Hi all,
We spent the afternoon building our DIY pallet and collar-raised bed. The pallet is 100cm x 120cm and the collars are 30cm each.
I was planning to have the raised beds for the tomatoes and the chillis in 5L canvas bags.
Who would go for the raised bed and who advises the individual bags?
Same growing medium.
How many could you grow in a pallet raised bed this size? I was thinking of sticking all
6 of my Basket of Fire in one and the Super Hots in their own bags as they might need a bit of greenhouse TLC.
I have 30ish chillis needing an future home.
What’s your thoughts.
Growing in the UK just South of London.
by Ill_Lawyer_8484
5 Comments
Note that the wood in pallets is often treated with nasty things, some chemical and some toxic metals. I would not suggest contact with the wood surface for the roots from the plants, but a layer of plastic is prob enough.
I actually use some similar looking planters made out of 1000L IBC totes, which you can cut in half to get two (though only one will be forklift/pallet-jack able in that case). Contact surface will be HDPE, aluminum or steel frame for support.
Ideally you want 18″ of spacing between plants from everything you’ll read online. I use 7 gallon grow bags and they definitely do not have that much room. I’d say get as close to 12″ apart as you can.
Dude, that setup looks awesome!! I have grown on pallets for 2 years now, I’ve also used canvas/fabric bags for 2 years now. My plants have never had an issue; In fact, I grew the biggest pepper of my entire life this year on that setup. I guess the other comments have a point about chemically treated wood, but it hasn’t been an issue and I’ve used about 10 random pallets. Every plant is healthy. Bottom line is your setup looks amazing! Take everyone’s advice with a grain of salt and do your own research.
I’m adding an edit to answer your question, I honestly don’t know the best thing to do for your situation, but I prefer individual plants in individual bags, I can always rotate them to change which plants need less or more sun when it comes to the shade in my yard. But I live in a totally different zone, my sun is extreme here
Again, it looks great!
What is the benefit from the palettes, better drainage? I grow both in bags and raised beds, but the beds are on top of garden soil.
Thanks for the idea! I work the parts counter at a forklift dealership amd we have a crap load of pallets juts rotting or getting tossed now I can put them to use.