Raised Garden Beds Can Be Easy to Make

The weather has changed not only are the hours of sunlight becoming less and less but there is a chill in the air that says Fall is in full swing and winter is on its way.

It is time to put the garden to bed and let it rest until the spring. If you have not planted your fall bulbs now is the time to do so.

Most of the spring flowering bulbs will need well drained, high organic, slightly acidic ( pH 6-7) soil in a sunny location. This means at least six hours and preferably eight.

Clean and Unique Gardens

How to Build a Raised Garden Bed

Spring bulbs must be planted root side down. If you do not, come spring, you will be wondering where the bulbs are. Always, plant spring bulbs two to three times as deep as the bulbs are tall.

There are leaves to rake. However, fallen leaves are not garbage and do not, I repeat, do not toss them away. You can put some in your compost bin, use some to add a layer of mulch to your garden beds and the rest, bag and put aside for next year's garden.

Poor Soil Solutions for the Gardener

Gardening in poor soil is tough and an easy solution to poor soil conditions is to create raised garden beds and fill them with nutrient rich soil.

Whether trying to garden in poor soil or in a small, uneven area, making raised flower beds can be an easy way to have a prosperous garden this growing season.

Types of Shade for Flower Bed

Your climate and mine may differ, but the conditions of shade and the principles of gardening in shade will remain much the same. If your summers are hot, shade can help create micro-climates where plants that would not, normally, grow in your climate, can prosper.

There are many kinds of shade and an infinite variety of plants that either require shade, prefer shade or tolerate it to some degree, including:

∑ annuals (plants that flower, set seed and die in one season)

∑ biennials (plants that generally flower, set seed and die in their second year)

∑ perennials (herbaceous plants that live for more than two years, and usually longer)

∑ bulbs (including plants with corms and rhizomes)

∑ woody plants (shrubs and trees)

Elegant Raised Flower Bed Garden

How to Build a Raised Garden Bed

To make a raised flower bed, start small and find a sunny area that is a four-foot square. If the square is uneven, use a rake or shovel to create as even a surface as possible.

The cultivated flower bed will be the most useful if it is even. A four-foot square is ideal for gardeners because it is possible to reach everywhere within the square without stepping inside the growing surface.

Use wood that is two inches thick and six inches in width to create a frame. Wood comes in 8 foot pieces which are perfect when cut in half. Two pieces of two by six wood is enough to create one raised garden bed.

Do It Yourself Idea

I want to share this Do it yourself idea with you with some of the things available in your backyard.

If you go and buy a garden bed made of wood or plastic it will cost you around ($90 -$120) for one sq mt plus the cost of potting mix or the cost of soil if you buy it from the garden centre.

Here I put another simple method to make the raised garden bed.

- buy some cheap tarpaulin from the hardware store it will serve the same purpose as any already made base will give it you.

- to make the raised garden bed try to find some bricks (if available around your house) and if not just take some wooden planks join on all the sides with some nail to make it look like a box.

- put the tarpaulin over the box, cut to the desired length.

- make small numerous holes so that the water seeps out when you plant in there.

- now fill it will the 50:50 ratio of potting mix and compost (well decomposed and weed free)

- Put some blood and bone and some fertilizer and now you can plant anything in it.

I tried this for 4 sq meters of garden, it cost me only $30 including the potting mix instead of using $250.

Building on a Budget

Secure Raised Garden Bed Walls

 Anchor Flower Bed Walls With Small Corner Brackets or Nails

It is easy to create a wooden square using nails or small corner brackets to attach the pieces together, just make sure that the frame is sturdy using whatever technique is easiest. Small corner brackets can be found in any hardware store and 1 inch corner brackets will work well on a garden bed frame.

To make sure that the cultivated flower bed frame is square, use a measuring tape and measure diagonally across the frame. When both diagonals are the same, the frame is square and is ready to be used.

For extra support, two-inch by two-inch stakes can be used by placing one stake on each of the four walls on the outside of the frame, directly in the middle of each side.

Soils, Fillers and Finishes

Use Nutrient Rich Topsoil, Peat Moss and Manure to Fill the Cultivated Flower Bed Frame

Now that the frame has been created and is secure, it is time to fill the garden bed with nutrient rich topsoil, peat moss and manure. Mix soil, manure and peat moss together using a rake or shovel. Compost is also a great material to use in a raised garden bed and will create nutrient dense soil.

Fill the cultivated flower bed frame completely so that plants can grow and have six inches of depth for the roots to spread out. If the garden bed is placed on a grassy area, break up the sod first to give roots a place to go if they should reach beyond the garden bed.

Cultivated flower bed can be used almost anywhere in places such as decks and cement patios and other small areas where a traditional garden would not work or there are poor soil conditions. Remember that plants need a good eight hours of sunlight and pick a spot for the raised garden bed that gets plenty of daylight.