Raised beds can make a world of difference for gardening. It allows you to grow virtually anything you want anywhere you want, and you get to pick the quality of the soil inside. Though it can give you a lot of opportunities for success, it can also create a lot of stress if you set yourself up for failure. A good raised bed will be well-planned long before you set it up and will have the highest-quality soil you can possibly afford. Many people don’t plan their methods to water their raised garden beds or fill them efficiently, as @growinginthegarden mentions on TikTok.
You don’t have to go broke with raised beds; even small budgets can make great things happen. This is where planning will help you out. If you can determine ahead of time how much soil you need to fill a raised bed, you can figure out what size you need and what kind of material you can use to fill it. Spend some time planning in the winter, and you’ll have a bountiful harvest later in the year.
Plan diligently
@growinginthegarden
Mistakes are often the best teacher, but I’d love for you to learn from others’ mistakes instead of making your own! • Not having a plan – take the time to make a plan before you install that first raised bed. It’s hard to move them! • No watering system – watering is key in raised beds. I use the Garden Grids from @gardeninminutes in all my beds (Use code Angela10 to save) • Not filling raised beds all the way up – raised beds already limit the amount of soil for plants. Take advantage of all the room in your raised beds. • Skimping on soil – soil is the most important part of your garden. I used the Raised Bed Mix from @azwormfarm in all my raised beds and containers. • Planting at the wrong time – find a planting guide for your area and use it. If you live in the low desert (zone 9b), I have calendars, blog posts, seed labels, and more to help you out. You’ve got this! Raised bed gardening is a wonderful way to be successful at gardening. Happy planting, and keep growing! #howtogrowyourownfood #growinginthegarden #gardeningtips #vegetablegarden #growyourownfood #organicgarden #desertgarden #arizonagarden
♬ original sound – Growing in the Garden
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Whether you’re going to set up a new garden bed or refresh an existing one, plan on planning. You can save yourself a lot of time, money, and effort by having a game plan. Look at your yard periodically through the day to determine where the sunny and shady spots are, and plan to put your gardening bed where you need it, which will likely be in the sunniest location. Pick what plants you want to help you determine how deep the raised bed should be. A bed full of shallow-rooted vegetables won’t need as much space as large tomato or cucumber plants. You should also determine how you’ll water your garden. If the best location isn’t near the water spigot, you may need to invest in some long hoses.
For existing raised beds, note what did or didn’t work last year. If you ran out of room, you may have to opt for fewer or smaller plants. If it was too sunny or shady, consider shade cloths or a greenhouse that can fit over the bed. If the raised bed didn’t work for you at all, plan on going through the trouble of moving it.
Invest in great soil
Great soil will always be worth the cost because you can’t have great plants without it. Healthy soil will have all the nutrients and moisture your plants need to thrive, so starting a new bed strong is important. Bags of the good stuff are often pricey, but there are many ways you can cut costs without cutting the benefits. Find topsoil and compost in bulk from reputable suppliers. Poor-quality topsoil can contain diseases, pests, and nematodes, which causes more harm than good. But you’ll be in a good position if you can buy it in bulk and mix it with compost.
Many gardeners either have a lot of poor soil or not enough good soil. Not only do you need top-tier stuff, but you need to ensure you have plenty of it. If costs limit you, consider filling the bottom of your raised bed with cardboard and leaves. This will help take up space, and the material will decompose over time and add extra nutrients to the soil.
