As a hillbilly who built his raised beds for free with large stones gathered from my property, I absolutely love Kevin’s methods for gardening with no expense spared!
Personally this is too hard of labor and work for me. Totes are cheap and stop all kinds of critters, AND Here I started using Tulle, many years ago I found it at the fabric store analyzed it and knew it would work. Bird netting can kill birds, I found tulle the very very best, and SO CHEAP, and works great, cost next to nothing. Nice Video. 🙂
The main (above ground) pests in my garden beds are deer, raccoons, rabbits, opossums, rats and mice. A more in-depth video on how to construct something to exclude these from the beds but still allow easy access would be very much appreciated. I don’t have the Birdies beds yet but ones constructed from wood planks and the concrete block corners sold at HD that you slide the planks into, which means there aren’t true “corners” to the beds (difficult to describe but if you know these blocks, you’ll understand). Many thanks for your great videos, I’m always learning something new from them.
Hardware cloth does contain lead in it, when I found this out I took it out of my raised bed over concrete and opted for a wood base to hold the soil in.
I’m feeling very thankful I don’t need to worry about the ground digging pests you mentioned here in Queensland Australia. My garden pests are a few grubs, bugs, birds, and an occasional possum or rat, but mostly just ensuring my cat doesn’t treat the raised bed like a litter box. Looking forward to building a frame for some shade cloth.
I once had a inherited cat use a house plant for a litter box. I didn't see it in the act, but when you see potting soil out of the planter and soem piled up in the planter with buried evidence you know.
I had like 4 tomatoes eaten by voles a year back before we staple gunned metal mesh to the bottom of our raised bed--it was the only thing that worked. It's amazing how much food those little tiny voles will eat! XD
the hardware clother center overlap may still have the intrusion of gophers, saw them get through in a video from the next level garden homestead, i think the mesh overlap needs to be tied with a wire in a tight connection to prevent it be more aggressive with overlap and wire it up
With 4 dogs and 6 foot privacy fence all around, I don't have to worry too much about most pests, because they're scared off by the dog's scent, so I just need to deal with cabbage whites. I'm putting everything they might want to go for as well as other things that don't need to be pollinated into the same bed so I can just make hoop covers with rebar and pvc pipe and bug nets since I don't have to worry about bees getting in to pollinate.
@@Mmm...yummymummy If it wasn't clear from my initial description, nothing that goes under the bug net flowers anyway. Things like kale, brussel sprouts, carrots, asparagus, that don't produce fruit. I *want* the bees (or, more likely the case in my area, burrowing wasps) to be able to get at the flowering plants, which is why they're in other beds that don't get a net.
I had the cabbage whites last season, thanks for the tip. I had read that they are territorial and won't go when they see other whites so I cut out some shaped white paper but still had some, maybe i cut out more and a little bigger but will apply your idea as well
Great information, love the idea! I installed the half inch mesh in the bottom of my asparagus bed and I’m regretting it. The roots didn’t grow down as far as I would have liked because of the mesh. I think it would be great for other kinds of vegetables but I prefer not to do it with my asparagus bed. Hopefully you have better luck!
Best I've found that lasts is ultra fine insect mesh or screen. Be sure to read reviews when shopping, check if it tears or shreds. Get the polyethylene comes in black or white.
I use 2 layers of chicken wire on the bottom, a layer of weed fabric & 4 or 5 layers of cardboard. I do use Hugelkultur (sp) so my beds all start with logs & limbs then dead plants, weeds etc. grass clippings, then old potting soil etc. My problem is that although I can protect the bottom & put shade cloth or fabric over the top it seems that my major problem is wind. Many of my plants don't make it through the winds that we have in the Southeast panhandle of WV. I have tried a variety of things but many of the plants are not strong enough although they have been grown in my greenhouse with a fan on them from the beginning. If they make it initially they usually acclimate but its hard to get them strong enough to withstand the winds.
I follow you on ig and i came here to ask. please make more indoor plant content, my grandma passed away from cancer recently and she was a very proud plant mom. She’s had a golden pothos for 30 years! It’s older than me haha! I want to continue to take care of her plants and the replace the ones that died off during her sickness. She has an amaryllis, an aloe vera, and some bamboo that managed to stay alive. Your videos are very informative and joyful to watch. I want my own garden one day and it’s inspiring to watch you create and build, but one step at a time ❤️
My .02, I would have put the hardware cloth down first, that way it keeps the chewers from getting to the cardboard and the weed cloth. I also used 1/2" PVC, heat formed, zip ties and netting on the top. Nice back wall
OMG you literally did this video days after I put up my raised birdie beds. I searched all over your site and even reached out via email on your shopepicgardening site for instruction. I know it's probably just a coincidence, but seeing this up only days after I inquired makes me feel like you and your staff are really listening to the needs of your followers. Thank you so much for this video! Although I didn't get a chance to view it before my attempt, at least now I know I did it correctly (for the most part). I just didn't install the weed barrier, and probably should have tried to level a bit better. But hey I'm a beginner and you learn from your mistakes (LOL). I'm just thankful to see a step-by-step to keep those nasty gophers out of my beds, as they've taken over my entire back yard :(
I'm getting ready to set up my birdies. Your video is perfect timing. I couldn't decide how to put the layers down. Now I know exactly what to do. Thanks so much for all of your help!
I need this video. Had a bush turkey dig out a foot of dirt with most of my plants a few weeks ago. It was one of those 78cm raised beds. Lost a bunch of my seedlings, but managed to save the tomato I over-wintered. There were many tears shed that day.
