Actually, the task is not quite as simple as you might think. Because I am using those really thick sleepers, I will eventually need to move the whole set of raised beds slightly. Doing this first one entails shifting its furthest edge by 60cm. I spent the morning lifting and removing paving-slabs and the cement that was supporting them, and then shovelling sideways the contents of the existing bed.
As you can see, I have laid the first layer of timber roughly in place, and I will do the final adjustments some other time. I will be fixing the pieces together with 6" angle-brackets. By the way, sawing two of the 2.4 m sleepers in to halves to make the end-pieces turned out not to be as major a task as I had feared. Luckily I have a very efficient saw, which went through them fairly easily.
In the photo below you can see that I have brought the near edge forward by the width of one paving-slab (40cm) plus 20cm.
I expect the neighbours think I have buried a corpse. The pile of soil certainly looks like a grave at present!
When I eventually get the second layer of timber on, the overall height will be 40cm. I will augment the existing soil with the contents of my compost bins to bring it up to a decent level. That will be another significant job. I don't want to do too much all at once, otherwise my Fibromyalgia will give me a hard time.
Earlier I mentioned the weather. Fine it may have been, but it was also incredibly windy. So windy in fact that it ripped to shreds one of my plastic mini-greenhouses:
That photo was taken AFTER I had rescued it from the other end of the garden, despite it having been weighted-down with four bricks!
Such a wide board will be really nice when it is done. You can sit on it. I really debated whether to do that when I made this garden, but elected to go cheaper. Well and give more space to the garden itself. I couldn't move my beds by a bit. I elected to have narrow paths and there is no extra room for boards.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't thought about it, but since you mention it, I reckon the idea of being able to perch on the edge of the bed is a very attractive one!
DeleteA lot of work but so worth it in the end. Glad the weather has got very slightly milder (or is that me wishful thinking?)
ReplyDeleteAll the best Jan
I was doing some more work on the project today. No sooner had I got all the tools (including electric drill, screwdriver etc) outside, than it began to rain and I had to bring them all in again! But yes, at least it was less cold.
DeleteIt's great that you can get started on your new beds this early. Those sleepers looks so solid & sturdy - they are going to make a wonderful raised bed, both functionally & visually. Like Daphne, I would have liked nice chunky boards like that too, but opted for the cheaper, 2" (5cm) thick boards instead.
ReplyDeleteAnd that's too bad about the greenhouse - good thing you have some new ones on the way!
Those new beds are going to be fantastic, real raised beds. The wind has certainly been horrendous this year.
ReplyDeleteNow that greenhouse may benefit from a new cover. Wilkinson's have them in if you're interested. The beds are going to be fabulous, so sturdy, they should last a long time. Worth all the hard work but go careful and don't overdo it.
ReplyDeleteThat does look like hard work, but the beds will be nice and deep when you get finished. And those timbers look nice and sturdy too. I need to add some depth to my beds, but the thought of the work involved has my back aching ahead of time!
ReplyDeleteDave, I am only doing one of the beds at present. I may decide to do the others later on. It's a lot of work, and a lot of money to do them all!
DeleteYou've done a good job on your new raised bed project. I know these things always seem to take longer than expected. It looks a great addition to your garden.
ReplyDeleteGood progress! I look forward to being able to get out myself. As I was in New Mexico the past few days, I noticed the garden centers there already have the veggie starts out. We're a long time and a couple feet of snow removed from any work being done.
ReplyDelete