Filling a raised bed

[Banoffeecoffee]

I have 4 raised beds coming soon (I hope) but am a bit bamboozled with what to fill them with. I thought just a bulk order of compost but a few hours googling and I am more confused. If I started with half top soil and half compost would that be Ok for vegetable and salad crops plus a few sweet peas for cut flowers? I want to avoid peat, don’t have my own compost but do have a few bin bags of leaf mould. Really appreciate any advice or recommendations! Thanks

Watching as I was about to post the same question. I have been googling but many different answers that I’d rather hear from the wise gardeners of Mumsnet.

We didn’t put top soil in ours, in case it had any weeds. We used a mixture of composted manure, soil improver and commercial compost.
Not the cheapest way of doing it, but got everything off to a good start. Each year we just add composted manure.
We grow all sorts of veg, but potatoes are elsewhere. Definitely sweet peas and a few marigolds, which attract the pollinators. Sometimes Cosmos seeds blown in from the flower beds germinate. If so we leave them to flower amongst the veg.

I used normal soil which I sifted the big gravel and stones out of, and top-dressed with peat free compost.

Sweet peas like their feet in the shade and their arms in the sun, so if your beds are going to be in full sun, they might not fare brilliantly, in which case plant them either at the back in a row, or square in the middle up a little conical frame, with plenty of tall plants just in front to stop the soil being baked round their roots.

Depends on the depth of them. I have some shallow ones which I filled with a mix of top soil and compost. I just got some big deep ones (2 ft) and it would cost an absolute fortune to fill with compost! So the bottom half is filled with branches, twigs, cardboard, chippings, anything like that. Then there is a thick layer of compost from the compost heap then a layer of bought compost on top of that.

i had a vanload of spent mushroom compost from a farm, mixed it with normal earth, my own compost. Your leaf mould sounds good for a base or middle layer.

I did leaf litter and old veg peelings etc in the bottom, then top soil in the bottom half, then compost on top. The compost is for establishing the roots and the top soil is for the plant getting bigger and needing to root deeper. It's costly to do the initial set up but so worth it!

I fill mine with a mixture of top soil, pony poo (well rotted) and compost. Compost on its own tends to dry out quickly but is ok for salad veg. Mushroom compost is meant to be really good if you can get hold of it locally.

I filled mine with top-soil and then I add compost (from my own compost heap or the garden centre) to top it up occasionally.

Mine are quite high and for plants not vegetables. Used top soil but as I plant things I obviously add compost. They have been in around3 years and noticed how much the levels have dropped so in the process of topping up with top soil again.

I'm pretty new to this - why is peat compost bad?

My husband had top soil delivered and filled them with that and compost, (our own), they took a lot. I’d work out the volume then go from there,

I did cardboard on bottom as they were on grass, then layers of leaves, grass clippings, kitchen waste, horse poo , shredded twigs and compost on the top.

@FoolsAssassin (those books are on my summer re-read list - can’t wait!). We’re putting ours straight into grass too. Was the cardboard base successful? We’re making the beds from old decking boards, lined with plastic from compost bags.

They are great books aren’t they ! Yes the cardboard was successful and has composted down now, we’re moving them and will have to reseed that area.

I was working on lasagna gardening principle and instructions said to wet the cardboard thoroughly is I did. Had about 6 raised beds and spent £15 on a bit of compost and mushroom compost . The horse manure was free though not rotted, didn’t matter as other stuff on top.

Thanks so much for all your help - it seems there is no single answer but really useful advice and can’t wait to get started!

I found this very expensive as was in same position last year - it was my fault as I bought bags of compost and it’s probably better Delivered by the ton as our beds are still short! However if you’re in no rush, I’ve been throwing leaves in the areas that are still too thin so eventually hoping it’ll build up and I’ll then add more compost.

Our council subsidises got composters so I bought one last year too but it’s been very slow and nothing ready yet!

Work out the weight you need-2/3 topsoil with several layers of cardboard in bottom of on grass.then compost & manure.

Kale is easy to grow, lasts ages & looks good. Purple sprouting broccoli is delicious roasted. And peas. Agree that marigolds & other companion plants are good. We have raspberries & gooseberries. They are fab

When we did a 2ft deep bed, we put cardboard at the bottom and then placed a bale of hay or straw then another layer of cardboard before putting a mix soil and compost in. First year it needed lots of watering but settled down after that