For those of you who use raised garden beds, what's your approach to managing the soil over the years? Do you keep using the same soil and just add fertilizer, or do you completely replace it with new dirt each time?
3 Answers
Your soil can actually improve over time! Unless it gets contaminated, there's no reason to start over every year. Just add compost, worm castings, mulch, and consider planting certain crops that help build the soil.
There's really no need to replace the soil annually; that just seems like too much work and cash for not much gain. I recommend adding compost and/or fertilizer instead, it keeps the soil healthy and productive.
I usually just top dress with a couple inches of compost every year and throw in some fertilizer to keep everything healthy. It's an easy way to maintain the soil without starting from scratch.