Our very first Organic Gardening Reader Tip comes from my friend Anthony, who gardens in New Jersey (zone 6) and blogs at The Compost Bin. Anthony says:

"After pulling a few giant piles worth of roots out (of my raised beds) yesterday, I made an executive decision. Whenever I build a new bed, a bottom will be a mandatory feature. I don't think I'll use a sheet of plywood for the floor as suggested in the book (Square Foot Gardening), but at a minimum, I'll load the bottom up with landscape fabric. Usually, I'd layer newspapers to stop weeds and because I know they'll break down and feed those earthworms. But since I want to avoid future root invasions, I think I'll pass on the newspapers. Do they make landscape fabric out of steel?"

Click here to read the rest of Anthony's post.

This is a great tip for any of us who have shade trees on or near our properties. In general, you'd build a raised bed without a bottom, as Anthony mentions (and as I wrote in my article on building a raised bed) so that earthworms can make their way into the bed, loosening and enriching your soil. Tree roots can easily spoil the party, though, so adding a bottom to your raised bed is a great idea. This makes me wonder how soon I'll start to see roots from my neighbor's maple make their way into my vegetable gardens.

Thanks, Anthony, for the great tip. If you'd like to submit an organic gardening tip, please email me at organicgardening.guide@about.com. Reader tips will be a regular feature here at About Organic Gardening, where they'll run every Tuesday morning.