Flat bed slate

When the new spring-summer season comes, many summer residents begin to think about how they can equip their beds. By properly organizing the existing plot of land, you can freely and conveniently grow the crop you like. And also to get the required quantity and quality of the entire crop as a whole. Slate beds are gaining increasing popularity among many summer residents. Such a landscape design emphasizes the neatness and orderliness of the beds in the summer cottage.

Therefore, many people have a question, but how to make the beds with the help of slate on their own. To do this, you need to read a little useful information, have a great desire and a certain amount of time. And also do not forget about the main material - sheet or flat slate. Also, this option of fencing will well reduce your strength and bring the time for the ripening of the crop closer.

Slate fences can warm the soil well, which allows plants to grow and develop faster. How to properly build beds with slate, you will learn by reading our article.

Slate beds: features

In order for the beds to be strong and able to serve for a long time, it is very important to choose the right material for their creation. In our case, we will talk about special slate strips designed for beds. The advantages of such boards lie in the properties of asbestos cement. It is with the help of this material that the design of the beds and flower beds is made. The main advantage is the low cost of the material. For this reason, many summer residents choose this particular material for equipping their beds.

Slate strips can have different sizes - from 16 to 40 mm thick, up to 3 m long. Slate sheets can be used in roofing construction, in the construction of fences, floors and other structures. Corrugated and flat slate can also have different dimensions, textures and colors. Weight depends on the dimensions and thickness of the slate sheet.

The advantages of slate beds are as follows:

• Thanks to the low weight of the strips, the beds can be built quickly and easily.
• Due to the fact that the composition contains asbestos, the beds have high fire resistance.
• Provides good resistance to temperature fluctuations and weather conditions.
• Such structures are not afraid of putrefactive processes.
• It can be used for 9-10 seasons, in contrast to the tree, which is enough for only 3-4 seasons.
• The strips can be easily processed.
• Possess aesthetic appeal.

The downside is the fragility of the material, which will not allow it to withstand a heavy load.

Flat slate for beds - the pros and cons of using

Plants in slate beds begin to grow faster. Slate also has a protective function for plant roots from various pests that may be in the ground, in particular from bears. Also, beds can provide good protection against weed roots from entering your garden.

But there are also some disadvantages when using slate beds. If the strips are very hot, then increased evaporation of moisture in the soil can occur. Therefore, plants that grow in such beds will need to be watered a little more often than ordinary ones in order to prevent the soil from drying out.

You can also find different opinions regarding the fact that the asbestos contained in the strips can negatively affect the nutritional quality of the crop, that they will have an increased level of toxicity.

But this negative effect can be avoided by simply painting the stripes. Also, by painting the strips, you can extend the life of the slate strips. And the resistance against frost and moisture also increases. The most important thing is to choose the right paint. Most often, for such products, compositions containing acrylic are used, and which dry quickly. Alternatively, liquid plastic may be used.

How to properly make slate beds with your own hands

To correctly make a bed of slate strips, you must follow some recommendations:

1. First you need to make the walls of the beds from slate from pre-prepared strips. Install and strengthen them.
2. Fill the walls with fertile contents.
3. Engage in arranging row spacings.

Beds with flat slate sides have their own optimal size. The side walls require installation into the ground to a depth of 40 cm. The walls should be up to 0.7 m high. In the beds, the width should be up to 1.5 m. It is necessary to adhere to the east-west direction. The length can also be up to 11 m.

In the first layer, you need to create a cushion of compost, sawdust and other organic fertilizers. On top of the pillow, you need to pour fertile soil. A separate topic for discussion is the creation of gaps between rows. Correctly designed aisles will help make your site more tidy, and will also serve as some kind of reinforcement for structures.

At the very beginning, the soil near the rows must be tamped. Row spacing can vary - it can be lawn, gravel, or concrete. It is possible to engage in the formation of a lawn if there is an optimal distance between the structures. This will help you prune your plants in the best way.

It is best to grow annual crops in slate structures. Good for creating a spicy garden bed. Perennial plants are not recommended to be planted in such slate beds. Also, as in ordinary beds, the soil can freeze slightly in winter.

Step-by-step manufacturing instructions

What actions will need to be taken when constructing structures depends on what material you are going to use.

The very first step is to prepare the sheets in advance by cutting them into the required number of parts. Then, on top of the surface of the earth, it is necessary to draw the approximate contours of future beds. Then you need to make trenches. It is in them that the cuts of corrugated slate sheets must be installed in the vertical direction.

