How much sunlight does a raised bed garden require?
Image by VeggieGardeningTips
Photo of my organic vegetable garden very early in the spring season.
Question by Think Outside the BOX: How much sunlight does a raised bed garden require?
My wife and I just bought a raised bed garden kit and seed kits from Wal-Mart. This is our first attempt to garden. I was wondering how much sunlight these things require. I have a spot in my yard that is mostly sunny, but is shaded part of the day by a tree (I’d say it gets 5-7 hours in sunlight). I was wondering if that would be a good place to plant.
Thanks
It’s a vegetable garden
What do you think? Answer below!
5 Responses to How much sunlight does a raised bed garden require?
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It all depends on what you’re trying to grow in it. There are some very nice flowers that will do fine in the spot you describe, but full sun will give you alot more options on what to plant there.
Thunder sleeps
October 7, 2011 at 10:08 am
It depends on the plants you have in it…the Label on the plant container should tell you all you need to know about how much light it should get.
Jefferey Stokeley
October 7, 2011 at 10:39 am
Sounds good. But how high are the temperatures where you live? It it gets up to 110 degrees often I’d say it needs more shade than that. What kiind of garden is it? Veges or flowers?
† Marcia J †
October 7, 2011 at 10:50 am
Most if not all vegetables will do well in 5-7 hours sunlight. Preferably the shade is the afternoon shade because that’s when the sun is the hottest and most damaging. If you can move the raised bed where it gets morning sun but afternoon shade, all your veggies will do well. Raised beds need to be watered more often than in-ground gardens, just keep that in mind. Ideally, your soil should be somewhat damp, like a damp sponge.
Florida Gardener
October 7, 2011 at 11:48 am
Placement of your plants is just as important as the amount of sun they will need.
You want all your taller plants on the north side of the bed to gain the full effects of the sunlight throughout the day. This way the taller ones don’t block the sun from the others.
Fruiting veggies (such as tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, peas) need 6-8 hours a day.
Root veggies (carrots, radishes, beets, potatoes) up to 6 hours as day. They don’t need a full days sun to do well.
Leaf veggies (spinach, lettuce, kale, parsley) 4-6 hours is good enough. they do like partial shade.
Good luck and welcome to the wonders of Gardening.
PS…with limited space, you should always think Vertical. That is growing on trellis, fences, and poles etc., so the climbing plants don’t take up all the ground space.
Mama Mia
October 7, 2011 at 12:22 pm