Medwyn Williams advises on growing veg in an outside bed after a deluge of rain
Charles Barre , Birmingham
Medwyn says:
Growing vegetables in raised beds is very beneficial as it reduces the need to walk over the soil. This means the vegetables will be more productive as the roots of surfacerooting vegetables, such as onions, aren't damaged. Also, walking on the bed will inevitably compact the soil, which in turn will squeeze out the air from around the root system.
However, if the beds have been prepared well by incorporating plenty of well-rotted farmyard manure or compost, the rains shouldn’t affect the bed too much. Having said that, some nutrients within the soil may well be depleted, in particular nitrogen, which will be the first element to leach out. This can have an affect, particularly on leafy vegetables such as lettuces and brassicas.
If the plants are noticeably showing signs of stress, such as yellowing leaves, then a quick nitrogen fix, such as a scattering of some dried blood hoed lightly into the top surface of the soil, will give them a boost. Conversely, when the weather settles down and we have some decent summer weather, raised beds can suffer more quickly and more severely from drought due to improved drainage, so keep an eye on watering needs.
During very dry periods, such as the incredibly hot and long summer we had last year, means more water than normal will be given to the beds. Again, this means some depletion of nutrients will be inevitable and liquid feeding once every 10 days or so will be very beneficial. As I said before, leafy vegetables will need a high nitrogenbased feed but as a general feed use
a balanced ratio such as Peters Professional 20-20-20.