Raised-Bed Vegetable Gardens the Easy Way

 

The wading pool gardens I created a few
years ago. Planted are some young peppers
and tomatoes with a micro-spray drip
irrigation system.

Wow! Here it is again – almost time to plant warm-season veggies like tomatoes, squash and peppers. The weather will soon warm up and the danger of frost is nearly gone. Some folks want a quick and easy way to plant a garden, while others may have limited space, or only want to grow a few crops. The solution – wading pools. I created a couple of wading pool gardens a few years ago, and while they did not produce the huge amount of vegetables that I need, they did work exceptionally well, on the small scale that they were intended for. I would have needed a dozen or more to get the amount of produce I like to grow for eating fresh, plus preserving some for the winter months.

My husband had mentioned that a friend of his always plants his garden in wading pools. They travel a lot, and maintaining a regular garden was not an option. I went to check it out and thought it was a great idea. I also decided to do a little Internet research and discovered that wading pool gardens are used quite a bit in big cities where roof tops offer the only spaces available for a garden. Wading pools make an ideal container or raised bed garden. And, it’s fast – buy a pool, add drainage holes, place it where you want it, fill it with potting soil, plant your seeds and young plants, and water – instant raised-bed gardening.

So here are the instructions:

1. Purchase a solid plastic wading pool or recycle the one used for your dog to play in and get him a new one. Get a pool that is about one foot in depth so the plant’s roots have space to grow. I have found them at Wal-Mart and K-Mart, but they should be available at many places once the warm weather strikes.
2. Purchase quality potting soil for flowers and vegetables. Avoid using natural soil unless you mix it with compost, peat moss or other organic materials. Native soil doesn’t drain properly when placed in containers. To determine how much soil you need multiply Pi (3.14) by the radius (half the diameter) squared, then multiply this by the depth of the pool. In my case, 2.25 squared, times 3.14, times 1 (depth in feet) equaled 15.90 cubic feet, which I rounded to 16. I then bought eight 2-cubic-foot bags of potting soil for each pool. Check around, you may be able to get potting mix in bulk and save a little money. Once, you have the soil, you’ll only need a little each year to refresh it and not have to refill the pool entirely.
3. Drill drainage holes (one-half to three-quarters of an inch) along the bottom edge about every 12 to 18 inches. Keeps these holes low on the sides and not on the bottom where the weight of the pool and soil could clog them.
4. Place the pool(s) exactly where you want them. The weight of the soil will make them very heavy and difficult to move. Make sure that the new garden will get plenty of sunlight. I placed mine near a couple of trees so they would get a little afternoon shade, but would otherwise receive direct light.
5. Fill the pool with the soil – water and pack it down as you go.
6. Plant your plants and sow your seeds. Keep in mind to plant the tallest plants in the center or toward the back depending on where you place your pool(s).
7. Add water. As with any garden, your plants will need regular watering. Hand water, or set up an irrigation/sprinkler system – whatever you prefer. I put in a small drip system with micro sprayers. The system was connected to a hose and faucet timer. While the seeds are germinating, the system should come on for a few minutes four times per day. Once the seeds have sprouted and start developing root systems, the watering schedule should be cut back to about 10 to 15 minutes once per day. Make adjustments to the watering schedule once you see how much moisture the soil retains. It is good to keep the soil moist, but not soggy.