Raised Bed D.O.E.

[Sidesummy]

This is a project I thought up after planting seeds and seedlings in the ground for the last 2 years with mixed results in germination and damping off (learned lots already from mistakes made) I'm doing a lot of seedling cutting projects with JBP and have a growing interest in maples and potential ROR projects with them. All that said I wanted to build something that I could test a few different soil options that would mildly reflect growing in the ground; and the benefits of that strong growth, without all the hassle of fighting the clay out of the roots later due to the soil in my area. That all said here's what I did:

First I covered a 9'x25' area with Dewitt 20 year nursery level weed barrier cloth. It allows water to drain through freely, but no hassle of weeding. This will serve me in the current project as well as future ground planting projects. For this one it will simply be the bottom of my raised bed, allowing the water to run through but no weeds or dirt come up into my soil mixed, also blocking the roots from going into the real soil.

I have 2 grades of crushed haydite (expanded shale). It is slightly porous so it has some water retention but still allows free drainage.

This is a 6'x6' (11" walls) square divided into fourths. I wanted to test the growth rates and health of the trees based on 2 variables, particle size and organic vs. no-organic mixed in. [in the background you will see a failed overly ambitious yew I tried to collect, yay learning from failure!]

I bought these in bulk to serve as pots later on, but they're good for watering off soil too.

There was plenty of dust on the stone when I picked it up from the aggregates company in the bed of the pick-up. So I needed to wash all the dust off so it didn't make a grimy layer at the bottom to block drainage.

Just basic compost material with some manure.

After a few hours and a sore back from washing I filled all the areas up.
1. Large particle
2. Small particle
3. Large particle + compost mix (1/1)
4. Small particle + compost mix (1/1)

Just a simple Design of Experiment I felt like running to learn the effects of each variable. I doubt I'll go so far as to run MiniTab statistics on the results... just want a feel for how each performs. In the end I'd like to see how roots and foliage develop in each option to know the pros and cons. During the winter this will also serve as my over wintering location. I intend to build a roof over it and cover it with translucent plastic during the winter to keep it cool but not too cold and block the wind .

Thoughts? Questions? Advice?

 

[Vin]

It should be interesting. I have a similar experiment going on with plastic pot -vs- grow bag. I'm using cypress seedlings. So far, the plastic pot is out performing the grow bag.

 

[Sidesummy]

Ya all the weed barrier area is going to be for ground planted stuff that I intend to put in grow bags much like they do at Telperion farms, read about it in Jonas' post on Bonsai Tonight. They've got some awesome JBP going that way and wanted to try it myself.

 

[CWTurner]

Interesting project. Be sure to update us. I was looking at that bag of Excremento and it has 1% Chlorine. Sounds like a lot especially for seedlings, but I think that it will burn off after being in the sun a bit (at least my swimming pool experience says so).

Shame about that big yew. I'd put it in the ground anyway. Looks like you have the room.
CW

 

[Sidesummy]

Interesting project. Be sure to update us. I was looking at that bag of Excremento and it has 1% Chlorine. Sounds like a lot especially for seedlings, but I think that it will burn off after being in the sun a bit (at least my swimming pool experience says so).

Shame about that big yew. I'd put it in the ground anyway. Looks like you have the room.
CW

I wont plant anything in this until next spring so there should be plenty of time for rain and sun to wash some of that off. As for the Yew it's for sure to be completely dead. No biggie I learned quite a bit from the experience and will be more successful next time.

 

[AboveBeyond]

Yes, we'll need updates on this please.

 

[JudyB]

Looks like a nice build of a good project. Where in Ohio are you?

 

[Sidesummy]

Looks like a nice build of a good project. Where in Ohio are you?

Bellefontaine... small town

 

[JudyB]

Ah, yes I know where that is. Just surprised that you list your zone as 6a. Thought you'd be south of me. You in a club?

 

[Sidesummy]

Ah, yes I know where that is. Just surprised that you list your zone as 6a. Thought you'd be south of me. You in a club?

Nope nothing close enough to me that less than an hour drive that I've been able to find. Just relying on the internet communities and my own motivations for now.

