Why Consider Raised Garden Beds
Food has gotten expensive in stores across the country, right? Because of this, Florida homeowners might want to start looking for alternatives. One such option is growing crops at home. Whether you’re a gardening enthusiast or a first-time gardener, having raised garden beds can make all the difference in the world. Not only do they look nice, but they’re easy to maintain and can save you time and money when it comes to planting your crops. We’re here to help you learn the perks of your own garden as well as how to set up your raised garden beds!
How to Build a Raised Garden Beds
Raised garden beds are usually easy to build, inexpensive, and don’t require special tools…unless you want to get creative with it and make it decorative! Your choice.
What to Use:
This will depend on the look you’re going for. If you’re using wood, you’ll need a saw, drill, and maybe some 2x4s in the corners for added strength. For bricks, you’ll need a little more effort. You can also use things like horse troughs, stone spirals, grow bags, old pallets, and more. Even window boxes count as raised garden beds!
One thing we do recommend is doing your research to avoid things that can leech chemicals into your raised bed, such as railroad ties.
How to Set it Up:
The size of the bed can be any length or width that fits your needs, but we recommend keeping it smaller than 4 feet wide as this makes it easier to work with when planting. It can be as little as 6 to 8 inches off the ground, so you can pick your height.
As a base for your raised bed, you can opt for things like cardboard, newspaper, straw, mulch, leaves, grass clippings, rock, burlap, wool, landscape fabric, plastic, etc. While not necessary, a lining base does help keep out pests and such. Just remember to have drainage holes at the very bottom! On top of that, you’ll want anywhere from 6 to 18 inches of soil, depending on what you plan on growing.
Reasons to Have a Raised Garden Bed
There are plenty of reasons to have your own garden at home. Let’s explore those!
- It can be expensive to buy produce at the grocery store. You’re paying for things like packaging, transportation, and storage costs…not just for the food itself. If you grow your own vegetables, you’ll have access to fresh fruits and veggies that are more affordable than those sold in supermarkets. Plus, it’s fun!
- In addition to saving money on your grocery bill, growing your own food helps reduce waste by allowing you to use every part of a plant for parts of the process. You’ll also get an education about where your food comes from as well as how it grows through experience with gardening techniques like organic pest control methods or seed-saving techniques.
- Growing your own food can be a lot of fun. You can experiment with different varieties, be creative, and have a great time in the process!
- By growing your own produce, you’ll know exactly what’s going into your food. And if you grow organic then there will be no chemicals at all!
If you’re looking for a way to improve your garden space and make it more productive, raised beds are an excellent option. They can be used in just about any climate and can be built with simple materials that are easy on the wallet. If you’re ready to get started building one of these beds yourself, you can start taking steps for that today and you’ll have your own yummy snacks in no time!
Fishtail Landscaping can take care of your lawn upgrade. From design to installation we can do it all. We have been creating beautiful lawns in Ft Myers for years, and look forward to working on your lawn.