The Raised Vegetable Bed Handbook

[inishindie]

"What an enjoyable e-book that Ian Gomersall has written! If you have any interest in growing your own, The Raised Vegetable Garden Handbook is a book you'll love.

It is definitely the most complete book that I have seen on vegetable gardening, and especially, the raised vegetable garden. The book contains so many pictures of different raised vegetable gardens. Ian really brings raised vegetable gardens to life with all of the great photos. In fact, I saw exactly the type of raised vegetable garden that I am going to start building. It is called the "Keyhole Bed." You have to see the picture in this book to appreciate it. If you have ever wondered how to make a raised vegetable garden, wonder no more! This complete guide explains and shows every detail. There are even a lot of linked videos which are an excellent add-on to the book. Ian also had a clever chapter on which plants grow best together and why. You'll learn a lot from this book. If you have kids, you'll be happily surprised when you find a the detailed chapter about vegetable gardening for the little ones.

Great job Ian! When is your next one coming out?" Mike Harnon

It’s been a long time coming, but I have finished my book. What started out life as a one page A4 information leaflet about how to make your own raised beds has grown to over 25,000 words and 80 images.
I first started putting the information together in January 2011 in the cold spell when the ground was so frozen I couldn’t go out and do anything in the garden. As the weather warmed up, I got back into my usual routine and the book fell neglected into the background, until a few week ago when the rain was so constant I found myself again looking for indoor work. The final copy can’t be found on bookshelves in the garden centres though as it’s been published as an ebook. This means it’s only available to download from the internet through Amazon and the website I set up for the book. For those of you that are interested in such things it’s available in pdf, ipub and .mobi so it can be read on any of the latest electronic reading devices.

Raised Bed Handbook
The book is imaginatively called the “Raised Bed Handbook for the Organic Garden”. I have had such a success growing vegetables in raised beds and gathered up so much information that it seemed the obvious choice subject for my first book; I even had great success with beds made from old books. I have the first chapter here for you.

It’s 14 reasons for why I think raised beds are great!

1. They help to define the edge of your beds and the paths.
2. Soil works better if it isn’t trodden on and compacted so if the beds are small enough you never have to tread on them to weed or harvest.
3. Raised beds have clean paths made from grass, woodchip or gravel help to stop you trailing mud into the house.
4. The soil and plants stay where they are. The soil doesn’t creep out onto the paths like it does in beds that are just mounded up with soil.
5. With raised beds there is better drainage. This is particularly an advantage in wetter gardens with clay soils, eliminating the chance of root rot. Drier soil can also lengthen the growing season.
6. The soil in a raised bed warms up more before seed sowing because of the sun shining on the sides. This is better for the germination of the seeds.
7. With a raised bed you can choose the type of soil that you want in the beds. Sandier soil for carrots, richer soil for pumpkins. Every year you can condition and improve your soil for crop rotation by adding bulking agents like compost and manure.
8. With deeper raised beds there will be very active root development of the vegetables. This means that you can plant closer together. This helps support taller vegetables and helps to keep the weeds down.
9. They can fit into any shape of garden. Wood can easily be cut to fit even the oddest of angles.
10. You can keep your vegetable garden to a manageable size. It is better to start with one or two small beds to build up your confidence and enthusiasm rather than too big and feel overwhelmed.
11. No heavy digging is necessary after the initial preparations.
12. With raised beds you can try out square foot gardening. All this means is areas are marked out (usually in one foot squares) on the raised bed and planting different vegetables into each square. One tomato plant could take up one whole square, four strawberry plants in another, and up to sixteen radishes in another. Compact planting in rich soil helps to suppress weeds.
13. Raised Beds can be built to any height you desire. This is particularly beneficial if there are any mobility issues with the user. Beds can be specifically designed at the correct height for wheelchair users and firm paths in between the beds allow for total access to all parts of the bed and vegetable garden all year round.
14. Raised beds are great for kids to experience the joys of growing their own food. A starter bed just 3’ (1m) square is enough. All too often children (and adults) can be put off growing vegetables because the plots are too large. A small raised bed gives the child their own personal plot.

"I read the handbook though first and then found myself referring back to it often as I was building a raised bed. My plans changed regularly according to what I had to hand and the instructions in the book helped me to be versatile. Like cooking , there's plenty of room for improvisation! The text is friendly and easy to understand and the images bring the work to life. There's the added bonus of the author being available through his website for any questions I had. I would recommend this book. " Dot

check out the book on: http://raisedvegbeds.com/

[Green Aura]

Looks great, hope it sells well.

[inishindie]

Thanks Green Aura

I enjoyed putting it together. I learnt a lot too.

I'd recommend putting an e-book together if you have an interest in any topics. It can be a bit daunting at first with the pdf's, epubs etc, but it's well worth the effort. If I can be of assistance to anyone starting on the e-book path I will try and help if I can

Cheers

Ian