Planting in a raised bed can be great if you’re looking to protect your garden – and your back – or just trying to extend your growing season, but it does require a couple of changes to how you approach the soil. What is the best way to grow poblano peppers in a raised bed?
When growing poblano peppers in raised beds, invest in high-quality soil and carefully plan the layout and placement of your pepper plants. Raised beds are is a great option if you have trouble bending down or if your yard has poor-quality soil. They allow for better drainage during rainy months and warm more quickly during cooler seasons.
Keep reading to learn all about growing poblano peppers in raised beds!
Is it okay to grow poblano peppers in raised beds?
Before we go any further, let’s check in to make sure you can grow poblano peppers in raised beds to begin with.
It’s a great idea to grow poblano peppers in raised beds. Poblano peppers like well-draining soil, and soil tends to drain more quickly in raised beds. Likewise, poblano peppers enjoy full sun, so it’s wise to place your raised beds in the sun. Raised beds give you complete control over your garden’s soil quality.
Raised beds are the method of choice for many gardeners. There are as many reasons to use raised beds as there are gardeners who use them!
Raised beds are a life-changer for people who are elderly or disabled and can’t bend down to garden. They give people the chance to pursue their passion without physical limitations getting in the way.
You can also use raised beds no matter what’s in your backyard. Whether your backyard is full of clay, sand, or concrete- you can fill up a raised bed with great soil and you’re good to go!
As great as all this sounds, raised beds have some drawbacks too.
The biggest disadvantage to raised beds is that they’re pretty expensive to get up and running. Even if you use all salvaged wood, you still have to buy soil to fill in your beds. That can add up quickly!
You’ll also have less gardening space square footage than growing directly in the ground.
Keep reading to discover more benefits, issues, and tips related to raised beds!
Potential benefits of growing poblano peppers in raised beds
There are lots of good reasons why someone may choose to grow their poblano peppers in raised beds.
The benefits of growing poblano peppers in raised beds are:
- Aesthetics – You may find raised beds aesthetically pleasing. Some people love the tidy look of raised beds.
- Versatility – You can grow in raised beds no matter what your backyard is made of. Your backyard may be made up of heavy clay or sand. Or it may even be covered with concrete. No matter what your circumstance, you can still have a garden when you use raised beds!
- Accessibility – You don’t have to bend down as far to reach your plants. Raised beds are a great option for you if you have trouble bending down. Unfortunately, many people think they aren’t capable of gardening due to physical limitations. You can garden with raised beds even if you can’t bend down!
- Control – You completely control the soil within your raised beds. Similar to what was touched on earlier, it doesn’t matter what your backyard is naturally made of. You get to fill your raised bed with whatever soil you want.
- Environmental control – The soil in raised beds is warmer than in the ground and drains more quickly. You’ll be able to get a headstart on planting when you use raised beds because the soil temperatures are higher than that of the ground. Likewise, peppers do best in well-draining soil.
As you can see, there are many great reasons to grow your poblano peppers in raised beds. Now let’s explore some of the potential reasons it might not work for you.
Potential issues growing poblano peppers in raised beds
No method of gardening is fool-proof. Let’s talk about some problems you may run into growing poblano peppers in raised beds.
Potential issues growing poblano peppers in raised beds include:
- Aesthetics – You may not like how raised beds look. Some people just don’t like how raised beds look! Whether you find them clunky or are just a die-hard fan of in-ground gardens, raised beds aren’t everybody’s cup of tea.
- Cost – Raised beds and soil can be expensive. To start up a raised bed garden, you need to buy both the beds and all the soil to fill the beds. Depending on how many beds you’re planning on having, that can come out to at least hundreds of dollars worth of soil alone.
- Space – Your square footage will be limited. When you’re growing in the ground, you can essentially use your entire backyard as a garden. But even if you fill your entire backyard with raised beds, you still need to leave room in between them to walk and garden. This takes up precious square footage.
- Environmental control – The soil in raised beds is warmer than in the ground and drains more quickly. Wait, wasn’t this listed as a benefit before? Truth be told, it’s a double-edged sword. In extreme circumstances, the soil may get too hot come the peak of summer and damage your poblano’s roots. Likewise, even though peppers like well-draining soil, you may have to end up watering your plants more often if the soil drains too quickly.
With these potential pros and cons in mind, let’s look at some of the best tips for growing poblano peppers in raised beds.
