HOW TO BUILD A RAISED GARDEN BED

Raised beds don’t take long to build and come to automation, structuring four sides, finished corners, with a bottom, but make sure to choose materials wisely.

Raised beds are placed directly on the soil and build up to hold the moisture. If you use softwood that is not treated, the wood will likely begin to rot in the first couple of years, and while pressure treatment is the acceptable route to take, many decline the use of rot that occurs. If that is something you conflict with, other practical options are oak, larch, or Douglas fir, all resistant, and thus decay and suitable for the use of growing food. Oak sleepers are popular and available from most timber merchants at a reasonable price range of £15 to £25.

For a bed that’s about 1.2m x 2.4m that you can reach from both sides without stepping on it, structures you’ll need:

≥ 4 posts (75mm x 75mm) that are at least 300mm taller than your planned finished bed

Side boards, cut so that they are either 150 or 200mm wide, depending on your desired depth

Galvanized or stainless steel screws (or) coach bolts (standard zinc rusts through in ~ 2 seasons)

Weed membrane for the base

For the posts, settle the corner posts first and then level it before securing anything. Try a post driver if the ground is tough. Fix the sides from the bottom of the posts, bottom to top. For most vegetables a 400mm-deep bed is optimal.

Weed membrane on the inside (and outside bottom) of the bed will control the weeds and also keep the dirt from washing out a bit through the cracks and dryness (and) will keep the water from the dirt from too much contact to the wood (will) keep the wood from decaying.