This is a bit much for me personally, and I wanted to use my raised bed to help develop better soil and invite the earthworms that are in the soil. So I just threw down cardboard on the patchy grass and went from there. For cover to deter raccoons and possums, I use landscape fabric weighted down with bricks and concrete blocks. Obviously nothing is planted while it's covered like that.
I didn't even use cardboard ony most recent beds, I went with hugel mounds. I used a shovel to cut the grass and weeds out of my paths and flipped them over upside down onto the bed, then covered with brush decomposing logs and woodchips, then I dug my paths out 2ft deep and dumped that dirt on top of the wood layer, then I topped with about a foot of compost and granite dust. I then back filled my pathways with mulch to test a technique Diego footer has talked about
Think this video is specifically for people with serious pest problems. They mention they don't do this normally (during the part when discussing the landscape fabric).
Also, if you have ferocious weeds like Bermuda grass or bindweed, you literally cannot reuse the soil. The weed will come back if you leave so much as a .25" piece of stolon. It's rough.
We have done this same idea this year but with different materials. Rather than metal poles we used the plastic coated Metal rods that come in a selection of lengths meaning it wont rust out as theres no metal making contact with moisture but it still retains rigidity they also have a sligtly rirged texture along the poles so it easy to string out additional lines for climbers. Then on the corners we have used "Build-a balls" which the rods simply slot into but they also have the benefit of creating a smooth corner so whatever covering material you use to cover with wont snag. Ours are currently covered with bird netting as we were having issues with blackbirds and starlings coming down and digging about in the areas i just sowed seed into and also with a local cat who decided my salad bed would make a great litter box :( Not any more kitty!! The 2m lengths have made an easy fruit cage and the shorter ones I have attached a willow concertina trellis as the back wall to grow peas up.
I need to set up a greenhouse real soon, gonna do a 1' perimeter of hardware cloth in ground around it to keep pests out. Strawberries starting to flower, only another 6 weeks and pests will be after my fruits!
I have used a quality weed fabric in tat way for one of my beds because I have bindweed that always thinks they have the invitation to crash the party. I however find no need for cardboard in that case. Since worms can't get in. I put some worms I find around the yard in it.
We add mint to every bed (grows year round up here in the Mountains of San Diego) and also and carcasses left over from when we process our livestock. This also work for our in ground trees. Mint and carcasses 👌🏽👌🏽.
I also add logs and natural debris to the bottom of the planters for two reasons, takes up space so lease wasted soil, and it feeds soil over time. Kinda like Hügelkultur
In South Florida we have torpedo grass. It goes through weed barrier with ease and invaded my old beds. My new beds were sunk about 10”-12” into the ground and I haven’t had an issue with the rhizomes.
Ugh! I can’t thank you enough! We just moved to Texas near a preserve and deer are everywhere- they eat everything! I was growing potatoes and this morning came out to water and found stubs - they jumped my six ft fence to get them 🤨
Haha. Up in Michigan, the deer have eaten my mother’s begonias every year for over a decade. They’ll generously leave the hostas for the bunnies to eat too
We have deer and elk, two short fences about 4 feet apart, 9 foot fence, or 6 foot with a lean out on top are the usual methods around our parts. We also have moles, voles, and gophers..so we also dig down at least 18 inches. Our local hardware, HD, feed stores etc.. say that fencing materials keep them in business and the rest is just profit. 😂😂
I know you're selling these beds but while I do like them, I don't think the aesthetic fits my house very well so I REALLY appreciate the tips for wooden raised beds.
Ah what a relief, my cucumber seedlings was absolutely getting ravaged, at first i thought it was mice or rats but now im thinking its squirrels and was loosing my mind trying yo figure out how to combat it, guy at rhe nursery suggested coyote urine granules but those don't seem to be working, now after watching this and trying this method i feel like my cucs are gonna finally have a chance lol, thanks kevin 👍
My raised beds are set up almost identically to this, even with the hardware cloth underneath because we have a mole problem around here. I bought PVC to build a cage like you did with the metal, but I'm wondering how best to add the cloth/wire to it, while still being able to easily access the bed. I was really looking forward to you explaining that in your video...but then it just ended. Help, haha!!
I'm concerned about the gaps at the bottom of the frame where it meets the prepared bottom surface. I see light coming through here and there. We have a huge vole problem and I know they would squeeze through those gaps. The wire cloth would have to fold up inside to make a kind of basket.
Yeah our voles are like that - it needs to be Fort Knox to keep them out. We have wood beds and I'm trying to think of a way they can't climb up the sides, perhaps wrap it in a slippery metal sheeting around the bed?
We have rat problems as our house sits next to one of the Orange County regional parks. I have tried a few of these things and they do work but the problem is when it’s time to harvest your vegetables which may be weekly or even daily (picking tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, etc) it is a huge hassle to remove or get around each time. I have used hardware cloth covers that I have made to protect the seedlings and that worked to prevent rats from eating the seeds (especially corn). Bird netting, I agree with other comments, just does not work and the problem is depending on what you are growing it ends up getting tangled in the netting.
@@yolo_burrito I’ve seen these but for us having 4 dogs (two are 8-mo old puppies, one is a 17-yr old Doxie) these could be a hazard to them. We get rats up in our orange tree, as do our neighbors. The main problem is getting into the raised bed. Being we live across from a regional park it is hard to stop them. The basic cover spring traps do work, but they have to get into them first and rats are very smart. The best trap I had was when our Doxie was younger! They were bred to get small rodents and he certainly got his share! Sadly now he barely gets around.
