You are gonna love them. I built 4 just like it a few years ago and used the same fill method except I added cow manure on top of the wood and let the rain wash it down a little before adding the top foot. Added benefit is they have added weeks to my growing season.
Hi Goshen Farm and Gardens, We built 2 of these raised beds following your instructions. These are by far the most cost effective and easy builds on YT for sure. Thank you very much for the upload. Sure would like to see an update on how your garden did this year! cheers!
Just getting started on my raised garden bed. Very similar to what you built, but making mine U shaped and eventually modular with screen/cage or corrugated plastic for greenhouse. Thanks for the idea
Thanks for the information - I have been gardening for 35 years, now looking for a way to keep doing a small garden without the need to bend over or kneel down. This may be just the thing!
This is such great information. I love what you're doing, thank you for sharing with us. I'm a lot older than you, so built some 'elevated' beds as I found bending over to this level, to weed & such, hurt my back, and I ended up on my knees anyway (as you do towards the end). So now I stand to garden, no bending. They are beds on legs, still allowing for 1' soil depth. I'm moving, so will be building new beds again. There will be some at standing height (base sits at about 30", and I'll use sticks, mulch & then top soil/compost, and others for taller crops, I'll build like yours. Great info! Can't wait to see as the garden comes together & then the crops come in. Take care all of you.
Goshen Farm and Gardens yes! Here in Northern California were pretty much pat our first frost date...we’ve got strawberries, peas, carrots, squash, and zucchini in the ground.
This is similar to the way I do it, only I fill mine with veg scraps, grass trimmings, branches, hardwood lumber cut offs, leaves etc. I cover it all with straw and mulched leaves and let it cold compost for 12 months then plant on top. I have 7 beds at 3x12x2. I do one bed a year in succession. Your soil level will drop about 30% after a year or so , so you will need some additional compost added each year.
Even a modest yard can produce an astounding amount of food with good planning and research. I have a 55' x 70' back yard with only 30' x 30' of it in decent sunlight. I feed myself, my son, and my granddaughter almost every vegetable and herb we use in a year. Paired with a decent pressure canner and a good stock of jars, all you need to buy from the store is milk, meat, sugar, flour and coffee.
I did that on the top and bottom of mine. I also put mesh cloth on bottom before filling, to prevent voles coming up in bottom. If you have gophers in area. Would be a good idea to do that too.
I read a book on soil and the best soil that garden plants thrive in is called loam. Loam contains compost/soil, sand, clay and humus. I was surprised to read clay was part of it. You got most of that in your mix, but no clay. Now, I've never seen anyone add clay in a hügelkultur raised bed. But considering it's probably a low priced item that can be found for free or cheap to purchase, is it worth adding clay say just above your all the wood branches and chips you added? Please note, I'm not an expert, I'm just a beginner watching lots of YT vids and learning. 2nd it would be very beneficial to biochar lots of those wood chips or branches before you toss them into the raised bed. It's going to be a lot of extra work now considering you have 20 beds to fill, but man, you will probably save a lot on water in the end. Especially if there is ever a dry spell.
Hey thanks for the question. We actually do have clay in our topsoil mix. Its the top 1 foot of the bed fill. Good idea on the biochar. Hope you figure out what works for you and thanks for watching!
Thanks for the video! A few questions for you is, when the wood is decomposing, will it not rob a large portion of the nitrogen in your top 1 ft of compost/soil?? I know in the past master gardeners have stated that wood chips worked into the soil will rob the soil of N2 and will affect the plants. Please let me know how this works for you? Also the galvanized metal on the raised beds will the galvanization of the metal leach into the soil?? We are trying to go organic and heavy metal and toxic free gardening. Blessings
This is NOT a German way of gardening people have been doing this for hundreds of years all round the world. The name comes from Germany when it suddenly became fashionable. Is a good way of working though and lasts for years.
Excellent content for all of us novices! I appreciate all the good tips you share from start to finish. One suggestion: If at all possible could you number your videos so we could watch them in order. I assume you are in the Ozak's? Thanks.
Growing what we eat is key
Who would have thought we’d still be in a pandemic in 2023. These are awesome. Thanks
You are gonna love them. I built 4 just like it a few years ago and used the same fill method except I added cow manure on top of the wood and let the rain wash it down a little before adding the top foot. Added benefit is they have added weeks to my growing season.
Hi Goshen Farm and Gardens,
We built 2 of these raised beds following your instructions. These are by far the most cost effective and easy builds on YT for sure. Thank you very much for the upload.
Sure would like to see an update on how your garden did this year!
cheers!
Thank you for all your videos and great ideas.
Just getting started on my raised garden bed. Very similar to what you built, but making mine U shaped and eventually modular with screen/cage or corrugated plastic for greenhouse. Thanks for the idea
We are doing well. We hope you are doing well also. Making our very own raised beds and going to do the Hugelkultur method as well
Thanks for the information - I have been gardening for 35 years, now looking for a way to keep doing a small garden without the need to bend over or kneel down. This may be just the thing!
