What’s a good soil mixture for raised beds? I just built a really large bed and need about 2 cubic yards to fill it. Off the shelf potting soil mixes are going to be just too expensive so I need to mix my own. Mostly we will be growing vegetables, tomatoes peppers etc. Any suggestions?
Thanks Karl

Hello.
Is they a chance to buy municiple compost nearby? Does you county landfill sell it? It would be good fill, should be weed free, and with the right touch of Nitrogen be a cheap way to grow.
Scott

Karl, when I built my greenhouse raised beds, I first dug the original soil one spade deep and removed the dirt from the hole. Then I again dug another spade deep. When I had accomplished this I had a hole two spades deeper than the soil level. I then built my raised bed frame around the hole. The back fill that I put into the hole consisted of the following mixture. One part of the original soil, one part peat moss, two parts coarse sand, and one part leaf mold. These are the ingredients that I had available at the time. The mix has served me well. The photo of the Papaya and the Marisol Clementine that is posted on this forum are growing in the raised beds. I would have also used compost as Scott suggested, but I did not have any available. Good luck.

Millet

I did find mulch for $27 per cubic yard and was told that it was a mixture of pine bark and dirt. They recommended that I add equal parts of top soil to form the mixture. I haven’t seen the product but I think that it must be mostly pine bark without sand.
A friend told me today that he uses 1/3 sand,1/3 peat and1/3 top soil. Do you think that this would be a good mixture?
Thanks Karl

Yes, I think that would be OK. The 1/3 mixture is a 1-1-1 ratio. The peat moss degrades and disappears during the first season, therefore has to be dug in annually. The ratio of added sand depends on how clay or sandy the original soil is. The sand is what really does the trick.
Millet

For vegetables and bush/cane fruit the more organic matter the better, if you build your soil every year with compost it will be fast draining, moisture retentive, and rich in all of the nutrients Macro and Micro. It will also give the soil beneficial organisms that help fight disease and pests. I would pick up a book at your local lib. that has to do with organic gardening or just soil, it all has to do with how the sand or clay forms aggregates with humus. It is really fascinating i think. Also it depends on what soil you are starting out with is it clay or sand; if it is clay then I would add some sand with the mix, if it is a sandy soil then i wouldn't add sand. Also i find that peat moss only really needs to added if your plants like acidic soils like blueberries. Also you might want to read about double digging it is good for the soil to. It is always best to give the soil the very best from the start so your plants grow heathly and strong and then are less vernerable to attack by pests or diseases.