Slate sheets must be well covered with earth on each side and tamped. To keep the structures better, you can prop them with metal stakes from different sides.

If you plan to build slate beds yourself, then this will also not be too difficult. The length of the slate flat sheet is 1.75 m. In order to have as little residues as possible, it is better to cut the sheet into two parts, with lengths of 100 and 75 cm. Metal corners that need to be prepared in advance will help to connect the parts thus obtained. They need to be cut, holes made into them, where the bolts will be inserted, treated with anti-corrosion agents.

It is not worth nailing up slate sheets. It is best to dig them in the trenches that you dug in advance. It will undoubtedly take more time from you. But in this way you can ensure its safety and integrity to the slate. And also the ability to use over a long period of time. The beds that will be fenced in this way will be able to rise above the total territory of the summer cottage up to about 15 cm in height.

Precautions for making slate beds

You cannot do without cutting the slate strips into the desired parts. For this reason, all necessary precautions must be taken.

For a start, it is best to use a respirator to avoid getting dust on the mucous membranes of the eyes and nose. Which tool to use for sawing depends on whether the site has the ability to use electricity. If there is such an opportunity, then it is better to use a grinder. If there is no electricity, then you can make cuts with a regular saw.

If you have chosen a wavy flat slate, then it must be cut strictly perpendicular to the direction of the wave. In order to avoid mistakes, it is better to make outlines in advance with the help of chalk on top of the slate.

Before you start cutting the slate, you need to moisten the cutting area. In order to speed up or facilitate the sawing process, small holes must be made on the lines that you mark with chalk using a nail. But all such events must be carried out with extreme caution so that the slate strips are not damaged.

High beds of slate

It is considered more convenient to process beds that have high sides. Thus, it becomes more convenient to take care of plantings and harvest. In what cases and for what purposes can such structures be built on the site. There are several reasons for this.

If the territory of your summer cottage has a difficult terrain, or there is a need for:

• preparation of a unique soil composition for growing certain crops.
• good drainage.
• regulation of the fertile soil layer depending on the type of plant root system.
• early planting of seedlings in the spring.
• free growth of plants without the need for tying (cucumbers and tomatoes can grow well by hanging their shoots down).
• giving the fences a certain shape, not like a rectangle, to create a creative design for the suburban area.

It is also important to keep in mind that if the walls of the finished slate beds are more than 40 cm above the soil level, then they require additional screed with wire. In oppositely installed slate strips, holes must be made into which the wire must be pulled, the ends must be twisted. But be sure to count your efforts so as not to overdo it. After all, slate sheets are very fragile and can be easily damaged, even if you press a little more when twisting the wire.

We make Mittlider beds from slate and not only

Vegetable grower Mittlider is the founder of the tall slate strips for the cultivation of strawberries. But the material for the beds can be anything: slate, boards or any other building material. It is important to pay attention to the sizes, which may differ from the standard ones. The width of the bed for growing strawberries according to the Mittlider is only 45 cm.This size is considered reasonable according to the Mittlider:

• it doesn't take much effort to remove weeds.
• berry bushes grow freely, do not interfere with each other, which has a positive effect on their fruiting.
• the root system is less likely to rot.

A layer of 20 cm of sawdust, shavings or wood chips must be laid inside the garden bed. Lay fertile or compound soil on top. The row spacing is about 90 cm. The row spacing must be covered with agrofibre to avoid weeds overgrowing the paths.

As a layer for a slate bed, the use of sawdust is well suited. This will ensure moisture is retained and can be used as fertilizer. Sawdust also helps to avoid the appearance of cracks of various types in the upper layer of the soil.

Many summer residents do not use slate because of the nondescript color, preferring wood. But one should not neglect the use of slate stripes just because of the color. After all, this can be easily fixed. You can use the colorful materials that we mentioned above.Or you can start decorating with various willow twigs. This venture will be appreciated by both the owners and guests of the summer cottage.

A much larger amount of harvest can be obtained precisely by growing a particular crop in such beds than on a plot without any restrictions. Due to the fact that such beds can maintain an optimal temperature regime well, the plant grows faster, absorbs fertilizers better, and the absorption of nutrients is better.

It is not so difficult to build structures using slate, the main thing is to do everything right. And then you can use these beds to grow many crops over a long period of time.