Tired Raised Bed Soil?

[Wildcat82]

The past 3 years I've noticed a huge difference between the vigor of plants I put in containers versus the slow growing plants in my 1' tall raised beds. My beds were filled with 100% Miracle Grow garden soil probably 6 years ago. Plant roots never grow into the underlying soil. I typically fertilize every 2 weeks like you're supposed to. This past winter I added 4 bags of Black Kow composted manure to each of my 8" X 3" beds to see if that helped. But my in-bed tomatoes, strawberries, eggplant, and tomatoes still aren't vigorous.

I know it probably isn't ideal to use the same soil over and over in containers. Should I replace the Miracle Grow pseudo-soil in my beds or can I just double or triple the amount of fertilizer I've been administering?

Is my soil just not fertile any more?

[worth1]

Could be fertilizer or it could be pH.
Maybe both.
I've used the same stuff in my tubs for years.

[bower]

If you have access to a soil test, that would be the way to go.
I consider that the bagged mixes even the compost are more of a texture than a fertilizer. NPK of compost is roughly 1:1:1, and that is not enough for really vigorous growth unless you have it deep and very active with soil life. If you're not finding worms in the bagged compost, it's probably been sterilized and not bringing soil life to the mix. I do find a big difference with my home compost really bringing on the vigorous growth, cw anything that came from a bag. The living microbes and critters are making the nutrients available to the plants in a big way.
Tomatoes are really heavy feeders. I do reuse my container mix, but always amend by at least 1/3 of fresh compost or well rotted horse manure. I have tweaked my soil prep on the advice or example of gardeners here, and now do most of the amendments in advance, including a bit of lime, crushed kelp and a handful of chicken pellet to help break down old roots and the raw kelp and make it available when the plants go in. And I'm still digging about six ounces of bone meal into the bottom of each container per tomato plant. There is never a trace of any fert left at the end of season, just a lot of roots.

[CrazyAboutOrchids]

I test my garden soil at least once a year, sometimes twice. You cannot, imo, properly amend soil if you don't know what you have or don't have.

[PlainJane]

I’d be inclined to replace as much of that old soil as possible with the best compost you can lay your hands on. Given that you’re in a major metro area there may be bulk compost available locally for delivery or pickup.

[Cornelius_Gotchberg]

In addition to the contributions of three (3) compost bins, I empty the annually replenished soil contents from our containers into our raised beds at the end of each growing season.

The Gotch

[MissS]

A soil test will tell you a lot more than we can.

Given that, every year I add the fall leaves to the soil and dig them in with a handful of bonemeal. I add a shovelful or two of natural clay to replace depleted minerals. Some people will buy Azomite for this. After planting I will lightly sprinkle the beds with dried blood and do this throughout the season, not only for the nitrogen but also to repel the deer. In pots with a soilless mix I find that magnesium is depleted rapidly and add a tablespoon of Epsom Salts to them. To add more organic matter in the spring after planting, I mulch the beds with straw, wood chips, or the rest of the leaves and compost.

Miracle Grow soil is not my favorite medium but you can work with it to keep it healthy by adding compost, leaves and lawn clippings to it every year and a bit of natural soil. Feeding your soil is more important than feeding your plants. If you feed your soil then you won't need to use any blue stuff on your plants!

[karstopography]

I get cubic yards of bulk compost, really a soil/compost mix, from the landscape supply every so often, more than once a year, to replenish my raised beds. $30 something a cubic yard. My beds have 14” of freeboard and the soil levels sink pretty fast so the beds sort of tell me they need new material. My beds simply rest on the native topsoil so in theory the roots of some vegetables can reach that original layer.

I add inches of raked up from the lot hardwood leaves, mostly oak, then pine and bald cypress needles, to the beds at least annually. Brassica leaves get turned into the soil, greensand, gypsum, sulphur, have been added to some. There’s very little peat in my raised beds and what I have added is mostly dark sedge peat and hardly any of Sphagnum peat and moss. I use Baccto Premium Potting soil to start my plants in, dark peat sedge based, and sometimes I add a generous helping of that to the transplant hole. There some perlite in there too from the potting soil.

My experience with miracle gro potting mixes and mixes with a lot of sphagnum peat in my climate hasn’t been positive. Not sure why, but I avoid potting soil that is mainly based on sphagnum peat moss.

[karstopography]

https://www.domyown.com/is-grazonnext-h ... 28744.html

I would avoid bagged cow or horse based composted manure, even from dairy cows, as there are zero restrictions on feeding dairy cows fodder from fields treated with grazon. If you can be certain grazon was not used in the cultivation of the grass or feed, then okay, but I avoid any bagged cow/horse based composted manure just because I have not seen any of them certify their product is grazon free.

[MarkAndre]

I’ve never gardened in one place for six years, so I can’t really speak from experience. Just commenting more in support and sympathy. Nothing worse than thinking you’ve set things up well for the year and they just sit.

I’ve only ever done home soil tests, but those tests led me to believe my native soil is insanely high in PH and phosphorous and devoid of N and K. I’m guessing it might be the same where you live. They say phosphorous builds up over time with fert use. So that is kind of where my mind drifts, that your PH and phosphorus might be elevated. If you don’t wind up doing the soil testing, I’m wondering if bloodmeal or iron under a nice layer of mulch might green things up. None of this is expert advice, take with a grain of salt. No phosphorous pun intended.

[bower]

pH test is really a great idea. The pH alone can make nutrients unavailable.

