Building A New Raised Bed Vegetable Garden
A raised bed vegetable garden is one that is built on top of the already existing soil and sometimes people use the soil and sometimes they prefer to get nutrient rich soil instead. You can make a raised bed using wood or stone. But you can also just use additional soil and soil amendments to make a free-flowing bed that is several inches high. |
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Raised bed vegetable gardens are perfect for growing a wide variety of vegetables, herbs, and fruits like strawberries, grapes, blueberries and raspberries.
Building a New Raised Bed Vegetable Garden:
In order to build a new raised bed vegetable garden, you first have to choose the material to make the bed. Usually people prefer wood as it is easy to work with and also not very expensive. However, you can also use concrete blocks, stones or bricks to make the bed.
The first step in building a new raised bed vegetable garden is to select the site for it. Remember vegetables and herbs love sun, so you need a spot that get at least 8 hours of sunlight each day. In addition, the ground should be flat and you should be able to get easy access to water. Also, do not forget that you should have sufficient room to work on the bed.
Once the site and location is selected, come up with a shape and size for your raised bed vegetable garden. Make sure that bed is around four feet wide and you can opt for any length. The width helps you access the center of the bed from both sides. In case, you want to build the bed against a wall or fence, remember it should not be more than three wide. The depth of the bed should be a minimum of 6 inches as most vegetables thrive well in beds that deep. However, if you want the depth to me more, the choice is yours. Basically 10 to 12 inches is considered to be ideal.
Now you can start preparing the site. The amount of work involved will depend on the depth of the bed and the type of vegetables you want to grow. Layer the bed with newspaper or cardboard to cover the top soil. On top of that put your soil and soil amendments. However, make sure that the roots have sufficient place to grow.
Take 2X6 pieces of wood to construct the bed to give a depth of 6 inches. Make sure that the lumber is rot-resistant. Cut the wood to the size you want and attach them to make a simple frame. You can use galvanized screws to attach the different pieces of wood but remember you would need to drill holes for this method of attachment.
Next make sure that the entire frame is leveled or else water will slide from one side and stagnate on the other. If parts of the frame are too high, just remove the soil from underneath until the entire frame is in one single level.
Once the frame is ready, fill it with topsoil, compost and manure. Level this mixture using a rake and you are all set to plant your raised bed vegetable garden.
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