5 tips for growing poblano peppers in raised beds
If you’re going to grow your poblano peppers in raised beds, you’ll need some tips!
Here are my top five tips for growing poblano peppers in raised beds:
- Invest in high-quality soil
- Plan the layout of your raised beds wisely
- Consider what kind of raised bed is best for you
- Get help installing the raised beds
- Use mulch to retain moisture
Let’s go over each tip in more depth.
Invest in high-quality soil
No matter what blog post, article, or book you read about gardening, everyone will stress the importance of using the right soil.
When growing poblano peppers in raised beds, invest in high-quality soil. Poblano peppers like a soil pH of around 6.5. and enjoy well-draining soil.
Peppers prefer a soil pH of around 6.5. Feel free to amend your soil with perlite to increase drainage and aeration.
There are many things that influence soil pH. For example, the acidity of the rocks from which the soil formed is usually a good indicator of how acidic the soil will be.
In addition, soils that were formed under a lot of rainfall are typically more acidic than those formed under arid conditions.
But lucky for you, all you need to do is simply look at the pH on the bag of soil you’re buying.
Remember that poblano peppers like well-draining soil too! You can always amend the soil with perlite to add more drainage and aeration.
Plan the layout of your raised beds wisely
If you don’t carefully plan the layout of your raised beds, you may find that you don’t enjoy them down the road.
Plan the layout of your raised beds wisely when growing poblano peppers. Be sure to put your raised beds somewhere that gets lots of sun. Likewise, include enough room between the beds to comfortably walk and garden. The occasional perpendicular bed will give your garden some extra character!
The layout of your raised beds is incredibly important. The paths between them will soon be well-worn, and a good layout will make your gardening and leisure time so much more enjoyable.
Pro tip: the occasional perpendicular bed will give your layout personality so you’re not just walking through a grid!
Make sure to leave enough room between beds to comfortably stroll, water, plant, and weed.
And most importantly, put your beds in the sun!
Consider what kind of raised bed is best for you
With lots of different raised beds on the market, you will have to do some research. Even if you’re building your own raised bed, you need to ensure it suits your needs well.
Before your start planning your poblano peppers, consider what kind of raised bed is best for you. You’ll be choosing both size and material. Choose tall raised beds if you need to garden without bending down. Remember that each increase in dimension will result in needing more soil, which can be costly.
The main four factors you will be thinking about are:
- Length
- Width
- Height
- Material
Or – simply put – the size and material.
If you don’t want to, or can’t, bend down, make sure your beds will reflect the necessary height. But then you need to consider the cost because taller beds mean more soil. If you’re on a budget, taller beds may mean you have to cut back on length or width.
This is true for every dimension. If you want a lot of planting space and are on a budget, you’ll need to get raised beds that aren’t very high.
Now onto the materials. Metal is meant to last, and most metal beds come with a coating to prevent rust. That being said, they don’t have the same natural look as wood (and most people aren’t looking for an industrial-style garden).
But, of course, wood eventually rots. It can also attract ants, bees, and termites.
These are all things you need to think about when choosing your raised beds or creating a building blueprint.
Get help installing the raised beds
Call up some friends! Installing your raised beds will be easier with a buddy or two.
Get help installing the raised beds. No matter how simple your raised beds are, it’s always easier with two pairs of hands. If you’re building your own beds, someone to pass screws and help cut wood will certainly come in handy.
Even the simplest of raised beds are easier with two pairs of hands.
You’ll typically have to dig out a bit where the raised bed will go. Trace the shape with a shovel or spray paint the ground and then dig a little trench, so your raised bed is secured in the ground.
Metal raised beds tend to be the easiest to put together. If you’re building your own raised beds, having a buddy to pass the screws and help you cut the wood will do wonders.
Use mulch to retain moisture
All plants need moisture – even those who like well-draining soil.
Use mulch to retain moisture. It’s true that poblano peppers like well-draining soil, but they still require some level of moisture. Using mulch will retain moisture without causing sogginess!
If you remember from earlier, soil typically drains faster in raised beds. This is both a blessing and a curse.
While poblano peppers like well-draining soil, they still need some moisture to be happy. A simple solution? Use mulch to conserve soil moisture.
Mulching around your poblano peppers will keep moisture in, while good drainage will avoid sogginess. Win-win!
