Some are being held together by my own wishful thinking. Those logs are in really rough shape now. I won’t lie, tragically I burned a LOT of logs for disposal, but these were in my pre-Permies days and I had to do something with the logs so using at least some for raised beds seemed like a lot better option than just burning so I got some usage out of them.īut that was in 2009. The decision came down to burn them or use them for raised edges. I hear you about the lack of ideal garden corral.Īll three of my beds started out raised by oak and hickory logs that fell in a really terrible storm. Maybe if I get lucky I will get a decade out of them? Hopefully more. I do expect my 2x10’s to last a while thanks to the dryloc (recommended to me by fellow Permie Bryant Redhawk), but they are not a permanent solution. It kills me when I go by to see them being tossed into giant shredders/grinders to be put onto trucks and transported to the landfill. Those would have been awesome but a truck, some way to transport through the yard, and a few people would have been needed even if I could get permission. They have all these concrete window sills. I went by a place where they were tearing down a housing area. Who knows? If I'm lucky enough to get stone or brick, that might be the fix plus it will add to critter habitat. I didn't want to use wood because it is a temporary fix (warping, decay, preservatives or not) and I hate to do stuff twice where it could have been just once. Each year a little settles, and I add more fill. The good part is I have another couple of years before I really need to start building up as most of my beds started 2-2.5 feet below the ground surface. I have a few cement blocks but don't like them and if you get true cinder blocks, the fly ash has toxic issues which I don't need on property. I have yet to land on a perfect corral for beds. So has anyone else tried a similar project? I would love to hear your experience. Also, as the blocks are only 8” tall I am thinking about adding a second row and I would think that I would need the first row to be pretty level in order to get a second level in place. I know I could just lay the blocks on the surface and let them be, but I want them to be at least a little aesthetically pleasing. Also, the wood will eventually rot while cinder block will last essentially forever. My big question: how important/how much leveling would I have to do if I replaced those logs with cinder blocks? I would use 2x10’s, but 16’ is the longest length I can get. The first bed raised with logs is about 6ish feet wide and 32’ long and the ground is plainly less level than the other beds. They are all 8’x16’ and each needed a surprising amount of leveling even when laid on what appeared to be level ground. My other beds are raised with 2x10’s painted with dryloc, a masonry sealer safe for fungi yet protects the wood from the ravenous mushrooms.
My original bed is now almost 3 years old measuring by age of wine caps and the fallen oak and hickory logs that make up the raised edges are over a decade old and are in rough shape (helped on by Wine Caps). Block Brush, 100mm | from £2.I have made 3 raised beds over the years, all of them by now transitioned to wood chips composted by Wine Cap mushrooms.No Nonsense Trade Masonry Paint Brilliant White 10ltr | from 22.49at ScrewFix.Melcourt Topsoil™ Blended Loam, 20L | from £5.49 at Sure Green.New Untreated Oak Railway Sleeper (600x200x50mm) | from £5.99 at UK Timber.
Bond It Primer & Flexible Admix | from £10.93 at Victorian Plumbers.Tarmac Building Sand Large Bag - 22.5kg | from £3.50 at Homebase.Tarmac Sharp sand, Large Bag, 22.5kg | from 2.98 per bag at trade point.Blue Circle Mastercrete Grey Cement Bag, 25kg | from £12.99 at Builder’s Merchant.
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