Tank Gardens
Page 87 of Eat Your Garden
Tank gardens come in all shapes and sizes and are a
convenient way of making a raised garden bed. The methodology
below will apply just as well to any raised garden bed you
construct.
Tank gardens are an easy way of containing a garden and keeping
the edges neat (400mm high). A higher one (820mm) is great for
people with disabilities or who are uncomfortable with
bending. Bear in mind that a garden 820mm high is going to
use at least twice as many resources to fill it as a 400mm
one.
Tanks are also good for keeping out hares, dogs, bandicoots and
even bush turkeys (if netted).
The best system is to make a huge compost in your tank, but that
is going to take a lot of resources and a lot of time, so perhaps
you would prefer the following method. Place your tank on the
ground and dig the edges in about 5cm so that they are
secure.
1. Drainage layer. For a 400mm tank you will just need a thin
layer on the base, for a taller tank you will need to fill 1/2 of
the tank with either palm tree trunks cut into sections, wattle
branches, any large prunings from your property, or any rubble
that you have access to such as concrete, bricks or rocks. Make
sure any rubble is free of obvious toxins such as oil. Then pour
some crusher dust on top to fill the gaps. In the long term the
crusher dust provides minerals to your plants.
2. Cover rubble with a weed mat, I prefer a weed gunnel.
3. Add all, or some of the following; grass clippings, cow, horse
or chicken manures, and mushroom compost. The more variety
the better 30cm.
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