Constructing a Raised Bed Vegtable Garden For A Patio Garden

[AbattoirDream]

never use that membrain CRAP..

im having to rip a shitload up out of my nans garden at the moment, its KILLED the earth underneathe it, and hasnt stopped any weeds as they are happy to grow on top of it anyway.. dont use it.

[gjimarez2]

would a raised bed of 1' deep x 2' wide x 5' in length be plenty for a tomatoe gared?

[rickvanman]

@gjimarez2  Tomato grow bags are much shallower than that, and tomatoes thrive in them, so I don't see why not.

[woollywizook]

Hi - Useful video. I am going to make a couple of similar beds for my patio. Just wondering why you put rubble bags in - won't that prevent the bed from draining? Do they go on top of the polythene?

thanks

[rickvanman]

Hi.

The lining of the beds is to prevent the treated wood from touching against the soil and leaching chemicals into it (not good if you are growing food to eat). It should also help the wood to last longer without rotting.

You need to drill holes in the plastic and base to ensure good drainage.

[nj4x4fever2]

Rick Your quite an amazing person, thanks for sharing this video with us. I will be making a organic garden for my family soon and your ideas are fantastic.

[silverpizza100]

with a router you could have done some duck tails and lego the pieces of wood, but I have OCD. :O)

[branaginslaw]

Won't the base rot?

[rickvanman]

Probably, but i'm hoping i'tll last at least one season just to try out this idea. I'll fit a better one next season.

[ziggyhuys]

@rickvanman Hi Rick, first of all I'm thanking you for sharing all this usefulli nformation with us, I'm planning on my own small starter microgarden.What I was wondering about your raised bed garden plan is how one can prevent rot to the soil with it being "sealed" from the air, shouldn't one add some kind of drainage system or holes in the bottom with a flow-off even?

[ziggyhuys]

@rickvanman Have you had any rot problems?And if so how did oyu solve them?

Many thanks for all that you've thought me so far Rick, keep it up!

[rickvanman]

@ziggyhuys no rot - the wood is treated, and the soil is sitting in polythene and not in direct contact with the soil. Rekon these will be good for at least 5 years.

[outithewoods]

you sure thats for plants and not a body :0)

[rickvanman]

LOL! got both options available :o) so nobody better upset me or they'll be compost!

[BroBryce2009]

I have to say Rick, you're inspiring me to get doing some serious projects.  Thanks man.

[rickvanman]

Great! Go for it, I challenge you :o) we can compare yields at the end of the growing season.

[MindPower009]

LOL doubt it Rick, I have a brown thumb. But I'm handy with tools and wood, so I'm gonna take on some other stuff for sure this year.

[TomfarneyProductions]

Had lots of interest in the script Rick. Very surprised and pleased. I hope we see some completed shorts online soon. Thanks again Rick.

[johnny102marvin]

I am going to make a square foot raised garden also. But, I am going to use cinder blocks instead of wood. Because the wood will deteriorate, but the cinder blocks will be available season after season.

[rickvanman]

The cinder blocks look like a great idea. Be sure to let me know how you get on with them. Not sure they'd work on a patio though as the drainage won't be sifficient, unless there's a way around it - maybe laying them on a bed of gravel perhaps?

[SelfSufficientEire]

CInder blocks are porous. I used thme myself with great success (800 of them.) They're good because you canmake them any shape you like and they're 9" high which is enough for most things, even on concrete.

[rickvanman]

Cant seem to find any suppluiers in the uk

[SelfSufficientEire]

Cinder blocks = 9" concrete cavity blocks to you and me. It's an americanism. You can get them in B&Q or wickes. etc. About £1 each.

[rickvanman]

thanks for the tip - still having trouble finding them in the UK.

Worst case scenario when it comes to replacing the wood beds - I may look at building my own concrete ones.

[TomfarneyProductions]

They are the standard blocks they build interior walls out of. You can get them anywhere.Have you been drinking again? :-)

[rickvanman]

LOL - yep! Are you talking about the lightweight rectanglar (but solid) breeze blocks, or the concrete thingys with the big square holes in the middle?

I can find the breeze blocks no probs, but not the blocks with the holes in them.

[TomfarneyProductions]

That's odd. You can use both but the ones with the holes (9" cavity blocks) are best as you can plant stuff in the holes like herbs etc.

I plant companion plants to keep pests away. Like frnech marigolds , spring onions and carrots (on appropriate bed)

[clatterowls]

nice video rick!

not quite the same without " hi guys hope your having a great day" but still a good video as always :P

[rickvanman]

LOL! sorry, I figured any vids featured on my website & reaching the wider public probably wouldn't appreciate that kind of intro.

I'll keep it up on my regular vids though if it makes you happy :o)

[clatterowls]

yea i thought that was the reason!! and yes it defo makes me happy! wicked video again rick!

[RBproductions10]

rick we have exactly 2 of these alread.. ill do a video of them tomorrow and post it as a video response :)

[rickvanman]

Looking forward to seeing a vid :o)

[iStonner]

Great video Rick. Have you had a hair cut? lol!

[rickvanman]

Not in this video, but the next one will be shocking!

[troglodyte3344]

That was sweet. bet your neighbours thought you was making a coffin.

