Raised garden beds are an easy way to grow vegetables. Dump good soil in a frame on the ground and plant.
But gardening educator Melissa Mundt says if you want a successful summer garden in Tucson, you need to go below ground, not above.
"We have such extreme temperatures in the summer and a sunken bed ... protects the soil temperature" from getting too high, says Mundt, the food-production education coordinator for the Community Food Bank.
Sunken beds also more effectively collect rainwater for the garden's use, she says.
The food bank offers workshops on home vegetable gardening, including how to prepare the soil. Here are some of the tips:
• Prepare the beds at least one week before you put in plants. This allows the compost in the soil to spread nutrients throughout the bed.
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• Locate your bed along the southeastern side of a wall or fence to take advantage of morning sun and afternoon shade.
• Locate any utility lines before digging. Find an area that has no caliche or where the caliche is no deeper than 2 feet.
• Keep your beds away from toxic plants such as oleander and tamarisk. "Avoid putting a garden close to any tree to avoid damaging its roots and competition for water," Mundt says.
• The garden's width and length depend on the root space requirements of the plants you plan to grow. Seed packets provide some guidance. Mundt says a good estimate is to allow 1 foot around each plant.
• Because the desert soil is nutrient-poor for non-native vegetables you'll need to add compost to create a plant-ready garden.
To create the beds,
1. Water deeply 24 hours before you start digging.
2. Dig out the garden area to 1 foot deep.
3. Loosen the soil in the hole to another 1 foot deep.
4. Mix the loosened soil with the same amount of compost to create a mixture of half soil and half compost. You can also add any other soil amendments you wish. Home Depot sells compost starting at $4 for 1.5 cubic feet. The food bank can suggest sources of locally produced compost that starts at $15 per cubic yard.
5. Top the soil-compost mixture with 1 inch of compost.
4. Use the dug-out dirt to build up the edge of the bed and any pathways around and through the garden.
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Food bank offers resources
The Community Food Bank conducts workshops on how to grow vegetables at home. The next one on soil and compost is March 5. Other topics include site design and composting. They are held in English and Spanish at the food bank garden and the Marana Heritage Farm.
Home Garden Program members can receive free seeds, borrow tools, purchase materials at low cost and get printed gardening guides.
Membership into the program is free.
For more information, contact the food bank at 622-0525, ext. 263 or 264. Program and workshop details are online at communityfoodbank.com.
Contact local freelance writer Elena Acoba at acoba@dakotacom.net