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Gardening Tips: Use string line, board when planting vegetables
K-State horticulture expert says simple tools help keep rows straight
March 4, 2021
MANHATTAN, Kan. – A pair of simple tools will help to ensure success when planting a vegetable garden, according to Kansas State University horticulture expert Ward Upham.
He noted that a string line is commonly used to plant straight rows, while a planting board helps to make spacing vegetables within a row easier.
“Most gardeners make their own string line,” Upham said. “A very simple one can be made with a tent peg, a 12 inch piece of one-by-two inch lumber and some string.”
To make the string line, Upham suggests:
- Wind the string on the one-by-two. Notch the ends of the board, or drive nails near both ends to hold the string as it is wound.
- Tie one end to one nail (or tie between the notches) and the other end to the tent peg.
- When marking a row, drive the tent peg into the ground where you want the row to start.
- Mark the end of the row with a second tent peg and unwind enough string to stretch between them.
“Actually, you will want the string line offset where the plants will go by a couple of inches so that it isn’t in your way,” Upham said. “In other words, you will make your row next to the string; not under it.”
A planting board is a one-by-four inch board and four feet long. For planting, cut relatively deep notches every foot, and shallow notches 6 inches from each deep notch.
“Some gardeners also bevel the side opposite the notches so they can work the beveled end into the soil to make a shallow trench for seed,” Upham said.
When planting, he added, lay the planting board near the tent peg and align it with the string. Using the notches as a guide, “it is now easy to place plants or seeds at the recommended spacing,” Upham said. “Move the planting board with you as you progress down the row.”
Upham and his colleagues in K-State’s Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources produce a weekly Horticulture Newsletter with tips for maintaining home landscapes. The newsletter is available to view online or can be delivered by email each week.
Interested persons can also send their garden- and yard-related questions to Upham at wupham@ksu.edu, or contact your local K-State Research and Extension office.
FAQs
He noted that a string line is commonly used to plant straight rows, while a planting board helps to make spacing vegetables within a row easier. “Most gardeners make their own string line,” Upham said. “A very simple one can be made with a tent peg, a 12 inch piece of one-by-two inch lumber and some string.”
What is the use of string in gardening? ›
String for plants is multipurpose material that you can use to secure loose ends of plants, to tie up trellis wires or fencing, to bundle together garden tools. With garden twine you will be able to finish a range of tasks quickly and effectively.
What is the best string for a vegetable garden? ›
You can get all-purpose spring hemp twine or thicker hemp rope if you want to hang pots or create decorative borders around your garden. Another fantastic natural option is jute twine, which is also 100 percent natural and biodegradable.
Should I line my raised vegetable bed? ›
You can line your raised bed to make it more durable and to prevent toxics from leaching into the soil. For lining, use landscape fabric found at garden supply stores or cloth fabric from clothing. Avoid non-porous plastic, as it can retain too much water and discourage beneficial insects and worms.
What is the best material to line a raised garden bed? ›
As a final reminder, avoid lining your garden beds with plastic. Doing so prevents drainage and could drown your plants' roots with too much water. If you have a weed and pest problem, consider installing a combination of metal mesh and fabric or hardware cloth and cardboard to address both issues simultaneously.
What do you use a string line for? ›
Line levels (or "string" levels) are a special brand of spirit level used for leveling across longer distances. They can be attached to a tightly pulled string to find level between two stakes in the ground to find level ground.
Can I use twine in my garden? ›
By learning to use twine to tie off and support your plants, you can optimize your garden's tidiness, help your plants to grow, and can even do fun projects like create a hanging garden. Tying off plants is not the only use for twine in a garden, but it is perhaps the most important.
Can I use string for tomato plants? ›
From Quebec, Canada all the way to Honolulu, Hawaii, people have long used the string trellis method to support their tomato plants. It's no wonder, either, because these trellises make post-harvest cleanup a breeze. Just snip the strings and store the stakes in the shed. Easy as tomato pie!
What kind of string do you use for tomato plants? ›
I would imagine that nylon is more durable than cotton, and can be reused multiple seasons. And I would imagine that a thicker one would be better as it doesn't cut into the stem of the tomato plants where disease can then enter.
Why put cardboard in raised beds? ›
It acts as a physical barrier to block out pernicious weeds. Usually, 2 – 3 layers of cardboard will suffice, though you may want layers in more weed-prone areas. The damp environment created by the cardboard is conducive to earthworms and other beneficial soil microorganisms.
To put it simply, you should put a layer of organic material at the bottom of your garden bed, which will break down and enrich the soil. This can include compost, or woody material such as logs, dry wood, branches, and leaves.
Should I put anything in the bottom of my planter? ›
One of the best things to put at the bottom of a planter for drainage is broken pieces of pot. You can use any unwanted plant pots or chipped crockery for this – simply smash them up into small to medium-sized pieces. Adding a layer of broken pieces of pot like this will prevent compost loss out of the drainage holes.
How do you fill a raised garden bed cheaply? ›
To use this method, lay down cardboard or newspaper for weed suppression, and then start stacking branches and logs in the base of your raised bed. As these materials break down, they'll act as compost for plant roots and help raised beds retain water.
Should I line my raised bed with cardboard? ›
You Can Use a Layer of Cardboard at the Bottom of Raised Beds to Prevent Weeds. If your budget doesn't allow for weed barrier cloth, you can add several layers of cardboard to the bottom of your raised bed before filling it with soil. The cardboard will decompose in about 4 to 6 months.
Should I put rocks in the bottom of my raised garden bed? ›
The answer is no! Here are some reasons why we recommend against adding rocks to the bottom of your raised beds: Hindered root growth. Rocks in the bottom of a raised garden bed can impede the growth of plant roots, particularly if they are large or densely packed.
What is the use of string in agriculture? ›
He noted that a string line is commonly used to plant straight rows, while a planting board helps to make spacing vegetables within a row easier. “Most gardeners make their own string line,” Upham said. “A very simple one can be made with a tent peg, a 12 inch piece of one-by-two inch lumber and some string.”
What is the purpose of string? ›
Strings are used for storing text/characters. For example, "Hello World" is a string of characters.
What is the benefit of string? ›
Memory Efficiency: Strings are usually stored in a contiguous block of memory, which makes them efficient to allocate and deallocate. This means that they can be used to represent large amounts of data without taking up too much memory.
How string is useful and used? ›
A primary purpose of strings is to store human-readable text, like words and sentences. Strings are used to communicate information from a computer program to the user of the program.
