Lazy bed facts for kids
A lazy bed is an old way of farming. It's a special type of garden bed that people used to grow crops, especially in places like Ireland and Scotland. It's called "lazy" not because the farmers were lazy, but because it was a simpler way to prepare the soil compared to using a plough.
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What is a Lazy Bed?
A lazy bed is like a long, raised garden patch. Farmers would dig parallel rows, creating a series of ridges and furrows. The ridges could be quite wide, up to about 2.5 meters (8 feet) across. Between these wide ridges were narrow channels that helped drain away extra water.
This method was often done by hand using a spade. It was a good way to farm in places where the soil wasn't very good or where there was a lot of rain.
Where Were Lazy Beds Used?
Lazy beds were very common in parts of southern Britain from Roman times until the Middle Ages. They were also widely used across much of Ireland and Scotland, especially until the 1800s.
Today, you won't see many lazy beds. But in some remote places, like the Hebrides islands in Scotland and the west of Ireland, a few people still use this traditional method.
How Farmers Used Them
In these areas, farmers would often lift up blocks of peat (a type of soil made from decayed plants). They would then add seaweed fertiliser to the soil. This seaweed was washed and cleaned to remove salt, making it good for plants.
One of the most common crops grown in lazy beds was potatoes. This was a very important food source for many families. However, a plant disease called Phytophthora infestans, or potato blight, caused terrible potato famines in the Scottish Highlands and Ireland in the 1800s. This event greatly changed how people farmed and lived.
See also
Images for kids
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Old lazybeds on North Harris
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Old lazybeds on Ensay
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Lazybeds on Inishglora
