Raised Bed Falling

Raised Bed Falling

This spring I made a raised bed by the greenhouse. When I planted it the dirt was 4” higher than the boards. I dug down two shovels deep and then ran the tiller through the bottom. I went back with alternating layers of compost and dirt. I planted carrots, radishes and beets to keep the soil loose for the first crop. The radishes did great, the carrots and beets did well above the ground; but not below the ground. The soil is now 4” lower than the top of the boards and as hard as a brick.

I think the culprit is water running from the roof of the greenhouse and packing the soil. I will have to put a gutter on the greenhouse before I work the bed back up. Getting ready for fall planting is a busy time. The flower bed in the front of the house needs to be cleaned up and planted. The raised bed needs planting. Cabbage, broccoli and tomato plants need to be started in the greenhouse. The part of the garden where the greens go needs to be tilled. There are still potatoes that need digging.

On a happier note: I picked all of the watermelons. All of them but one were ripe. Only two were damaged. I gave most of them away. The watermelon part of the watermelon fence has been taken down. Volunteer cucumbers took over 1/3 of the fence. They are still producing several cucumbers a day. That part of the fence was left up. The watermelon fence was one successful “invention”. Next year I will cover it with a small mesh plastic wire so the melons won’t fall through.




David Segrest is an International REALTOR in Charlotte, NC. His email is david@segrestrealty.com , His webpage is http://www.segrestrealty.com , and his international real estate blog is http://dointernationalrealestate.blogspot.com/.