Hoping I find a part 2 to this video (I'll hunt through more) to see how you secure the top, how to get in and out of it for plant care and watering, etc. Thanks.
Fantastic video Kevin and Jacques. Thanks so much. I was searching for a way to protect my metal beds from the squirrels groundhogs and chipmunks that climb on them. Love the conduit kit you showed. I will definitely build my frame for this year's garden. 👏👏👏
I don't like using bird netting because we have had too many experiences with birds and squirrels getting caught in it. We might try good old chicken wire this year and/or tulle fabric. I also have a pop up that will cover some of my plants, as well as cloches.
Squirrels, bunnies, birds, and raccoons are my problems . Chicken wire seems to be the only thing to keep them out. Put it on all 4 sides AND the top. Problem is... it's cumbersome to get access to the bed. This year I'm going to try making a "door" on one side with pvc covered in Chicken wire.
@@cassafrasskotter7238 , that is exactly what I am doing - putting a "door" on the cage! As for the top, the chicken wire is too short, so I hope to rig up a tulle fabric topper.
Thank you. My Birdie project will be done right after seeing this video Kevin. I can't wait. Our Michigan weather is turning a weeeee bit better, so maybe this weekend 😊🌱🌱🌱
Can you talk about how to garden around water restrictions during drought or to rely on less water in the garden? I've been thinking about getting a rain barrel but other than that not sure how to approach gardening on limited water.
Love this! I don't often get much from gardening videos after all these years, but this explanation re: setting up the frame is great & I have been passing the link around to those I have convinced to go with the metal beds. Of course, this will also work for wooden beds.
I’m curious, if you still need bees for pollination but need to avoid birds, I guess you use the bird net? I was unclear since you said something about flying bugs in that area of your video. Thanks!
How do you access your plants with all that covering. Do you attach it so it can easily be removed? Love the many ways you have thought about to keep all the animal and insect pressure at bay....nice job.
This has always been my issue. The fabrics are easy to remove but I had to use chicken wire for the squirrels, rabbits, raccoons... and was essentially locked out of my bed 🤣
We have voles here by the hundreds! I have been using hardware cloth for the past 7 years. I would have noting to eat if not for that wire mesh barrier. My cats catch a lot of them, but there are just too many here in the south.
my grandma lived in Appalachia her whole life and swore by aluminum pie pans tied to stakes to deter deer. seemed to work for her, and it's continued to work for me (in combo with other things like chicken wire)
Bird netting is good if you need pollinators to get in to get at any flowers, but it won't always keep cabbage butterflies out. So, good for strawberries, blueberries, etc. but not so good for brassicas.
After we had ground squirrels dig up our beds and such we dug them all up and put down cardboard and hardware cloth. Some beds got landscape clothes. We have 20 birdies beds so I figure if I spent that much on the beds the prep is important.
Lol mine too. He eats everything including the green tomatoes (and is very good at nibbling the strawberries off the plant!). We did something similar to this but we used the rebar and plastic tubing and made it more like hoops across the bed (cheaper and faster) and we put the bird netting on top and had to tie it on to our metal raised garden bed so he couldn't get his nose underneath the netting. And put some small barriers up (like chicken wire but more sturdy) along the sides as well for the garden beds he really liked.
i put some sticks in the ground and tied lengths of twine between them, to make a little fence. Keeps the dog out pretty much, just deters him in a different direction. Although a Lab might eat the sticks!
Electric fence netting isn't that expensive... That was the only way to reliably keep my mastiff out. Traditional training shock collars he didn't even notice. Beep vibrate or actual shock and he didn't even flinch. He only touched the netting twice now he leaves the garden alone. He REALLY liked trying to eat the bone and blood meal soil amendments killing plants to get to it on top of eating the produce
Love this idea for a bed frame but would really appreciate a video on how to raccoon proof raised beds (I have two 8’ x 2’ beds) while still allowing for easy access
My pests are tree roots! I had never even thought about it until this year when I started preparing my beds. Little thieves... I didn't want to disturb the soil too much, but it looks like I either have to suck it up and get them out or only use containers
I live in the forest and surprisingly we have few pests. I have 8 raised beds and occasionally I will find a nest of rabbits hidden in my brussels sprouts or cucumbers and the occasional blackbird harassing my tomatoes. I have a little chiweenie dog that hangs outside most of the day that enjoys chasing the blackbirds.
Also prevents the 2-legged critters from gaining access... like for weeding and other garden chores... I would have made the enclosure large enough to be able to move around the entire bed for this purpose and included an access entrance. But that's just me.
My mom's backyard puddles/floods when it rains. It doesn't rain THAT often cuz she's in South Texas but what is your suggestion to keep the beds from hindering drainage of the water that puddles? Drainage PVC pipes going through the beds at ground level so the water can pass through and down the drainage holes in the fence?
Budget Hillbilly version... Level, build up edges with whatever available material, layer from bottom with gravel and or logs, leaves, grass/green leaves, soil, manure, work in soil and manure, top with hay or mulch. Plant after a few good rains. Surround with hog wire and or chicken wire, top with nylon netting.
