells a week with urine and the dryer vent, I would have a cubic yard of compost by Spring.

Has anyone done that? Used a dryer vent to keep a compost bin active?

JAK -I like the idea of a terraced garden. It's a little hard to follow your plan without a photo or drawing, but it sounds interesting.

Just a couple of thoughts - your boxes don't need to be 3' deep. Most edibles do fine with half that. Also, access is an issue. I sized my boxes to allow a wheel barrow to get around. It's still a bit tight and when it comes to annual clean up and harvest, the boxes are awkward. My boxes are 4 feet wide, and 20 feet long, and I occasionally wish they were smaller. I can't quite reach across without strain, so both sides have to be worked. If you terrace and have wider beds, you may regret the size.

Instead of a buried compost pile, how about a root cellar? Compost needs a lot of air. Even if you vent your drier, you would have difficulty turning the pile and being certain the whole pile gets enough. Besides, how much do you use that drier?

Check out "4 season harvest" by Elliot ? (forgot the last name - maybe Coleman) He lives in New Hamshire or Vermont and gets produce year around. Using a row cover below a portable green house structure would give a lot of protection and enable you to get greens even in the low light times. He doesn't use boxes, but I think it will work, perhaps even better.

Has anyone used old tires for raised bed? I would love to make raised beds, but can't afford the material to make one the size that I need. But tires are everywhere for the hauling, and I was wondering if anyone was using them.
Pros / cons?
mamabear

I have used tires for raised beds. Since then, I've learned a lot about the chemicals in the tires leaching into the soil. I won't do it again.

Stacked stones do well. I've been able to always find a source for them. Definitely no toxic gick.

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[raising chickens] [diatomaceous earth] [permaculture] [rocket mass heater] [lawn care]

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Hmm, thank you for the info, Paul. I wouldn't want to use anything is poisoning us or the earth.
mamabear

We have a friend who raises potatoes every year in tires. Stacks them as he plants the eyes, easy to harvest by removing the tire in layers.

For a decent looking raised bed/retaining wall or terrace garden that costs nothing and is safe just locate some broken out sidewalk. You can break it to the size you need and stack it to the height you need. You can even get paid to break it out and haul it off.

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"Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self confidence"
Robert Frost

Good ole "urbanite" ... my father used to say "growies don't like cement!" - but that just might be when it is less than a year old. I supposed cement might have a high pH, but other than that, it seems like it would be rather inert. It can look okay - but I think that stone still looks better.

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[raising chickens] [diatomaceous earth] [permaculture] [rocket mass heater] [lawn care]

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Paul
I believe that as concrete cures, the reaction is quite mundane. I don't recall exactly, but I think the biggest effect would be pH. Crushed limestone, or lime is a common soil ammendment even in organic gardens used to lower the acidity and is the main ingredient in concrete as well. I think the worst part about concrete is the energy that goes into making the Portland.

Tires could be an entirely different issue. Do you have any links that explain the dangers?
Gary

I've read on other gardening lists that there is no problem using tires for food
growing. I have always just washed them good before using and had my soil
tested once from several tire gardens and nothing ever showed up.

HI we have raised beds in our vegetable "fortress"(it's got a 12' fence). The soil is clay, so we put a lot of lime in it. I noticed that the nice loose(for here) dirt gets deeper and deeper every year all by itself as thing grow in it--it is important to figure out the best time to dig up the bed is(I love my garden claw!!). We just put the dirt on top of the ground the first year(a compost/topsoil mix), about 10" deep within the raised bed (untreated) boards. It's been 4 years and the dirt has softened at least 12-18" below ground level. During the winter I throw the compost out over the beds, then dig it under in the spring. I also burn slash wood and spread the ash(from the stove too). I mulch with straw or moss I rip off the oaks we've logged for firewood, about 8" deep(or a flake's worth). I also dig in chicken poop about halfway thru spring. Chicken poop is awesome stuff!! Glorious tomatos and heavenly strawberries!!! By the way, as an experiment I mulched the tomatos (brandywine and sweet 100) with the flakes of straw, and I only has to water them (deeply) about three times during the whole summer.

Wild Thang--you don't have to dig those beds in the spring, just plant right down into the duff. The earthworms will do the plowing for you. They have tunnels they use and haul the 'stuff' down as much as two feet!! They spend the winter down there. They leave worm castings up near the surface. Perfect composting!! If you feel the ground needs aerating, use a tool called a broadfork. I use one on our garden beds, and DD follows and pulls out the weeds. That way, the soil tilth is not destroyed, and your back is preserved. When planting, I just use a little hand cultivator to smooth out the surface and sow the seeds.

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Best wishes,

Sandi

"Anger is an acid that does more harm to the vessel in which it is stored than to the object on which it is poured." Corrie TenBoom

I'm just starting lasange beds on a new (to us) property. I've been going out in the woods and pulling back trees that have been downed for edging. Think they'll last a couple of years, then I'll have to come up with something more permanent, but I'm really cheap and love using free stuff when I can. Plus I'm getting lots of exercise pulling rotting logs through the woods.

I know the winter is not snake season, but snakes love old logs. Be careful.