Wicking Beds Tutorial

Last week Whaea Heidi attended a working bee at the Women’s Refuge to put in garden beds. These type of beds are called wicking beds and they are designed to make efficient use of water with very little watering required. She was so impressed at how well they work that she has made notes for us here, so in future when we put new beds in we can use this method.

Here’s what you do:

First you line a frame with thick plastic:

Then put in a permeable pipe and fix one end to the top of the bed. The other, sealed end, is laid flat in the bottom of the bed:

Then layer 10cm of sand on top. Make drain holes at that height through the bed and the plastic so it can’t overfill.

Alternate mulch, pea straw and soil, adding some lime to the mulch to help it break down. Layer up to the top and overfill it to a high mound, as it will settle down a lot.

To water the bed, pour water down the pipe to fill up to the level of the sand. The water will slowly permeate up into the other layers. Watering is only required every two weeks to keep the bed hydrated. Seedlings also require direct watering for the first couple of weeks.