I'd really like to see some rhubarb growing. I haven't grown it in my area yet. I live in NH and just started growing fruit trees and things that are difficult to grow in my zone. I have a dwarf cavendish banana, dwarf valencia orange tree, dwarf gala apple tree and a montgomery cherry tree. My orange tree and banana tree are growing like crazy indoors but my cherry and gala apple being outside got forgotton about and suffered during our winter. I bought a jabuticaba tree sapling, grumichama tree sapling, and i'm really trying to grow mangosteen "the queen of fruit" trees of different varieties, so far so good they are growing indoors, slowly of course, but growing nonetheless! I have a lemon drop mangosteen, purple mangosteen, and an orange mangosteen all started as saplings so far and i love them! It'd also be cool to see if you could grow mangosteen in your area! I watched Mark Valencias self sufficient me channel and learned of you through him.
The MakerPipe stuff is great. I used some of their brackets to make a trellis tunnel spanning the walkway between 2 of my raised beds. This year I'm probably going to build a second one.
Cool! This was really helpful and it think it would deter deer for sure and maybe even the chipmunks who seem to like devouring my garden. Thank for sharing!
Great video! Our problem the last 2 years have been with javelina and raccoons. We had to surround our beds with chicken wire. They will destroy your garden in one night.
2 quick thoughts - while I use something similar for my own raised beds, Iirc, you mentioned using this bed for asparagus-wouldn't this method cause issues w/ deep rooting crops like that, or do you have some suggestions/methods for those plants to root past the cardboard/fabric? Second, for the birdees raised beds, I've taken to drilling holes right near the bottom & zip-tying the hardware cloth every 6in or so-takes the slack out & keeps burrowing pests from digging under & creating a gap between the cloth & the bed wall.
I am one tall birdie bed into my garden journey and this makes me want to reset it and start over this winter using this method. Learning so much from the channel. I am wondering if PVC pipe would work just as well as the electrical conduit since I have better access to it and it does not rust. thanks.
PVC is much more flexible especially with small diameter and thin wall schedule 40. Just make sure you test the weight that the pvc your using can hold.
I am not proud to say that I started to doze off during this video, and then the jingling of the stakes or whatever sounded like keys (my husband coming home) and startled me awake. I restarted video and it happened again and it clicked 😂 no nap for me!
I haven't gone through the whole video yet, but wanted to ask for people's opinions on how to mitigate the amount of ants in pots and raised beds? I have red ants in one potted tree, and wanted to know how to get them out without harming the tree 🙏 thank you!!
would like some information on setting up a winter garden, and rejuvenating the sail for a winter crop, Been gardening in ground until moved to a beach town with Sand rather than sail (Dirt) ugly. So working with raided garden beds. West Coast, Ocean Shores, Washington state.
As a hillbilly who built his raised beds for free with large stones gathered from my property, I absolutely love Kevin’s methods for gardening with no expense spared!
Started shopping the woods for stick that can be used for plants support and stakes
Love that! We have some really interesting lower-cost tours coming up soon on the channel too :)
I'd love to see your rock raised beds
Good idea. I have 12.5 acres with lots of rocks.
You sound like me 😂
Personally this is too hard of labor and work for me. Totes are cheap and stop all kinds of critters, AND Here I started using Tulle, many years ago I found it at the fabric store analyzed it and knew it would work. Bird netting can kill birds, I found tulle the very very best, and SO CHEAP, and works great, cost next to nothing. Nice Video. 🙂
Nothing wrong w/ that approach guys!
And tulle is so fancy too! 😊
@@BritInvLvr I love it!!!
Totes? Can you explain? I just bought sonic posts for voles 😬
IntegrityandKarma anything mesh material.
Stapling hardware cloth to the bottom of my raised beds is literally what I did and it worked like a charm against the voles we have up here.
I added it to mine this year🤞the voles did a # on my root vegetables last year so I’m hoping this will work.
The main (above ground) pests in my garden beds are deer, raccoons, rabbits, opossums, rats and mice. A more in-depth video on how to construct something to exclude these from the beds but still allow easy access would be very much appreciated. I don’t have the Birdies beds yet but ones constructed from wood planks and the concrete block corners sold at HD that you slide the planks into, which means there aren’t true “corners” to the beds (difficult to describe but if you know these blocks, you’ll understand). Many thanks for your great videos, I’m always learning something new from them.
Hardware cloth does contain lead in it, when I found this out I took it out of my raised bed over concrete and opted for a wood base to hold the soil in.
For digging pests I put garden stakes every couple of inches through the weed cloth.
I’m feeling very thankful I don’t need to worry about the ground digging pests you mentioned here in Queensland Australia. My garden pests are a few grubs, bugs, birds, and an occasional possum or rat, but mostly just ensuring my cat doesn’t treat the raised bed like a litter box. Looking forward to building a frame for some shade cloth.
I once had a inherited cat use a house plant for a litter box. I didn't see it in the act, but when you see potting soil out of the planter and soem piled up in the planter with buried evidence you know.
I had like 4 tomatoes eaten by voles a year back before we staple gunned metal mesh to the bottom of our raised bed--it was the only thing that worked. It's amazing how much food those little tiny voles will eat! XD
the hardware clother center overlap may still have the intrusion of gophers, saw them get through in a video from the next level garden homestead, i think the mesh overlap needs to be tied with a wire in a tight connection to prevent it be more aggressive with overlap and wire it up
Yep, or stake the overlapping sections like you do the landscape fabric
With 4 dogs and 6 foot privacy fence all around, I don't have to worry too much about most pests, because they're scared off by the dog's scent, so I just need to deal with cabbage whites. I'm putting everything they might want to go for as well as other things that don't need to be pollinated into the same bed so I can just make hoop covers with rebar and pvc pipe and bug nets since I don't have to worry about bees getting in to pollinate.