My climate here drives the pH of soil down. Cold and wet that is. So we need to lime pretty often.
Also my raised beds outdoors, where I grow garlic and other things, are definitely lossy as others mentioned. The organic tops shrink down and the rocks climb up out of the ground in winter. I add material to my beds at least every second year, before the garlic goes in. Well rotted horse manure, compost, anything cycled out from container use. Every bit of organic dirt is wanted somewhere.

[MissTee]

I have a bunch of raised beds, made gradually over the years from any materials available at the time:
- contractor top soil (with a bit of gravel mixed )
- horse bedding mix of straw and manure
- and bagged soils/manures.

The beds with store bought bagged soil/manure have the least fertility and something in there that kills certain plants likes tomatoes and squash. (So I need to avoid those beds for my tomatoes).

I spread my own compost and wood stove ashes very thinly throughout as I don't have that much produced annually. Top dress/mulch with last year's maple leaves.

One thing I don't see mentioned here is Alfalfa Pellets. I bought a 50 lb bag for $20 at the Feed Store and sprinkled it throughout the beds in early Spring, to break down prior to planting. It is a balanced fertilizer and that bag has lasted two years, and still have a bit left. I also use liquid fish ferilizer when watering about every two weeks throughout the garden season.

So I hope by adding beneficial organic matter, that balances what is taken out annually. Everything is growing well and I hit the jackpot this week -- six bags of horse manure is coming my way. Woohoo!

[Cole_Robbie]

It's hard to trust any bagged product. I have unknowingly bought herbicide contaminated compost (99 cents a bag, what a deal!). Also, bagged cattle manure usually comes from feed lots and is high in salts. It seems prudent to test anything first, a friend of mine got 2-4-d contaminated mushroom compost from a local business last year.

[Wildcat82]

https://www.domyown.com/is-grazonnext-h ... 28744.html

I would avoid bagged cow or horse based composted manure, even from dairy cows, as there are zero restrictions on feeding dairy cows fodder from fields treated with grazon. If you can be certain grazon was not used in the cultivation of the grass or feed, then okay, but I avoid any bagged cow/horse based composted manure just because I have not seen any of them certify their product is grazon free.

Wow - I did not know about Grazon.

Last year I planted 4 tomatoes in straw bales the farm supply store swore had never been sprayed with herbicide. Yet 2 of my tomatoes started developing white leaves on the top of the plant which probably indicates herbicide. Seems like a heck of a lot of garden media is contaminated.

[worth1]

13-13-13.

[Wildcat82]

I have a bunch of raised beds, made gradually over the years from any materials available at the time:
- contractor top soil (with a bit of gravel mixed )
- horse bedding mix of straw and manure
- and bagged soils/manures.

The beds with store bought bagged soil/manure have the least fertility and something in there that kills certain plants likes tomatoes and squash. (So I need to avoid those beds for my tomatoes).

I spread my own compost and wood stove ashes very thinly throughout as I don't have that much produced annually. Top dress/mulch with last year's maple leaves.

One thing I don't see mentioned here is Alfalfa Pellets. I bought a 50 lb bag for $20 at the Feed Store and sprinkled it throughout the beds in early Spring, to break down prior to planting. It is a balanced fertilizer and that bag has lasted two years, and still have a bit left. I also use liquid fish ferilizer when watering about every two weeks throughout the garden season.

So I hope by adding beneficial organic matter, that balances what is taken out annually. Everything is growing well and I hit the jackpot this week -- six bags of horse manure is coming my way. Woohoo!

Funny that you mentioned alfalfa pellets. Two years ago, a bag of chicken crumbles developed some mold on it. I didn't want to risk feeding any of it to the hens so I amended 1 raised bed with a 4o lb sack. Next time I went to the feed store I bought a bag of feed plus a bag of alfalfa pellets which went into the bed next to the other bed. Didn't notice any difference in plant growth.

[Wildcat82]

13-13-13.

I have fertilized twice with Ironite 12-10-10. Could be a lack of trace minerals in the soil so I figured the Ironite would fix that.

[Barb_FL]

..... This past winter I added 4 bags of Black Kow composted manure to each of my 8" X 3" beds to see if that helped. ....

Is that the Black Kow sold at the big box stores, yellow bag? I tried it many year ago (also for a raised bed). It looked great, really dark, great texture. But I left it in a wheelbarrow overnight and it dried as mainly sand. So I tossed the bag with the remaining into an unused area in the backyard. Cleaning that area up, I picked up the disintegrating bag, and it was a mound of sand.

If it is the same Black Kow that I had, and relying on it may be a large part of your problem.

[Wildcat82]

..... This past winter I added 4 bags of Black Kow composted manure to each of my 8" X 3" beds to see if that helped. ....

Is that the Black Kow sold at the big box stores, yellow bag? I tried it many year ago (also for a raised bed). It looked great, really dark, great texture. But I left it in a wheelbarrow overnight and it dried as mainly sand. So I tossed the bag with the remaining into an unused area in the backyard. Cleaning that area up, I picked up the disintegrating bag, and it was a mound of sand.

If it is the same Black Kow that I had, and relying on it may be a large part of your problem.

Yep, same stuff I used. You never know how much cow manure is actually in the bag.

It's probably like how some grape juices bill themselves as containing "real juice" then you find out it's only 1% grape juice and 99% apple juice with some coloring and artificial flavors.

[Barb_FL]

So it sounds like your plants are only being 'fed' when you fertilize them every 2 weeks. What are you using to fertilize?