I am nearly finished making some raised beds and ready to fill them. However I have read so much conflicting advice about what to fill them with and I want to make it easy for myself.

Generally the opinion seems to be a mix of top soil and compost (or manure and sand, or newspapers and compost and soil or manure, sand, compost, soil and grit etc) but I have found this that looks like it can just be bunged in and be ready to grow rather than having to spend time mixing soil and compost.

More compost = better

You don’t need to mix it, in fact, if you just layer it then it encourages worms to move through it and they’ll do it for you as well as aerating and fertilizing the soil as they go.

Newspaper, cardboard, etc is good if you need to stop weeds from getting through. So you spread a layer of compost, rotted manure etc at the end of autumn, cover it in cardboard, and leave it for the winter to finish rotting and the carboard stays just intact enough to keep any weed seedlings from poking through.

Depends what you are going to grow in there. Pumpkins and squashes – fill it with manure, compost or the richest stuff you can get. Carrots, parsnips etc a rich topsoil without too much manure otherwise they’ll fork. Spuds, peas etc a richer mix of compost and topsoil, for runner beans the trad way was to line a trench with cardboard and fill it with compost.

We bought some veggie topsoil last year for the new raised beds (a blend of worm castings, compost and manure). It was really good. This year we’ve just added some composted manure

Just make sure they don’t dry out over the summer

Depends what you are going to grow in there. Pumpkins and squashes – fill it with manure, compost or the richest stuff you can get. Carrots, parsnips etc a rich topsoil without too much manure otherwise they’ll fork. Spuds, peas etc a richer mix of compost and topsoil, for runner beans the trad way was to line a trench with cardboard and fill it with compost.

Crikey – we are not at that level of planning – just going to bung a load of all-sorts in – potatoes, carrots, leeks, peas, spinach, lettuce.

BTW, I eventually rang a local suppliers and they recommended an ‘amended topsoil’ that is 50% soil and 50% compost – and it was literally half the price of the one from Wickes :-O

I’m just going to be filling mine with a 50 50 mix of topsoil and compost, then a thin layer of seed specific compost on top to cover the drills.

Was going to seed this weekend gone until it snowed…

@johndoh – where are you based?

Harrogate

Generally the opinion seems to be a mix of top soil and compost

Worked very, very well for me when I had the time and inclination to grow veggies.

I was going to suggest a company in Sowerby Bridge but you’re too far away for free delivery

I was going to suggest a company in Sowerby Bridge but you’re too far away for free delivery

I wouldn’t mind that recommendation please!

@b230ftw – ygm