I got no pollen and I hsve no bug net. We r getting very short on bees.
@@Mmm...yummymummy If it wasn't clear from my initial description, nothing that goes under the bug net flowers anyway. Things like kale, brussel sprouts, carrots, asparagus, that don't produce fruit. I *want* the bees (or, more likely the case in my area, burrowing wasps) to be able to get at the flowering plants, which is why they're in other beds that don't get a net.
I had the cabbage whites last season, thanks for the tip. I had read that they are territorial and won't go when they see other whites so I cut out some shaped white paper but still had some, maybe i cut out more and a little bigger but will apply your idea as well
Great information, love the idea! I installed the half inch mesh in the bottom of my asparagus bed and I’m regretting it. The roots didn’t grow down as far as I would have liked because of the mesh. I think it would be great for other kinds of vegetables but I prefer not to do it with my asparagus bed. Hopefully you have better luck!
Best I've found that lasts is ultra fine insect mesh or screen. Be sure to read reviews when shopping, check if it tears or shreds. Get the polyethylene comes in black or white.
I use 2 layers of chicken wire on the bottom, a layer of weed fabric & 4 or 5 layers of cardboard. I do use Hugelkultur (sp) so my beds all start with logs & limbs then dead plants, weeds etc. grass clippings, then old potting soil etc. My problem is that although I can protect the bottom & put shade cloth or fabric over the top it seems that my major problem is wind. Many of my plants don't make it through the winds that we have in the Southeast panhandle of WV. I have tried a variety of things but many of the plants are not strong enough although they have been grown in my greenhouse with a fan on them from the beginning. If they make it initially they usually acclimate but its hard to get them strong enough to withstand the winds.
I have been gardening for 3 years, and I just discovered your channel. Thank you gardening dad.
I follow you on ig and i came here to ask. please make more indoor plant content, my grandma passed away from cancer recently and she was a very proud plant mom. She’s had a golden pothos for 30 years! It’s older than me haha! I want to continue to take care of her plants and the replace the ones that died off during her sickness. She has an amaryllis, an aloe vera, and some bamboo that managed to stay alive. Your videos are very informative and joyful to watch. I want my own garden one day and it’s inspiring to watch you create and build, but one step at a time ❤️
My .02, I would have put the hardware cloth down first, that way it keeps the chewers from getting to the cardboard and the weed cloth. I also used 1/2" PVC, heat formed, zip ties and netting on the top. Nice back wall
OMG you literally did this video days after I put up my raised birdie beds. I searched all over your site and even reached out via email on your shopepicgardening site for instruction. I know it's probably just a coincidence, but seeing this up only days after I inquired makes me feel like you and your staff are really listening to the needs of your followers. Thank you so much for this video! Although I didn't get a chance to view it before my attempt, at least now I know I did it correctly (for the most part). I just didn't install the weed barrier, and probably should have tried to level a bit better. But hey I'm a beginner and you learn from your mistakes (LOL). I'm just thankful to see a step-by-step to keep those nasty gophers out of my beds, as they've taken over my entire back yard :(
I'm getting ready to set up my birdies. Your video is perfect timing. I couldn't decide how to put the layers down. Now I know exactly what to do. Thanks so much for all of your help!
I need this video. Had a bush turkey dig out a foot of dirt with most of my plants a few weeks ago. It was one of those 78cm raised beds. Lost a bunch of my seedlings, but managed to save the tomato I over-wintered. There were many tears shed that day.
This is a bit much for me personally, and I wanted to use my raised bed to help develop better soil and invite the earthworms that are in the soil. So I just threw down cardboard on the patchy grass and went from there. For cover to deter raccoons and possums, I use landscape fabric weighted down with bricks and concrete blocks. Obviously nothing is planted while it's covered like that.
I didn't even use cardboard ony most recent beds, I went with hugel mounds. I used a shovel to cut the grass and weeds out of my paths and flipped them over upside down onto the bed, then covered with brush decomposing logs and woodchips, then I dug my paths out 2ft deep and dumped that dirt on top of the wood layer, then I topped with about a foot of compost and granite dust. I then back filled my pathways with mulch to test a technique Diego footer has talked about
Think this video is specifically for people with serious pest problems. They mention they don't do this normally (during the part when discussing the landscape fabric).
@@ra2bk Yes. Here in Southern California, gophers are a serious problem. The metal mesh is usually efficacious in keeping them out of vegetable beds.
Also, if you have ferocious weeds like Bermuda grass or bindweed, you literally cannot reuse the soil. The weed will come back if you leave so much as a .25" piece of stolon. It's rough.
We have done this same idea this year but with different materials. Rather than metal poles we used the plastic coated Metal rods that come in a selection of lengths meaning it wont rust out as theres no metal making contact with moisture but it still retains rigidity they also have a sligtly rirged texture along the poles so it easy to string out additional lines for climbers. Then on the corners we have used "Build-a balls" which the rods simply slot into but they also have the benefit of creating a smooth corner so whatever covering material you use to cover with wont snag.
Ours are currently covered with bird netting as we were having issues with blackbirds and starlings coming down and digging about in the areas i just sowed seed into and also with a local cat who decided my salad bed would make a great litter box :( Not any more kitty!! The 2m lengths have made an easy fruit cage and the shorter ones I have attached a willow concertina trellis as the back wall to grow peas up.
We used ground cover and wire mesh on the bottom.
