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Raised beds and pots

Hi Had a raised bed put in last year. Approx 8x8ft and 3ft deep. We planted carrots cabbage and leeks. The greens shot up but the carrots were all top and no root! Just wondered if anyone could suggest high yield compact veg for the raised beds or buckets and tubs around the garden. The only thing I know I want are climbing French beans, I have seed ready and hoping 2 builders buckets and canes will see an ok yield this year. Please feel free to suggest any veg or space saving ideas. Thankyou in anticipation.
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  • chicachica Posts: 252

    hi greenbucket,well i have been over my allotment today as i have raised beds only six feet wide though so i can get to all the sides,today i put in jerusalem artickokes.onion sets,broad beans,and befor the month is out in will go turnips,parsnips.spring onions and my early potaoes,you can grows all these in a tub,as i have befor,somethimes you have to be patient,all the other veg will go in in april,may time,raised beds are a great idea,try everything greenbucket,but carrots can take a long time,

  • Thankyou Chica. I'm looking for a compact spring cabbage. Any ideas?? Sometimes I think when I buy 6/8 plants they are so expensive, seeds are economical but take more time!!!
  • Anyone got some advice on carrots in raised beds pleeze.

  • Ditto!! I tried dobbies carrots called Trevor and maestro as they are amazing and good resistance to fly. But mine looked amazing but put down not much root. I'm wondering if it was because my soil was new.



    I have heard about giant flax or facks but wonder if anyone had grown these in raised beds.



    I'm looking for a fast maturing carrot that is a good cropper.



    Thanks
  • My dad has sworn by the dobbies varieties for the last 3 years in his raised beds and they have been amazing for him!
  • LeggiLeggi Posts: 489
    Make sure your soil is light and sandy for carrots generally, it makes it easier for roots to grow big. They don't much like freshly manured soil either, growing in raised beds should decrease the risk of carrot fly as they fly at ground level. My carrot beds this year are about two foot off ground level but I'm also using them as a wind break on an exposed allotment site. Autumn King have always given me a good crop sewn directly to where you want to grow them.
  • My soil is not sandy but not clay. We bought 6 tonnes of graded tip soil in. The fact my greens have loved it makes me think that it's a tad too heavy for carrots.



    I know it sounds weird but I bought a dog bath, about 1.5ft wide by 4 ft and nearly 2 ft deep. I'm wondering if this could be a good carrot bed??



    At the moment I have used compost stored in it. Do you think I could do anything with used compost to plant my carrots in or is this completely the wrong soil??
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,138

    I grow Chantenay carrots - tops for flavour - last year they took all summer to develop good 'carrots' due to low temperatures and light levels - hopefully this year will be better image 

    A member of my family is a commercial vegetable grower and said this was a common problem throughout the UK last year - carrots did not start developing until that sunny spell we had around the Olympics, and even they they were not great.


    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • BrummieBenBrummieBen Posts: 460

    I think basically everything took a hammering last year.. That hot spell in march for 3 weeks bolted all my onions and garlic, but all the allotments had the same problem. My carrots were super slow and nothing to write home about, I think it was just the weather last year. I'm hoping it'll be better this year, good luck.

  • Fingers crossed then!!!!'



    Any ideas for used compost would be great. I used some to mulch my perennials but have so much left. Could I improve it and use for any veg???
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