Hello Everyone,
Welcome back!
Last week we talked about acquiring supplies and equipment for the gardening season. The next step is to decide what type of raised beds we are going to build this year.
If you can’t decide on a raised bed design, you may want to go back and read @bowtiedgarden post here on raised beds if you haven’t already. Take this time now to plan and find the best materials for your raised bed garden. I suggest going to your local landscaping stores to see what type of materials they have available. Start looking at pictures online and keep an eye out for raised garden beds as you go about your day to see what type of designs you like. See if you have materials around your house or if you know anyone with material you could use.
Keep these things in mind as you come up with your design:
Do not use treated lumber or railroad ties
Do not use material that will easily rot
If you use metal make sure it’s not galvanized or has any coating that will leech
Try to source your material locally
Do not make the beds more than 4 feet wide so you can reach the middle of the bed from each side
Start to kill grass in the area where you will place your raised beds now using cardboard, a tarp, or some other dark material spread out over the grass.
Put down thick black landscape fabric or cardboard to keep weeds from growing up
Put hardware cloth on top of the landscape fabric to keep moles and other pests from digging under and into your garden
New Affiliate Partner!
I’m excited to share a new affiliate partner I’ve received with Hoss Tools! They are a garden tool supplier with a nice seed selection and many other types of gardening equipment. Please use this link when shopping for gardening supplies and it will help out your favorite farmer!
Check out Hoss Tools website here.
Different Types of Raised Beds:
You can make a raised garden bed out of just about anything, tree logs, tires, bath tubs, anything that will hold dirt. However, some designs are better than others. I’ll break down most of your options here.
Easy raised bed garden ideas:
Cinder Blocks - This is super easy to put together, no wood to cut or screws to install. I found the blocks for cheap on craigslist. You can put plants in the outside holes of the blocks too. This method is not aesthetically appealing in my opinion, but it’s functional.
Pre Manufactured Block Corner with Wood - If you are not interested in building your own raised beds out of wood because you are not experienced with wood working. Here is a garden bed design that is easy and not too expensive that almost anybody should be able to put together. It uses these prefabricated concrete blocks for the corners, and you slide 2x6 boards in the slots. You can even get the boards cut at the hardware store to the proper lengths. SINPLE!
Store Bought Raised Beds - There are many different types of pre manufactured raised beds you can buy that are really nice but they can be pricey. Here is a cool looking metal one that is nice and tall you can buy here. These look professional, but you have to be careful when buying online because the pictures can be deceiving.
Raised Bed with legs - These are nice because you do not have to bend down to work your garden. They also provide extra protection from pests. You can build these yourself but it will take some extra attention to design due to the weight bearing nature of the system. They sell these online, and this looks like a decent one here. It’s important to note the size when buying these store bought raised beds, the pictures can make them look bigger than they really are. This one is not very big or deep, but you could buy a two or three and make it work.
Raised beds that require more skill to build:
If you are interested in building your own sturdy garden beds you have a few options. You will need to decide what type of look and style you like. I have found 3 different designs that I like. One is a very heavy duty design with landscaping timbers (first picture below) and the other two use regular lumber, (second picture and video link)
I recommend building them at least 24 inches tall with at least a 3” wide rail on the top edge so you can sit and work your garden. Most lumber comes in 8 foot lengths so it’s smart to make them 8 feet long by 4 feet wide. Here are some examples below. I have also found a good design outlined here in this video. These are all well built boxes that will last a long time.
That’s all for this week’s run down on the different types of raised garden beds. Think about what type of beds you want to use this season as you go about your week.
WAGMI
Farmer