I need to set up a greenhouse real soon, gonna do a 1' perimeter of hardware cloth in ground around it to keep pests out.
Strawberries starting to flower, only another 6 weeks and pests will be after my fruits!
I have used a quality weed fabric in tat way for one of my beds because I have bindweed that always thinks they have the invitation to crash the party. I however find no need for cardboard in that case. Since worms can't get in. I put some worms I find around the yard in it.
You need 1/4" hardware cloth for voles, the 1/2" will just make them chuckle manically as they gorge themselves on your sweet potatoes.
Asparagus has 10 ft plus roots. Don't use landscape fabric. Use cardboard
Why shouldn't you use landscape fabric? Wouldn't the roots be able to pass through if needed? Or is it another reason?
Using the shade cloth is a must for super hot grow zones.
كل عام وأنتم جميعا بخير وسلام
هاني منسي كاتب، ناقد أدبي وفني، مدرب، معلم خبير لغة إنجليزية
Great job
Mosquito netting works great as a cover during warm weather. In the fall, I switch to greenhouse plastic.
Working on installing my maker kit now. You guys make it look easy. It is easier with 2 people, but there is a learning curve.
If I use hardware cloth around the frame (to keep out rats and opossums) using zip ties, how would I access the food in my garden beds?
My son built a door frame for my purpose
Just upgraded to these beds this planting season and love this framing idea just simply for the shade cloth. Thanks for sharing! :)
I was going to use chicken wire on the bottom of my raised beds. Going to see how much that hardware cloth costs. Great ideas!
We add mint to every bed (grows year round up here in the Mountains of San Diego) and also and carcasses left over from when we process our livestock. This also work for our in ground trees. Mint and carcasses 👌🏽👌🏽.
I also add logs and natural debris to the bottom of the planters for two reasons, takes up space so lease wasted soil, and it feeds soil over time. Kinda like Hügelkultur
In South Florida we have torpedo grass. It goes through weed barrier with ease and invaded my old beds. My new beds were sunk about 10”-12” into the ground and I haven’t had an issue with the rhizomes.
Ugh! I can’t thank you enough! We just moved to Texas near a preserve and deer are everywhere- they eat everything! I was growing potatoes and this morning came out to water and found stubs - they jumped my six ft fence to get them 🤨
Haha. Up in Michigan, the deer have eaten my mother’s begonias every year for over a decade. They’ll generously leave the hostas for the bunnies to eat too
We have deer and elk, two short fences about 4 feet apart, 9 foot fence, or 6 foot with a lean out on top are the usual methods around our parts. We also have moles, voles, and gophers..so we also dig down at least 18 inches. Our local hardware, HD, feed stores etc.. say that fencing materials keep them in business and the rest is just profit. 😂😂
6:40 devastating combo; match made in heaven!
I know you're selling these beds but while I do like them, I don't think the aesthetic fits my house very well so I REALLY appreciate the tips for wooden raised beds.
Ah what a relief, my cucumber seedlings was absolutely getting ravaged, at first i thought it was mice or rats but now im thinking its squirrels and was loosing my mind trying yo figure out how to combat it, guy at rhe nursery suggested coyote urine granules but those don't seem to be working, now after watching this and trying this method i feel like my cucs are gonna finally have a chance lol, thanks kevin 👍
My raised beds are set up almost identically to this, even with the hardware cloth underneath because we have a mole problem around here. I bought PVC to build a cage like you did with the metal, but I'm wondering how best to add the cloth/wire to it, while still being able to easily access the bed. I was really looking forward to you explaining that in your video...but then it just ended. Help, haha!!
I felt the same way! Step by step options for how to attach the shade cloth would be great!!
I'm concerned about the gaps at the bottom of the frame where it meets the prepared bottom surface. I see light coming through here and there. We have a huge vole problem and I know they would squeeze through those gaps. The wire cloth would have to fold up inside to make a kind of basket.
Drill holes into the bottom of the bed every 6in or so (if it's a metal bed) & zip tie or twist wire to lock the hardware cloth to the bed
Yeah our voles are like that - it needs to be Fort Knox to keep them out. We have wood beds and I'm trying to think of a way they can't climb up the sides, perhaps wrap it in a slippery metal sheeting around the bed?
We have rat problems as our house sits next to one of the Orange County regional parks. I have tried a few of these things and they do work but the problem is when it’s time to harvest your vegetables which may be weekly or even daily (picking tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, etc) it is a huge hassle to remove or get around each time.
I have used hardware cloth covers that I have made to protect the seedlings and that worked to prevent rats from eating the seeds (especially corn).
Bird netting, I agree with other comments, just does not work and the problem is depending on what you are growing it ends up getting tangled in the netting.
Look up Goodnature A24. Pricey but effective
@@yolo_burrito I’ve seen these but for us having 4 dogs (two are 8-mo old puppies, one is a 17-yr old Doxie) these could be a hazard to them. We get rats up in our orange tree, as do our neighbors. The main problem is getting into the raised bed. Being we live across from a regional park it is hard to stop them. The basic cover spring traps do work, but they have to get into them first and rats are very smart.
The best trap I had was when our Doxie was younger! They were bred to get small rodents and he certainly got his share! Sadly now he barely gets around.
Hoping I find a part 2 to this video (I'll hunt through more) to see how you secure the top, how to get in and out of it for plant care and watering, etc. Thanks.
I'm looking for this too!
