The Perfect Raised Bed
Sunset has plans for my dream raised garden bed on their website. The roomy 4-foot by 8-foot bed is constructed of naturally rot-resistant wood, is lined with hardware cloth to keep out burrowing creatures, and it has a built-in hoop house. Swoon.
You can get plans for this raised bed and watch a step-by-step slide show of the construction process right here.
February 17, 2010
Wow these look just like mine that I built and installed on my front (sunny) lawn last spring — except we didn’t do the hoop house part. Kind of thinking it would be a nice little modification though!
February 17th, 2010 at 12:26 pmWe’re in Seattle too, and getting ready to build a couple beds, but planned to follow the Square Foot Gardening instructions. They tell you to build them no bigger than 4′ x 4′ for easy access, AND that you only need to go 6″ deep. My husband is skeptical of this last bit – what do you think? Thanks…
February 17th, 2010 at 1:57 pmI like these! The only thing I like to do differently is mount the pvc holders on the outside of the boxes. This really keeps the pvc from making ground contact. And, I find with a little more room to bend around the beds, I can use longer lengths of pvc for higher hoops — important if you’re growing crops taller than lettuce!
As always, thanks for sharing!
February 17th, 2010 at 4:54 pm.-= gardenmentor´s last blog ..Garden Coach on Garden Blogger Bloom Day February 2010 =-.
Those are very nice… I’m still deciding whether to do raised beds at our new house or cut out the lawn and make an easy border of some kind. I need to get moving on that while the weather is nice because I’ll be starting the seeds in the next two weeks or so!
I set up the beds out at my parent’s place last year and did some super easy hoops… Just cut a couple 1/2″ pipes into 2′ long pieces, pounded them into the ground like stakes just outside of the beds, bent 3/4″ pipes and slid them over the stakes. The tension kept them nice and sturdy, fasten some plastic to them and you’re good to go!
February 17th, 2010 at 5:35 pm2 years ago my husband built these for me. They’re perfect. We didn’t do the hoops though maybe someday I’ll consider putting them on the outside.
February 17th, 2010 at 8:58 pmThank you so much for speaking the Mount Vernon City Library last night. What a wonderful treat for us. My friends and I walked away with lots of practical advice and great tips. thanks.
February 18th, 2010 at 9:57 amI’m curious about the hardware cloth lining. I’m just about ready to fill my new raised beds and am wondering if a lining is necessary. (I, too live in Seattle.)
February 18th, 2010 at 10:17 amThanks!
Sar–The hoop house is a great modification–they are so versatile. You can cover them with plastic in spring and fall to make a mini-greenhouse and extend the season, cover them with row cover fabric to protect crops from pests or put shade cloth over them in summer and grow plants that like it a bit cooler.
Flush Puppy–You’ll get all the advantages of raised bed (better drainage, faster soil warming in spring) with beds that are raised only 6 inches or so above the adjacent soil. So they don’t need to be taller than that (we made ours short for budgetary reasons). ALso, btw, I prefer rectangular beds because I think they are easier to work in, but that is just me!
GardenMentor–I was thinking that having the PVC on the outside might make more sense…good point!
Jamie–Your hoop house method is super simple! Good luck with your expanded garden this year!
Blair–I’m glad to hear that the beds are working so well from someone who has them.
Julie–Thank you for coming to my talk! I’m so glad that you got some information that you can use.
Julie–The hardware cloth lining is to keep moles, voles, and gophers from burrowing into beds. In Seattle, we don’t often have problems with those pests getting into beds, so I don’t think it is necessary here.
February 19th, 2010 at 9:01 am@Julie @Willi — we may not have a big mole, vole, gopher problem in Seattle, but we do have rats. If, say, a mole creates tunnels, rats will use them. I wish I had hardware cloth below my oldest raised beds because of the darn rats!
February 19th, 2010 at 9:49 am.-= gardenmentor´s last blog ..Garden Coach on Garden Blogger Bloom Day February 2010 =-.
Thank you Willi & gardenmentor!
February 19th, 2010 at 9:21 pmGreat repost. We just re-did our garden and built six boxes last week using this plan. We changed the size to 3′x 9′. We’re about seven miles from Sunset HQ so our zone is the same as theirs. We had one night’s frost in December. I look forward to planting and growing four seasons this year!
February 21st, 2010 at 5:57 pmThose are the ones I asked my husband to build for me when we moved into our new house two years ago! They are the perfect size, and I love the addition of the pvc for the hoop houses, but the cedar, even though we treated it as recommended, has started to bow out already.
I installed a rainbird system in them, and the yield has been terrific.
Here’s a photo from last year. At this point it was a little too full.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=11853&id=1218038499&saved#!/photo.php?pid=659240&id=1218038499
Also, I didn’t use the hardware cloth, critters haven’t been an issue, at least the ones gaining access from below. Today I busted several robins eating my newly planted pea seeds, however.
February 22nd, 2010 at 11:54 pm.-= Laura´s last blog ..Early birds get the stalls . . . =-.
I built four 4′x6′x12″ beds in my front lawn 2 years ago. It works great with the square foot gardening method too. http://www.remuddling.com/home/archives/277
February 25th, 2010 at 10:13 amPlus, the PVC pipes that support the hoop house in the cold weather can support a frame or trellis for tall plants and vertical gardening. http://www.remuddling.com/home/archives/297
One thing I did not do was the hardware cloth underneath. Oh well, so far have not had a pest problem (cross my fingers).
What I want to know is where do you find 4′ hardware cloth? I’ve only been able to find 3′ widths locally – Spokane, WA. Thanks
March 18th, 2010 at 10:12 amSarah–I’ve purchased it at Home Depot before.
March 18th, 2010 at 10:48 amI bought all the materials but am rethinking the hardware cloth. Should I be concerned about the galvanized metal leaching lead (like it does in water pipes) into the soil and then my organically grown vegetables?
March 22nd, 2010 at 12:39 pmRobin–I have done quite a bit of research and have not turned up a problem with using new galvanized material in the garden. Though if you are concerned, leave out the mesh. At the moment I’m planting gardens in new galvanized troughs, and like with all my soil, I will periodically have a soil test done (including a test for heavy metals). Good luck with your new beds!
March 22nd, 2010 at 12:57 pmThank you Willi, I was trying to decide if I was being too paranoid or not…
March 22nd, 2010 at 1:09 pmNo problem. It is a totally valid concern and one that I’ve had myself!
March 22nd, 2010 at 1:13 pmWilli, those Sunset raised beds look a lot like the one I purchased from this website: http://naturalyards.com/raisedbeds/index.html. I bought the cheaper grade of cedar and put it together in half an hour. The stainless steel rods used to connect the pieces without screws of bolts are long enough for a hoop cover. It’s a great, well designed product for those of us who don’t want to build our own. My first ever vegetable garden is thriving in it. Love your blog.
May 30th, 2010 at 3:29 pm