Well, I am totally EXCITED! I was off visiting another thread. It's good to visit, sometimes. You never know what you'll run across. Read this, and you'll see why...
marti001
Somerset, KY
(Zone 6b)
February 9, 2011
08:58 PM
Post #8363562
In the discussion, Marti001 wrote the following:
I also have an old college professor's drawings on making raised beds using concrete bricks like they use to build walls, plus he coats the inside with tar and installs a bottom watering line. Helps save water.
He made his 6 ft long and 4 feet wide. His instructions just say tar the inside. Then, once water tight, he chips out a hole at the bottom of the 4 foot end at the ground level and inserted a 1/2" to 1" pipe that he had sealed at one end, put a hose connector at the other end, and drilled holes in a double row the length of the pipe."
"To water, he connected a hose to the end of the pipe and turned the water on till he was sure that the whole bed was wet, than disconnect the pipe and it will slowly drain. You can also screw a cap on the end of the pipe to keep the water in. But do not leave enough water in it to make a bog garden, unless that's what you want. He said he would drain out about half the water, than cap the pipe."
"He made these in San Bernardino, Ca. where summertime heat hit 90 to 110 during the day for the summer. With this method, he cut his water bill by not having to water everyday."
"On a couple of the planters he also built a cover for them that worked like a cold frame during the winter and a green house during the spring.
Why does this feel like an above-ground Earthbox with a built in reservoir below the soil? Because, that's just what it is!
Let the discussion begin.......!!
"RAISED BED Earthbox" sort of...
Is he talking about that kind of tar they use on the roads or roofs that has to be heated up??
I have no idea, Moodene. I believe it might be, cause he's making the concrete box waterproof, to hold the water in. I'm thinking you could do the same thing by lining the bricks with a pond liner or a tarp of some sort....
I've asked marti001 to send the complete instructions. I need to know if there's a bottom to this "raised box," or if it just sits on the ground. It would seem to me that it would need a bottom to hold in the water and be leakproof. He controls how much water it holds and how much it drains via the pipe cap.
This message was edited Feb 15, 2011 11:29 AM
I have a kiddie pool with holes around the sides close to the bottom, a PVC staking system overhead and will put some grow bags with tomatoes in it this summer. The pool will have Agloflash fertilizer for tomatoes mixed with water in it and I plan on just keeping an eye on it, the holes will serve as drain holes so when it rains, the water will only get so high and if it droughts, I can always add more agloflash and water. The PVC pipes will allow me to use twine to tie the one end to the PVC pipe and the other end to the limbs of the tomatoes.
joy