[55022RSG]

Very good rick =D i really want to try this

[rickvanman]

Go for it - it's quite hard work - harder than it looks, but you only have to do it once (until the wood rots and you have to start again!)

[55022RSG]

unless you treat it with wood varnish =P

[nkey01]

Looks really good, thanks for make the video.

[rickvanman]

LOL! I'll bear that in mind :o)

[baddogonline]

Now that's how to make a "how-to" video. Nice Job!

[rickvanman]

Thanks :o)

[MicheleMidnight]

i love learning stuff and you always provide!

[rickvanman]

Always my pleasure :o)

[MrSmallButBrave]

the quality of this video is great!

[rickvanman]

Thank you :o)

[justjoemusic]

cool idea! just favourited it and will have a go at making one next week :D

[rickvanman]

Nice one! good luck with it Joe.  It does take a bit of time to do.

I discovered today when buildng the second one that its just as good and a lot faster/easier to use nails to initially hold the layers together (before screwing in the bigger wood stays)

[justjoemusic]

Thanks.. will have a go at building it Weds/Thurs depending on the weather and if I can get the garden cleared up haha! thanks for the tip using nails... will probably film myself make it (or rather mess it up haha) and i will post it to you.

[rickvanman]

Sounds like a plan! Just finished them off today - it was freezing outside! Problem is, the growing season begins really soon, so it means working in the cold weather to get it all ready in time.

Be interesting to see any video you might come up with.

[dizzylizzy6]

really neet rick! once i move out im gana try some of that stuff on a smaller scale :)

[rickvanman]

Cheers Colin, yeah, I'm having a lot of fun doing this - I ache like crazy from all the construction work, but its fun! :o)

[TomfarneyProductions]

Looks cool, But whatever you do, DONT fill it with compost. Get top soil. Compost will haemorage neutrients due to it over draining. Maybe you could use plastic for the bed base next time. Few holes in it and you're away. I'd also consider putting a brace accross the bed to stop it bulging in the middle.

[rickvanman]

cheers for tips mark, I was wondering which stuff to use - found some high nutrient compost in wickes 4 - for £12 - which I was aiming for - I'll have to have a re-think. how about filling the base with topsoil, and adding compost on top?

Agree on the brace. I've run out of wood now after building the second one but will get more soon

[LooksLikeUranus]

It depends what you're going to grow.

EG Carrots need nutrient free soil and beetroots need it rich. If it was me i'd get top soil only if you can get it. Nothing else will hold the nutrients.

Nature is 99.99% efficient, so i'd go with it.

Compost is not very fertile anyway.

PS Use your rain water in it, it's full of nitrogen.

[TomfarneyProductions]

Your bean seeds are in the post. Hope you get good success with them. I didn't send loads, maybe about 20. You'll see why when they grow :-)

[rickvanman]

Cheers Mark, really apprciate it.

I'll be sure to feature them on fututre vids as the summer progresses. When should I start em off?

[LooksLikeUranus]

Plant them now if you're sheltered and not on a hill. My friend planted his yesterday.

[rickvanman]

Should I propogate them indoors? am assuming not to plant them out until after the frosts have finished?

[LooksLikeUranus]

Well my friend is the bean man, he plants his now knowing that by the time they break through the frost will have gone. If you get frost up to march then plant next month. It's quite warm here generally. It's already warming up. Plant them straight in the ground. You can germinate them indoors if you like but I'd go straight in the ground myself.

[ngvgnDOTcom]

Nice work Rick. Keep up the good works with the cool videos. 5 Stars!!!

[rickvanman]

Thanks :o)

[TK42138]

Great video, and I look forward to seeing the results of your efforts.

[rickvanman]

Thanks - me too! :o)

[TheMusicMark]

Very well planned. I bet that video took ages to edit. It was a really interesting video.

[rickvanman]

Thanks Mark, appreciate the comment. Yes it took most of the afternoon to film, and many hours to edit. I managed to compress 2 hours of video into 6 minutes! LOL

[FenderGibsonWashburn]

Nice construction job! One question, did you work out how you are going to water and fertilize with the polythene cover on? A solid cover works great for a self watering system but I'm concerned you may have difficulty. You may want to consider landscape cloth. It won't be as effective for water retention but it will help and prevent stray weeds. This may be a non issue for you, just my two cents. The website looks fantastic!

[rickvanman]

Thanks Paul. To be honest, my brother suggested it to me as thats what he does with his brick-built raised beds. I haven't fully figured out what it'll be like to implement.

It might prove to be more trouble than it's worth, especially with seedlings, so will have to wait and see whether I choose to go ahead with that method in the end.

Glad you like the website - I try to write a new article each day - did the page featuring this video today - titled 'Constructing Raised Bed Gardens' :o)

[GuildF40]

Great mate well done.

This was something I was looking at :o)

[rickvanman]

Thanks - glad to offer my perspective.

[athomas1124]

great tutorial...

[rickvanman]

Thanks :o)

[CathyDirector]

Very Nice Videos!

[rickvanman]

Thanks Cathy

[mathew8009]

great vid. good luck with the new site, looks very professional.

[rickvanman]

Cheers Mathew :o)

[BMSWEB]

Nice one Rick!

[rickvanman]

thanks :o)

[Moviesindahood]

Hey Rick, nice editing!

[rickvanman]

why... Thankyou! :o)