Have a great invention to help with gardening? Are you the self-reliant type that prefers Building It Yourself vs. buying it? Share and discuss your ideas and projects with other members.
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#1 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 40
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After a couple months of research, I decided to go with Trex boards to build my beds. Although it was a little expensive, I figured it was worth the extra cost to not have to worry about them rotting after 3-5 years. The boards are 5 inches thick, so i did four layers for a total of 20 inches high. The corners are made with 4x4 cedar blocks. As you can see, i extended the sides on two of the beds to a full 8ft high for the trellis netting (netting not yet attached).
The ground in my back yard is as hard as a rock, so I really didn't want to dig more than necessary. Instead of attempting to dig holes for stakes along the outside, I decided to connect the two middle posts on each bed with two more 4ft lengths to act as tension boards. I also adjusted the length of the corners so they'd come out longer on the side toward the walking path, and keep the beds level. Now that the beds are built, I plan to cover the walking paths with pebbles, so the gaps under the beds will no longer be visible. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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#2 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: east texas
Posts: 686
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very nice, great job. Wish I had about 6 of those beds, you can grow some serious produce.
Neva |
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#3 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: PA.
Posts: 32
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They look great! What are you going to use to fill them up?
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#4 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Pottsboro Texas 7B-8A TRANSITION ZONE
Posts: 77
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Super job. How you going to pay off your loan for those Trex boards.
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Have you gardened all of your life? Not yet. |
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#5 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2010
Location: Pottsboro Texas 7B-8A TRANSITION ZONE
Posts: 77
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How much sun does the area get?
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Have you gardened all of your life? Not yet. |
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#6 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Alaska Zone 3/4
Posts: 1,857
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Beautiful! The only concern I would have is that once the weight of the soil is added, the sides might bow outward. Trex is pretty flexible that way. We have a deck of that material and I just love it, but even with the proper/recommended support underneath, I can see little sags here and there.
What will you grow in those nice boxes? Sherry |
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#7 | ||
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 40
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I filled them with an organic mix from gro-well.com.
Quote:
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#8 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 40
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Here are some new pics of the completed beds with stones and grass put in.
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#9 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: S.E. Michigan (Livonia)
Posts: 1,264
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great looking setup!!
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Steve Cleverly disguised as a responsible adult ![]() |
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#10 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Mastic, NY
Posts: 212
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those beds look great!!!
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#11 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 40
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Here's a photo update. Everything looking good so far
![]() ![]() Tomatillos in the front, bush beans in 18 squares (9 per square), pickling cucumbers on the back left trellis, and blue lake pole beans on the back right trellis ![]() Icebox watermelons, and spaghetti squash to the left of the watermelons. ![]() Fairytale eggplant just starting to fruit in the last few days. They really seem to be enjoying the 115+ degree heat. ![]() |
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#12 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Avilla IN
Posts: 300
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Very, very nice!
Keep us posted. Paul R |
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#13 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Oct 2008
Location: Fairfax, VA Z7
Posts: 524
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Everything is looking great!!!......soon you'll be enjoying those eggplants.
George |
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#14 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Posts: 40
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Just harvested 10 of the eggplants and had them for dinner a few nights ago. They were really delicious. We put them in a salad which was made with leaves i had also harvested from full sized romaine lettuce leaves which i grew under my LED lights as an experiment.
Here's a few updated pics. Everything is doing pretty awesome considering the 110 degree heat in july. It's been getting a bit cooler now, but still around 100 degrees during the day. It's just so neat to see watermelons hanging from a trellis like this. I never thought it was possible until just recently. They're the icebox variety so they won't get too huge.. about 6-10 pounds from what i've read. ![]() ![]() ![]() |
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#15 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Elizabethtown, Kentucky 6a
Posts: 754
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Looking great man! Should get the dude that visited to return & make a followup video.
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