Q. Other than being able to figure up the nutrient amounts for Grow-Boxes, is there a reason why they are only 18 inches wide?
A. Dr. Mittleider experimented with many different sizes and configurations over the years, and he settled on two widths as being the best. Eighteen inch-wide beds allow two rows of most plants, with a single PVC watering pipe down the middle of the box or bed able to accurately and thoroughly water both rows of plants.
Narrower boxes don't give enough room between the two rows of plants and there is crowding. And wider boxes don't get watered as efficiently, and the space is wasted.
A 4'-wide box allows 4 rows of plants, with almost 2' in the center for light and air. Planting is near both edges and 12" in from the outside rows. Once again, this allows for very efficient watering with two drilled PVC pipes down the center of the two sets of rows.
A box that is wider than 4' begins to waste space, and is more difficult to work the middle of the box. A narrower box does not provide enough light in the center, and fewer plants can be grown.
Four-foot-wide boxes give the highest productivity in a given space, because the "aisle" between the two sets of rows is only 2', rather than the 3 1/2' of the regular aisles.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Soil Mix in Grow-Boxes
Q. I have made several beds. I am using the original garden soil to which I have added 10% vermiculite and 10% peat moss by volume. My top soil was so shallow (about 5 inches) that I really need to add another
couple of inches of something to get the mix to the top of the frames.
Would it be all right to fill the bed the rest of the way with fresh pine sawdust I have a ready? It is the size of dry oatmeal. Could there be an acid or heat problem with too much pine dust?
A. Several problems are associated with using the natural soil in your Grow-Boxes.
1. The weight of the dirt is much greater than the organic materials we recommend for 65-75% of the mix. This will tend to push your walls out.
2. The soil will tend to get very hard and compact.
3. The soil may have disease, almost certainly has weed seeds, and likely has some bugs in it. So by using it you continue problems that we try to avoid in the Mittleider Method.
There is no problem in using pine sawdust, but the size of what you describe makes it sound more like shavings or chips, rather than sawdust. You are inviting problems of having the materials sour if they are too large, and they don't absorb water, the way sawdust does, so I can't recommend anything larger than regular sawdust.
couple of inches of something to get the mix to the top of the frames.
Would it be all right to fill the bed the rest of the way with fresh pine sawdust I have a ready? It is the size of dry oatmeal. Could there be an acid or heat problem with too much pine dust?
A. Several problems are associated with using the natural soil in your Grow-Boxes.
1. The weight of the dirt is much greater than the organic materials we recommend for 65-75% of the mix. This will tend to push your walls out.
2. The soil will tend to get very hard and compact.
3. The soil may have disease, almost certainly has weed seeds, and likely has some bugs in it. So by using it you continue problems that we try to avoid in the Mittleider Method.
There is no problem in using pine sawdust, but the size of what you describe makes it sound more like shavings or chips, rather than sawdust. You are inviting problems of having the materials sour if they are too large, and they don't absorb water, the way sawdust does, so I can't recommend anything larger than regular sawdust.
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