Fantastic video Kevin and Jacques. Thanks so much. I was searching for a way to protect my metal beds from the squirrels groundhogs and chipmunks that climb on them. Love the conduit kit you showed. I will definitely build my frame for this year's garden. 👏👏👏
Perfect timing on this video! I just ordered my first ever Birdies raised bed from you this week!
Please do a video on getting rid of Corn Borers!!!! I have such a terrible problem with them here in Oklahoma! And I love growing my own corn!
I don't like using bird netting because we have had too many experiences with birds and squirrels getting caught in it. We might try good old chicken wire this year and/or tulle fabric. I also have a pop up that will cover some of my plants, as well as cloches.
Same here, squirrels are my biggest adversary and I will need wire. They will get through the cloth in a heartbeat.
Squirrels, bunnies, birds, and raccoons are my problems . Chicken wire seems to be the only thing to keep them out. Put it on all 4 sides AND the top. Problem is... it's cumbersome to get access to the bed. This year I'm going to try making a "door" on one side with pvc covered in Chicken wire.
@@cassafrasskotter7238 , that is exactly what I am doing - putting a "door" on the cage! As for the top, the chicken wire is too short, so I hope to rig up a tulle fabric topper.
Thank you. My Birdie project will be done right after seeing this video Kevin. I can't wait. Our Michigan weather is turning a weeeee bit better, so maybe this weekend 😊🌱🌱🌱
Can you talk about how to garden around water restrictions during drought or to rely on less water in the garden? I've been thinking about getting a rain barrel but other than that not sure how to approach gardening on limited water.
Use mulch.
This will be very helpful. I’m tired of losing seedlings to birds
Love this! I don't often get much from gardening videos after all these years, but this explanation re: setting up the frame is great & I have been passing the link around to those I have convinced to go with the metal beds. Of course, this will also work for wooden beds.
the earth is about pests and other living animals. Really many of the are quite good for the gardens.
I’m curious, if you still need bees for pollination but need to avoid birds, I guess you use the bird net? I was unclear since you said something about flying bugs in that area of your video. Thanks!
I use cardboard in my front yard where we have large rocks. Those gophers are Caddy Shack stubborn.
Fabric will prevent earthworms and may hinder drainage. Hardware cloth is all you need to keep out gophers and moles.
I totally just did this! Exempt my order was different but same three layers! Yeah me lol
"Deer and other flying pests" -Love it
I loved this video! It has given me more ideas and learning how to use the conduit with the brackets is very helpful!
What are your thoughts about wicking beds? And will you be converting any of the raised beds to wicking beds? 😊 Perth, western Australia
How do you access your plants with all that covering. Do you attach it so it can easily be removed? Love the many ways you have thought about to keep all the animal and insect pressure at bay....nice job.
This has always been my issue. The fabrics are easy to remove but I had to use chicken wire for the squirrels, rabbits, raccoons... and was essentially locked out of my bed 🤣
Thanks for the great tip on electrical conduit! I've been using pvc pipe, but it's a bit flimsy for my tomato trellises.
We have voles here by the hundreds! I have been using hardware cloth for the past 7 years. I would have noting to eat if not for that wire mesh barrier. My cats catch a lot of them, but there are just too many here in the south.
Great video! How about ants in containers, for example? I’m getting desperate to get rid of them
We'll do a full video on ants - they deserve their own!
@@epicgardening thank you!
Please!!!!!
Borax
look up borax and sugar for
ants. it works
my grandma lived in Appalachia her whole life and swore by aluminum pie pans tied to stakes to deter deer. seemed to work for her, and it's continued to work for me (in combo with other things like chicken wire)
I wonder if it reflects sound back at them? That would be unnerving, I think.
@CWorgen5732 yep. When the blow in the wind it makes a bang sound. Plus they dislike the flash it sometimes makes in the sun, like birds.
Bird netting is good if you need pollinators to get in to get at any flowers, but it won't always keep cabbage butterflies out. So, good for strawberries, blueberries, etc. but not so good for brassicas.
“Deer or other flying pests?” Did you move up to the north pole?
I really wanna make a raised bed but materials are pretty expensive over here. this is really helpful.
Logs or rocks piled up to hold the soil is all you need. Raised beds don't have to be expensive, there are no good excuses
😉
After we had ground squirrels dig up our beds and such we dug them all up and put down cardboard and hardware cloth. Some beds got landscape clothes.
We have 20 birdies beds so I figure if I spent that much on the beds the prep is important.
Any thoughts on keeping a lab out? He is the biggest pest I deal with.
Lol mine too. He eats everything including the green tomatoes (and is very good at nibbling the strawberries off the plant!). We did something similar to this but we used the rebar and plastic tubing and made it more like hoops across the bed (cheaper and faster) and we put the bird netting on top and had to tie it on to our metal raised garden bed so he couldn't get his nose underneath the netting. And put some small barriers up (like chicken wire but more sturdy) along the sides as well for the garden beds he really liked.
i put some sticks in the ground and tied lengths of twine between them, to make a little fence. Keeps the dog out pretty much, just deters him in a different direction. Although a Lab might eat the sticks!
Electric fence netting isn't that expensive... That was the only way to reliably keep my mastiff out. Traditional training shock collars he didn't even notice. Beep vibrate or actual shock and he didn't even flinch. He only touched the netting twice now he leaves the garden alone.
He REALLY liked trying to eat the bone and blood meal soil amendments killing plants to get to it on top of eating the produce
We had to fence the whole garden here. It keeps out the dog and the ducks too.
