How to Prepare a Raised Garden Bed for Winter | This Old House

[@Chuck59ish]

The old ways are usually the best for raised gardens.

[@jacquelinemartinez6985]

Good job Roger ❤

[@AntiochChristtian]

if you mow over your compost pile it breaks down faster.

[@terrihart2133]

Make sure any hay or straw you use for your garden has not been sprayed with herbicide.

[@Serenity523]

What do I do with the plants in order to get to this starting point?

[@munchkin5674]

Why arent these raised beds almost full of soil? Yes, You should not fill them clear to the top, leaving room for some mulch, you arent realizing the full potential of the raised bed if it only half full.

[@MrPuttjattande]

sounds good. ..

[@devoywilliams5549]

he could hav e used plain old leaves

[@markroeder2491]

Yep, by spring it would have composted to leaf mould, fed the earthworms which provide drainage, aeration and worm castings and insulate any perennials until snow cover can protect them. Plus they are free! Win-win-win-win-win.

[@ohno248]

Cover crops can provide intensive soil restructuring several inches below the surface of the soil. Leaf mulch applied to the surface will probably take longer to create similar improvements.

[@valeriestanley8378]

Does the rye grass have to be watered?

[@terrihart2133]

They said 2-3 days.

[@nikolaiv1138]

​@@terrihart2133She means after sprouting. :)

[@Mathin3D]

Neat!

[@reginaldanglin4264]

What about straw

[@bradleynanneman2703]

Looks like straw, not hay.

[@TheRipeTomatoFarms]

Yeah, that's what I thought as well. Both will work though. Hay will have more nutrition for the soil microbes...which is nice.

[@bradleynanneman2703]

I primarily use straw in the unplanted areas of my garden for weed control and to keep the mud on the ground and off my boots. I've also had good luck with straw on top of no-dig potatoes. Can't justify the cost of hay vs. straw in my area. This year, I'm over-wintering with winter rye grass and I'll just chop & drop at planting time, as suggested in the video.

[@TheRipeTomatoFarms]

@@bradleynanneman2703 right on Bradley. I did a fall rye last year for three beds I was keeping dormant. Worked fantastic and the subsequent crops were just aces!

[@antennawilde]

Put your hands in lime, you should not

[@olddave4833]

Why,? I've been spreading lime by hand for over sixty years

[@jamesgoss4011]

9

[@davidg813]

Bad advice you're not supposed to turn over the soil in a raised bed it destroys all the microorganisms so turning the soil over that disturbs it is not the answer. You should cover the bed with either straw or leaves for the winter to protect the soil then leave them there to protect the soil until the spring without disturbing the soil other than to plant. Cover crops are for large-scale farming not raised bed gardens