Raised beds for organic vegetable gardening are a great, no-dig alternative for quick starting a garden. Raised beds work very well for people who have a hard time being on their knees. The higher you build the beds, the less bending over is required. Easy to build and use, raised beds offer low maintenance vegetable gardening.

Step One

Plan Your Bed. – It is usually best to plan your raised bed out on paper first to decide what shape works best for you. Drawing your plans out will also help in how you will place your plants. Be sure your raised bed will have plenty of sunshine and that you can easily water it.

Step Two

Buy Materials. -. You are basically building an open box with no bottom or top. This can be done with just about any type of material that will hold dirt, from rocks, bricks, to straw or hay bales. Wood is the most common. When using wood, make sure it is not chemically treated if you plan to grow edible plants. For a rectangular bed you will need at least four sides, two equal at a long length and two more equal that are shorter. Your boards should at least be 24" (60 cm) in height.

• Lumber
  
  


• 4" screws, 1" screws
  
  


• Metal braces
  
  


• Black plastic or landscaping fabric
  
  


• Gloves
  
  

Step Three

Build the Bed. – Make sure you start off with level ground.

• Use the screws and metal braces to connect your wood frame together.
  
  


• Create a barrier for weeds by cutting the landscape fabric or black plastic to fit under your frame.
  
  


• Arrange your frame over the plastic. Depending on the size of your bed frame, you may need to get someone to help you with this part.
  
  

Step Four

Fill with Soil Amendments. -Mix your new bed with at least 1/3 parts of soil, compost and composted manure. If you have extra soil on the property, this is a good way to use it. You can layer your amendments with manure first, then soil, then compost or simply combine it all together.

Step Five

Put in Plants or seeds. – Go back to your written plans and plant your flowers or vegetables in the arrangement you designed. Enjoy your low-maintenance raised bed for organic vegetable gardening ease.