Raised garden beds, also called garden boxes, are great for growing small plots of veggies and flowers. They keep pathway weeds from your garden soil, prevent soil compaction, provide good drainage and serve as a barrier to pests such as slugs and snails. The sides of the beds keep your valuable garden soil from being eroded or washed away during heavy rains. In many regions, gardeners are able to plant earlier in the season because the soil is warmer and better drained when it is above ground level.
By raising the soil level, raised garden beds also reduce back strain when bending over to tend the bed. This is especially helpful to older gardeners or people with bad backs. And if the beds are built well, the gardener can sit on the edge of the bed while weeding, and for some gardeners this is the biggest benefit of all.
Raised beds are not the same as garden planters. Planters are elevated containers which have bottoms to prevent the soil from falling out. Planter bottoms usually are slatted, with some type of semi-permeable cloth barrier which permits drainage. Raised beds, however, do not have bottoms; they are open to the ground, which offers the benefit of permitting plant roots to go further into the ground for available nutrients.
Brand we recommend: Eartheasy
The Eartheasy Farmstead Raised Garden Beds are based on a 17th century design. Handcrafted of Vermont White Cedar, these raised beds will last for many years and weather to a soft silver grey. Our easy-to-assemble raised bed kits are perfect for growing vegetables and flowers.
Strong and functional
Lumber is custom sawed to a thickness of 1ΒΌ inches for greater strength and longer life. With cedar slot and peg design these raised beds cannot pull apart, as may happen with beds that are nailed or screwed together. Pegs are made from black locust wood. Wood is not sanded or treated, so it has an unfinished rustic quality.
Wood Dimensions: 1.25 inches thick by 8 inches wide.
Stack them higher and save your back
Farmstead raised beds position the garden eight inches above ground level. They can be stacked two, three, or four high creating a working surface that is 16, 24, or 32 inches high. For a raised bed that is 16″ high, just purchase two 8″ high beds and stack them.
Q: When stacking the Farmstead raised garden beds, what holds them together?
A: The weight of the soil within the beds holds them in place on top of each other and it will keep them from shifting if on level ground. Although it is not necessary, it is easy to bracket the beds together with some inexpensive hardware or wood from a local store.
Please note: The inside dimensions (planting space) of these beds is smaller than the overall bed size. See below for details.
Tool-Free Assembly
It takes less than five minutes to assemble these raised beds. No tools are required. Simply slip the end of one board through the slot of the other and secure with provided wooden pegs.
Raised beds can be placed directly on sod, lawn, or even a weedy patch. Once the bed is filled with soil, any weeds underneath will soon form a composted base. For best results, you may want to dig down a few inches to clear any large rocks.
No chemical wood preservatives
Unlike pressure-treated lumber, there are no harmful chemicals to leach into your soil. If you want to treat wood naturally, we recommend Eco Wood Treatment – a non-toxic, mineral-based formula safe for vegetable gardens.