 

[wireme]

Nice, I've moved locations recently and don't have raised beds here yet but I sure miss them. The soil in mine was built of used bonsai aggregate and lots of decayed woody debris, mostly composted bark and collected forest floor humus material.
It was really good, open and airy soil structure but held lots of moisture, needed water once a week max, in cool weather, hardly ever. I mainly used it to heal in freshly collected conifers and never lost one in those beds. Actually if I still had them I would be more confident of survival there than in a box with pumice. I think success with beds and ground planting all comes down to the soil quality, I'd highly recommend coarse mostly decayed organics in one of your trial boxes.

 

[wireme]

I started thinking more of how I would replicate the old beds I liked so much. They were quite high in organics, with the fines associated with organic material we need healthy biological activity to maintain good soil structure. Soil bacteria glue the fines into larger particles, fungal hyphae create a web preventing compaction holding an open soil structure etc.. It takes some time for a newly created bed to come to life. Here's what I would try. Collect a couple bags of forest litter, the top layer just underneath the fresh undecayed stuff but above the denser soil. Under decidous canopy if that's what you're growing or coniferous if growing that. Mix one bag into one of the manure added beds and use the other to mulch the top. Small plants and chopped up roots in the forest Duff are great they will introduce myc and keep it alive especially if they grow for the season, I'd try to get some shrubby and herbaceous but not invasive plants growing this season, by next year hopefully a nice soil community will have started to establish.
Just a suggestion, my take on the growbed thing.

 

[Sidesummy]

Thanks I'll look into doing that. Hopefully the compost/manure I mixed in already will give it a good start for the remainder of this year since I wont be planting until next spring.

 

[Sidesummy]

Wanted to give a quick update on the progress through last year for documenting sake. Here is the growing bed in June of 2016. This is a mix of red pine, black pine, and trident maples. With a few oaks collected from my brothers property snuck in on the right side.

A few pieces of learning here. The right hand side were the larger and smaller grade mixes with the compost added in for more water retention. It's not hard to see that these features faired better overall with the increased water retention in the mix. Let us not forget that this experiment is being conducted at my parents property where I only make it home about once a month so the level of care and watering from my parents is somewhat minimal. I'm sure the pure inorganic mixes on the left hand side could have also been successful if watered when needed. But the reality is there were probably times when these seedlings had a rough few days in full sun without much to drink.

This year in 2017 I plan to go ahead and mix in some organic material to help the left side along as I will be planting a whole new batch of seedlings this year. Work on a growing grounds at the property is also underway. Many of these 1 year old seedlings will make there way over there when the space is prepared.

Additional close ups and winter looks:

Obviously planted a little too close together, but I'll soon correct that with moving some. I had no idea how many of the seeds would take off when I made rows of them. I'll do it better next time around.

Here is an early March 2017 photo of the same bunch. A lot of winter color in them still, but you can see that many did form candles and will take off as soon as spring rolls around for my area in the next few weeks.

Sorry for so long between updates.

 

[Sidesummy]

Images missing above

 

[0soyoung]

Sciency stuff makes life easier

 

[Sidesummy]

The raised bed got some new trees today. Some that were not originally destined for it. My parents intend to put an addition on the barn this year so all the trees I had ground growing beside it needed a new home. My growing grounds we're ready to receive them yet because of it being too wet to till and amend the soil. So they are getting their first bit of rootwork after 3 years in the ground from seedlings and place in colanders and buried in a portion of my raised beds.
Tree #1 (unknown):

Tree #2 Hawthorn:

Tree #3 Dogwood:

Tree #4 Japanese Maple: Ugh, such ugly roots and much work to do...

Tree #5 Japanese Maple:

All potted up and buried:

 

[Sidesummy]

Now for more trees that were always destined for the raise growing bed. These are some of the trident and japanese maples I've started from seed and have been growing indoors under lights waiting for spring weather to put them out here. Another quarter of the growing bed had some mulched compost added to it due to the learnings of what did best from last years experiments.

All in:

The whole bed:

 

[Sidesummy]

Last years pines have really taken off with their first new candles. Glad to see them healthy. A few Reds and Blacks.

 

[JPfagus]

How are the trees doing? Must be pretty big now