Love this idea for a bed frame but would really appreciate a video on how to raccoon proof raised beds (I have two 8’ x 2’ beds) while still allowing for easy access
My pests are tree roots! I had never even thought about it until this year when I started preparing my beds. Little thieves... I didn't want to disturb the soil too much, but it looks like I either have to suck it up and get them out or only use containers
half inch hardware cloth entails the size of the squares
This frame is genius, definitely adopting when I put my next 4 beds in!
I live in the forest and surprisingly we have few pests. I have 8 raised beds and occasionally I will find a nest of rabbits hidden in my brussels sprouts or cucumbers and the occasional blackbird harassing my tomatoes. I have a little chiweenie dog that hangs outside most of the day that enjoys chasing the blackbirds.
Also prevents the 2-legged critters from gaining access... like for weeding and other garden chores... I would have made the enclosure large enough to be able to move around the entire bed for this purpose and included an access entrance. But that's just me.
My mom's backyard puddles/floods when it rains. It doesn't rain THAT often cuz she's in South Texas but what is your suggestion to keep the beds from hindering drainage of the water that puddles? Drainage PVC pipes going through the beds at ground level so the water can pass through and down the drainage holes in the fence?
I wish I had seen this video before I set up my raised beds. I gave up when voles destroyed everything.
Stainless steel hardware cloth would be AMAZING!
Budget Hillbilly version...
Level, build up edges with whatever available material, layer from bottom with gravel and or logs, leaves, grass/green leaves, soil, manure, work in soil and manure, top with hay or mulch. Plant after a few good rains. Surround with hog wire and or chicken wire, top with nylon netting.
How do you stop ants from living inside the bed?
Cayenne pepper
Cinnamon. They avoid it
Aha just shot a couple of squirrels. Digging up my Japanese wisteria. Couldn’t time it better thanks Kevin!
I'd really like to see some rhubarb growing. I haven't grown it in my area yet. I live in NH and just started growing fruit trees and things that are difficult to grow in my zone. I have a dwarf cavendish banana, dwarf valencia orange tree, dwarf gala apple tree and a montgomery cherry tree. My orange tree and banana tree are growing like crazy indoors but my cherry and gala apple being outside got forgotton about and suffered during our winter. I bought a jabuticaba tree sapling, grumichama tree sapling, and i'm really trying to grow mangosteen "the queen of fruit" trees of different varieties, so far so good they are growing indoors, slowly of course, but growing nonetheless! I have a lemon drop mangosteen, purple mangosteen, and an orange mangosteen all started as saplings so far and i love them! It'd also be cool to see if you could grow mangosteen in your area! I watched Mark Valencias self sufficient me channel and learned of you through him.
The MakerPipe stuff is great. I used some of their brackets to make a trellis tunnel spanning the walkway between 2 of my raised beds. This year I'm probably going to build a second one.
I love the beautiful wall in the background
Cool! This was really helpful and it think it would deter deer for sure and maybe even the chipmunks who seem to like devouring my garden. Thank for sharing!
Great video! Our problem the last 2 years have been with javelina and raccoons. We had to surround our beds with chicken wire. They will destroy your garden in one night.
Perfect timing. Need to install my Birdies beds.
Excellent video... thanks ... I am enjoying my 4 Birdy Beds I got from you..thanks.
2 quick thoughts - while I use something similar for my own raised beds, Iirc, you mentioned using this bed for asparagus-wouldn't this method cause issues w/ deep rooting crops like that, or do you have some suggestions/methods for those plants to root past the cardboard/fabric?
Second, for the birdees raised beds, I've taken to drilling holes right near the bottom & zip-tying the hardware cloth every 6in or so-takes the slack out & keeps burrowing pests from digging under & creating a gap between the cloth & the bed wall.
I was thinking the same thing on asparagus. I would have thought he would have used the tall bed.
@@dianeallred9288 even then it wouldn't really be deep enough
You just solved the only issue I have with my birdies beds - the inability to secure a trellis to it. I see a project in my future lol
Awesome tips and tricks for raised bed gardening! Planning on implementing these techniques in our gardens this year ♡
How do you get to the garden to work on it once you've surrounded it in netting though?
I am one tall birdie bed into my garden journey and this makes me want to reset it and start over this winter using this method. Learning so much from the channel. I am wondering if PVC pipe would work just as well as the electrical conduit since I have better access to it and it does not rust. thanks.
PVC is much more flexible especially with small diameter and thin wall schedule 40. Just make sure you test the weight that the pvc your using can hold.
@@yolo_burrito ok thanks for that... perhaps i'll back it up with something inside.
would the landscape fabric help with "grubs"?
I am not proud to say that I started to doze off during this video, and then the jingling of the stakes or whatever sounded like keys (my husband coming home) and startled me awake. I restarted video and it happened again and it clicked 😂 no nap for me!
Looks good! Creative yet practical. Happy Gardening!
The ground where I live is mostly limestone and hard-packed dirt-would I still need a triple layer under my raised bed? What about beneficial bugs?
I haven't gone through the whole video yet, but wanted to ask for people's opinions on how to mitigate the amount of ants in pots and raised beds? I have red ants in one potted tree, and wanted to know how to get them out without harming the tree 🙏 thank you!!
Ahhhhh!!! This is the video I needed TODAY and here it is! Thank you!
would like some information on setting up a winter garden, and rejuvenating the sail for a winter crop, Been gardening in ground until moved to a beach town with Sand rather than sail (Dirt) ugly. So working with raided garden beds. West Coast, Ocean Shores, Washington state.