By Barbara Fahs
When it comes to designing a garden, the old adage “keep it simple” is sage advice. Starting small is wise, both for the budget as well as for the amount of work and time it will take.
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Hydroponics: Growing your own organic vegetable and fruit garden can be an exciting and rewarding way to stay healthy and obtain essential minerals, vitamins and nutrients through fresh produce.
You needn’t prepare your entire yard before you build flower and vegetable garden beds – concentrate on the areas where the beds will go. Raised beds are an excellent solution to poor soil, rocky areas, and patches of old, weedy lawn that you want to transform. Plan to make raised beds three to four feet wide and as long as you want them. However, if a bed will exceed 10 feet or so, it’s good to consider breaking it into two beds to allow easier access around it. One of the benefits of a raised bed is that it enables you to reach into its center without ever needing to step on the soil inside the bed. This keeps the soil light, fluffy and well aerated, which benefits the plants.
Before you build your beds, evaluate the amount of sun in different areas of your yard. Most vegetables and flowers need six hours or more of direct sunlight each day. Shadier areas are perfect for plants that thrive under lower light conditions, such as hostas and impatiens.
First, mow or weed the areas you’ll use for your garden. Mark the locations where your raised beds will go and then lay sheets of flattened cardboard on top of the cut weeds or lawn.
Don’t forget to design pathways. Paths can inspire you and add beauty to the garden: think of making curved paths or perhaps build circular beds with paths surrounding them. Your paths can be bare dirt, shredded bark, sawdust, gravel or part of the existing lawn. Make sure your pathways are wide enough for comfortable passage-no one likes squeezing through cramped spaces.
Steps can also add an elegant touch to your outdoor paradise. Try to design them smooth and large and to ascend gently with a rise of 6 inches or less; otherwise, they could seem daunting to your visitors. You are limited only by your imagination, build what you like and what your budget allows.
You can build wooden, rock or brick frames for your beds or, optionally, just place layers of organic materials on top of the cardboard. Use compost, topsoil, peat moss, chopped up plant parts, fallen leaves, grass clippings and other organic materials you have.
Keep in mind the types of plants you will be growing in each bed as you build it. Small plants such as herbs, annual flowers and some vegetables such as lettuce don’t need a lot of soil for their roots, so build their beds 4 to 6 inches deep. For larger plants, such as fruit trees, build your raised beds as deep as 3 or four feet.
When planting time arrives, choose taller plants for the rear edge of your beds and shorter plants toward the front. Try to plant tall plants on the north border of your property and on the north side of beds to avoid shading other plants that love lots of sun. You may also want to consider planting a blended garden which weaves edible and ornamental plants in the same garden bed. In this type of garden, you could use fruit-bearing trees and shrubs to provide structure, color, and privacy while mingled with vegetables, herbs, and perennials which you could use for your kitchen.
The pictures are really good, thanx for writing this blog in detail. The guidelines are really useful.
Posted by: Propylene Glycol | October 30, 2012 at 12:46 AM