Raised garden beds may either be temporary, garden beds that may be moved if required, or permanent, garden beds that are fixed such as brick or masonary.
Height of raised garden beds.
It is important to work out the purpose of the raised garden bed as this will determine the height.
- for wheelchair access etc
- as a design feature
- to keep dogs away
- as a design element
Each of these will have a different height, however remember that raised garden beds will need to be a minimum depth for different plants. Herbs will only need 10 -12 cm. Root crops will need much more.
Width of raised garden beds
As a rule raised garden beds that need to be accessed easily should be no wider than twice the reach of the average person if you have access from both sides, or the reach of an average person if you only have access from one side.
Material for making raised garden beds.
Raised garden beds should be constructed of non toxic materials, commercial raised garden beds come in a wide range of materials including:
- Colorbond metal
- Timber
- Recycled plastic
- Brick and masonary
Raised garden beds Brisbane & Qld. |
Construct a raised garden bed.
Easy steps to constructing a raised garden bed
- select a sunny position and make out the size of the garden bed.
- level the area remmembering to provide access paths from all sides for wider raised gardens.
- choose your materials, timber, stone or corrugated iron and construct the walls to desired height. 60cm is really the minimum
- use newspaper, carpet, or weedmat to line the bottom of the bed to prevent weed growth.
- fill the bed with a mixture of well rotted compost, good clean soil and manure. Using clean soil from other parts of the garden will reduce costs if you need to purchase compost and manure
- mix in some blood and bone or similar fertilizer.
- give the new garden bed a soak
- you are ready to start planting in you new raised garden bed
Remember that by using hoops of tubing, plastic or metal and either clear poly hothouse plastic or shade cloth, you can create a min green house, or shade house when making your raised garden bed. |