This is such great information. I love what you're doing, thank you for sharing with us. I'm a lot older than you, so built some 'elevated' beds as I found bending over to this level, to weed & such, hurt my back, and I ended up on my knees anyway (as you do towards the end). So now I stand to garden, no bending. They are beds on legs, still allowing for 1' soil depth. I'm moving, so will be building new beds again. There will be some at standing height (base sits at about 30", and I'll use sticks, mulch & then top soil/compost, and others for taller crops, I'll build like yours. Great info! Can't wait to see as the garden comes together & then the crops come in. Take care all of you.
Awesome Penny, get idea with building beds on legs 🤗. Let us know how your progress goes! Thanks for watching! ♥️
This is why it’s such a good system...it’s like an investment...you get to look forward to nutrient rich soil for years!
That's right. Have y'all started planting in your yet?
Goshen Farm and Gardens yes! Here in Northern California were pretty much pat our first frost date...we’ve got strawberries, peas, carrots, squash, and zucchini in the ground.
This is similar to the way I do it, only I fill mine with veg scraps, grass trimmings, branches, hardwood lumber cut offs, leaves etc. I cover it all with straw and mulched leaves and let it cold compost for 12 months then plant on top.
I have 7 beds at 3x12x2. I do one bed a year in succession.
Your soil level will drop about 30% after a year or so , so you will need some additional compost added each year.
I agree, we need to go back in planting our own food, if we have backyard.
Thanks for stopping in!
Even a modest yard can produce an astounding amount of food with good planning and research. I have a 55' x 70' back yard with only 30' x 30' of it in decent sunlight. I feed myself, my son, and my granddaughter almost every vegetable and herb we use in a year. Paired with a decent pressure canner and a good stock of jars, all you need to buy from the store is milk, meat, sugar, flour and coffee.
That soil looks really nice for growing. Love the color of the nook.
Let's hope so 😊. Thanks Jeanne!
thank you
You're welcome
you should consider a bottom-mid-brace beam for the bed.
I did that on the top and bottom of mine. I also put mesh cloth on bottom before filling, to prevent voles coming up in bottom. If you have gophers in area. Would be a good idea to do that too.
I read a book on soil and the best soil that garden plants thrive in is called loam. Loam contains compost/soil, sand, clay and humus. I was surprised to read clay was part of it. You got most of that in your mix, but no clay. Now, I've never seen anyone add clay in a hügelkultur raised bed. But considering it's probably a low priced item that can be found for free or cheap to purchase, is it worth adding clay say just above your all the wood branches and chips you added?
Please note, I'm not an expert, I'm just a beginner watching lots of YT vids and learning.
2nd it would be very beneficial to biochar lots of those wood chips or branches before you toss them into the raised bed. It's going to be a lot of extra work now considering you have 20 beds to fill, but man, you will probably save a lot on water in the end. Especially if there is ever a dry spell.
Hey thanks for the question. We actually do have clay in our topsoil mix. Its the top 1 foot of the bed fill. Good idea on the biochar. Hope you figure out what works for you and thanks for watching!
How do you keep the grass from growing through the bottom of the bed? Is it best to dig out the grass and put some landscaping paper of some sort?
The grass will not grow through from that depth..
Fall update possible? How did it produce and what failed.
Cheers
I really like this bed you came up with. Thinking about building a few. One question though. Will the bow out in the middle?
Thanks Mike! Yes, you will need to “tie” the top together with a 1x4 in the center where the middle supports are.
God bless your doing so of wonderful job along with your family
Thank you!
Thanks for the video! A few questions for you is, when the wood is decomposing, will it not rob a large portion of the nitrogen in your top 1 ft of compost/soil?? I know in the past master gardeners have stated that wood chips worked into the soil will rob the soil of N2 and will affect the plants. Please let me know how this works for you? Also the galvanized metal on the raised beds will the galvanization of the metal leach into the soil?? We are trying to go organic and heavy metal and toxic free gardening. Blessings
It’s my understanding that the metal will not leach anything into the soil if it’s a fairly neutral pH.
I was wondering if the type of wood has any effect on the project?
I have Oak and wondered if Oak would work?
Thank you anyone
LT
Yes, cedar is no good for Hugel culture. I’m not sure but I think oak is ok
Getting it done here in Indiana
Love that! Get it done Jodi 💪♥️
why not cracking the logs?
This is NOT a German way of gardening people have been doing this for hundreds of years all round the world. The name comes from Germany when it suddenly became fashionable. Is a good way of working though and lasts for years.
Does anyone have bull frogs in there area? Eighteen years ago I saw my last "splattered frog" on the swamp road and have not heard or seen one since.
We’ve got a load of bull frogs 🐸 around here
Cut to chase.
5:05 Mickey mouse?
😂 that's right
Normal isn't coming back... Jesus is!
Excellent content for all of us novices! I appreciate all the good tips you share from start to finish. One suggestion: If at all possible could you number your videos so we could watch them in order. I assume you are in the Ozak's? Thanks.