what are the pros and cons of using wine bottles to edge veg beds?
I have a virtually unlimited supply available.
I have clay soil if that makes a difference.
I think OK for a flower bed, but quite dodgy for veg. After all, the bed is going to be dug over or forked at least once or twice a year, it's easy for a tool to slip, land on the edge of the glass and break it. Broken glass on a plot is a nightmare.
???
A bit Dangerous I think :o
Quote from: asbean on November 04, 2009, 14:26:05
I think OK for a flower bed, but quite dodgy for veg. After all, the bed is going to be dug over or forked at least once or twice a year, it's easy for a tool to slip, land on the edge of the glass and break it. Broken glass on a plot is a nightmare.
the wine bottles will be from the pub I work in,I don't know if they are special bottles but they very rarely break if you drop them,maybe I could wrap them in something to be on the safe side.
I have seen pics of wine bottles being used to edge beds and they do look good.
Not very good for the old elf and safety though :)
I've never heard of it before but i bet it would look ok. If their is no kids about i'd go for it
Personally I would not, I'm a bit clumsy at the best of time, and with my plot being on a hill it would not be long before I am clearing out more broken glass, or even in casualty.
It sounds like a good idea if you are building a 'slug and snail hotel' type thing, but apart from that, it's not a good idea to edge with glass bottles, they'll only get broken, and be a pain to remove in the future (if not by you, then by the next plot-holder)
there was a couple who had done this in their front garden near to where i live, the local kids broke the lot one night, the householder then spent weeks clearing up the mess.
d**n.I am wavering now :(
In principle it should work as the bottles are inserted upsidedown so only the bottom end is visible and this is the part designed to be impact resistant.
now I am not so sure,I was thinking of trying one bed for lasagna gardening and thought it may be a cheap way of doing it.
Just had a fink. It would be dangerous if you neglected the plot and the new owners were'nt aware of them.
Having spent years removing bits of broken glass from my plot - I have a theory that glass multiplies in the soil just like weeds - I'd advise against it.
I think Obbelix built one in their garden - but note it was their garden and not an allotment. Don't know where you are growing your veg Pookienoodle (great name BTW!) and if this would make a difference to you?
1066
Yeah, but No But what a shed
http://unusuallife.com/2008/05/01/building-with-bottles/
Quote from: 1066 on November 04, 2009, 15:31:44
I think Obbelix built one in their garden - but note it was their garden and not an allotment. Don't know where you are growing your veg Pookienoodle (great name BTW!) and if this would make a difference to you?
1066
I am planning to build a wall ala Obbelix eventually.
It would be one bed(no dig experiement) on my allotment.
I have seen them on other allotment sites and I remember seeing quite a few in veg patches in French gardens.
I am trying to find the cheapest way to start my lottie as it has nothing on it(apart from weeds)
I am having no luck finding spare wood.
My Aunt has edged her flower beds with bottles (the open ends down) and it looks lovely. Thought about doing it myself but was put off by the fact that it would be impossible to dig without breaking them.
Love the pics of the bottle houses.. thats given me a few ideas!
I think Pookie's been put off the idea now, I think she's lost her bottle. :-X ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Quote from: cornykev on November 04, 2009, 17:48:08
I think Pookie's been put off the idea now, I think she's lost her bottle. :-X ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Ah put a cork in it! ;D
IF this is truly going to be a no dig bed and IF you faithfully promise to remove the bottles when or if you leave the site - then why not, go for it.........
Blimey she's got some neck. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
If the bottles get full of water and then freeze I would be worried that they might crack.
cornykev stop being a brut ;D
Watch it, you don't want to pop your cork Kev ;D
If they are wine bottles does one just PLONK themn in? ;D ;D
The indentation in the bottom is called a "Punt" :o ::)
Quote from: Digeroo on November 04, 2009, 19:46:43
If the bottles get full of water and then freeze I would be worried that they might crack.
they are put in neck down so no water should ingress,also wine bottles are quite sturdy at low temps(they can survive being in the hold of a plane.) though I wouldn't recommend freezing a full bottle.
If you're putting them neck down, you are taking the wine out first I hope?
(Well, it might alter the ph levels in the soil....)
Quote from: lushy86 on November 04, 2009, 19:54:14
Watch it, you don't want to pop your cork Kev ;D
If they are wine bottles does one just PLONK themn in? ;D ;D
don't be so Cru(de)
Quote from: Trevor_D on November 04, 2009, 19:58:43
If you're putting them neck down, you are taking the wine out first I hope?
(Well, it might alter the ph levels in the soil....)
not me personally,I am teetotal but I work in a pub so could get several hundred a week!
Do you have to have a raised bed in the 1st place / what is the rush? BTW I actually do like the idea ::) :D
I loved the photos of the buildings with glass 8)
The previous tentant of my plot used bottles as a edging, I have been on the plot now for the best part of ten years and I`m still getting cuts from the broken glass. If the previous tentant was still alive I`d do him under the heath and safety.
Quote from: powerspade on November 05, 2009, 08:49:30
The previous tentant of my plot used bottles as a edging, I have been on the plot now for the best part of ten years and I`m still getting cuts from the broken glass. If the previous tentant was still alive I`d do him under the heath and safety.
this backs up the point of being a responsible gardener, it's not just you, it's the future gardeners we have to think about ;)
A friend on an allotment site near mine edged her path with bottles, but they were vandalised a couple of weeks ago, along with her greenhouse, and as others said, there is now a lot of broken glass to clear up. Those buildings look absolutely wonderful.
Yes if the glass gets broken you'll have plenty to wine about. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Every plot I've had has been plagued with broken glass of one sort or another, and I've had my share of cuts. I've seen bottles used for edging, and I'm fascinated by the glass bottle buildings, but I'm not a fan of glass on allotments because it's not fair on the next tenant.
Quote from: cornykev on November 05, 2009, 18:43:23
Yes if the glass gets broken you'll have plenty to wine about. ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
Groan ;D
Betula I'm trying my best here. ;D ;D ;D
i reckon kev's taking the pimms ;D ;D ;D
If you put them upside-down that can't happen. I don't think it would anyway. When I was a kid, the milkman used to leave bottles of milk outside, and sometimes after a cold night, they partly froze. The ice was squeezed up through the spout as it expanded.
I am still in two minds.
I really like the idea of it and as it would be just for one no dig bed the risk of breakage is minimal but a non the less.
I may try to track down someone who has used them extensivley .
have a look in your local A&E ? ;)
This is from a garden design point of view. Most of the reasons you have put forward are valid points. We have tons of blue bottles that are waiting for a project. But edging would never be one of the uses. If we used them as edging in a show garden we would loose points. Free bottles has a certain drawn but weighed up against health and safety they loose out big time. breakages, slippery, fire hazard on a really hot day (sun and magnifying glass)
Wash out your bottles and grow crops you can make wine out of makes more sense.
O.K,O.K I get the message..........though I may go into the corner and sulk. :'(
Probably for the best... if even ACE is being the "voice of reason" you've gotta suspect something isn't right :D.... use them to build the funkiest greenhouse ever!
we did this in our backyard garden (with champagne bottles which are sturdier) It was a fair bit of work putting them in but they look great 10 years later. On the veg plot you could use the indentations as slug traps with a bit of beer. Go for it.