Raised garden beds offer an affordable way to grow vegetables on a tight budget. Consider selecting materials like cedar, cypress or Osage orange that naturally resist rot.

Prevent pallets treated with methyl bromide (a fungicide) or other harmful chemicals by looking for those marked “HT,” meaning heat treated.

1. Choose Your Site

Raised garden beds provide an ideal way to cultivate vegetables, herbs and flowers in raised beds. Their benefits include helping manage soil compaction while providing optimal soil composition (particularly if your ground is sandy or rocky), making planting and weeding simpler as well as warming sooner in spring to reduce frost risk.

There’s much to keep in mind when designing a raised bed garden: layout, materials, paths and irrigation. This guide walks you through each step in creating one that suits the needs and style of your family without exceeding budgetary limitations.

First step to building raised beds in your yard: selecting their location. For optimal results, locate them close to existing structures or along heavily trafficked pathways with regular use, saving both time and labor while creating an integrated look in your new garden.

If there is grass where your raised garden bed will go, mow it very short before covering with cardboard that does not contain ink that could leach into the soil. Dig up any sod clumps before filling up each bed with raised bed mix.

2. Measure Your Space

Your raised bed size and shape depend on its intended location as well as what crops you plan on growing. Ideally, its dimensions should allow one end to reach the center from either end with ease; no more than 8 feet long for easy walking around it. North-south orientation works best when growing low-growing vegetables or flowers while east-west orientation works better when cultivating taller crops such as pole beans and tomatoes.

Before embarking on construction, take time to consider both materials and budget. Wood is typically the least costly option and lasts several years without needing treatment or covering with preservative. To extend its longevity further, choose naturally rot-resistant wood such as cedar or cypress or use food-grade preservative to protect it from sun and moisture exposure. Be wary of pressure-treated lumber that contains arsenic which could leach into soil and harm plants.

Masonry materials like natural stone and bricks offer an attractive, reliable choice that won’t rust, require regular paint applications or require costly maintenance costs. Masonry walls make an excellent backdrop to meandering pathways. If gophers or other burrowing rodents pose a threat, make sure that there is wire mesh installed at the bottom of each bed or use weed cloth around its perimeter – especially important if growing roots or other invasive species within raised garden beds.

3. Decide on a Design

Before constructing, carefully consider the dimensions and specifications for your garden bed. A 3-4″ to 4-foot length would be optimal, though shorter or longer beds may fit better depending on available space. Also think about what height you would like it – 12-18″ beds may still produce well if sited correctly with loose soil in between so roots can reach down through. However, any height beyond this may cause erosion and cause structural issues if too heavy is added onto it all at once.

Another consideration in creating your beds is what material will line them. Food-grade plastics offer multiple safety grades; do your research if using one and remember only to line the outer edge so water can still freely flow through.

Wood is the most commonly chosen material for raised beds, although it isn’t always the cheapest choice. Cedar may cost more but is naturally weather resistant. Avoid pressure treated lumber as its chemicals could leak into the soil and lead to plant disease. Also keep in mind that older wood could contain arsenic which could harm plants.

4. Start Building

Assembling your raised garden bed using lumber from a local hardware store can be accomplished using quality cedar boards that can last years with proper care. Pine will still make for sturdy construction; just know it won’t have quite as long of a lifespan than cedar beds. When purchasing wood for framing angles or food-grade purposes make sure it comes from quality sources, has food-grade certification, is food safe, has fitting holes for screws/nuts for framing angles that hold weight of soil securely, etc.

Once you’ve purchased your wood, have the lumber yard cut each piece to length. For example, if you want a 4-foot raised bed, have them split one of your 8-foot cedar boards into two 4-foot boards for you.

Some people choose to construct raised beds by creating mounds on the ground while others use frames or even stock tanks as containers for growing plants and vegetables. It is important to take into account which vegetables or plants you plan on planting as this will determine its depth – for instance if you want to grow root vegetables then loosening up soil beneath your raised bed frame by at least 6 inches is recommended.