Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
1
Raised Beds
Raised beds and properly constituted soil make mini- farming
practical. Modern people in the industrialized world have a lot
less spare time and a lot less available land than their
ancestors.
Raised beds offer so many advantages over row gardening
that it is hard to imagine why everyone except big
agribusiness cartels isn't using them. Especially in northern
climates, raised beds can help gardeners lengthen their
growing season because they can raise soil temperature by 8
to 13 degrees compared to ground soil temperatures.
By raising the level of the soil, farmers and gardeners can
start their crops earlier because excess moisture drains easily
so the cold spring rains won't overwhelm new crops. Raised
beds are also easily fitted with attachments, such as cold
frames.
A raised bed is essentially a bottomless and topless box laid
on the ground and filled with soil. The boxes can be built
from wood, plastic boards, cement, and other materials.
Raised beds can be made from mounded earth, but
surrounding them with a box structure limits erosion of the
carefully prepared soil of the bed.
