Hi everyone,
Thank you for the warm welcome. I appreciate all the feedback.
And, Rick, your advise is invaluable! We were giving serious thought to lining the floor of the bed with plastic and now we are certain! Thank you. We just finished nailing the timbers together today. Tomorrow is wire (to keep the critters out from below), paper on the walls, followed by heavy 6mm plastic on the floor and sides. Once that is done, we will be moving onto adding the rabbit fence as an extension to the wall height. We also have an abundance of PVC piping that we considered using as a hoop house for the winter. Looks like it, too, will be going up. I am so glad you were able to confirm all of this for me, Rick. It really has put my mind at ease. Thank you so much.
We have our soil scheduled for delivery on Tuesday. It looks like good soil - mixed with compost and mulch - very dark and pungent. Unfortunately, it looks like it is coming in with an 8 pH level, so I am going to have to amend it. It's difficult to be choosy in this area as vendors are limited. However, it does look like a good start. We are getting A mix of lawn soil (clay) and garden (loamy). I will be sure to have the clay-based soil placed on the bottom. The soil is said to be high in nitrogen, but also high alkaline. I understand elemental sulphur and peat moss will help bring down the pH. Although, I understand it needs sometime to cure before seeing results. I have heard about a product called "pH Down", but I have no experience with any of it. Any suggestions??
At this time, our plan is to complete the bed for delivery, test the soil after delivery, and go from there. I am certainly hoping to get our corn, beans, peppers, and squash in the coming season! Not sure if I can rush it, though.
Again, thank you everyone! You've really helped me. I will take all the advise I can get.
I love this site! :-)
Gina.
