Garden boxes are easy and cost-effective solutions for growing an in-ground garden, perfect for beginners or people with limited outdoor space.
Carefully consider which areas in your garden area receive full sunlight, partial sunshine or shade and take note of how this varies throughout the day and season.
Building a Raised Bed
If you want to grow vegetables and flowers in your garden but lack space, raised beds could be the solution. Raised beds maximize growing area while helping prevent soil compaction, making it easier to tend your plants over time. With just a few tools required and only taking one weekend to complete this DIY project can become reality.
Start by measuring the length and width of your desired raised garden. This information will determine the size and quantity of boards needed to build. In addition, determine your desired bed depth – the deeper it is, the more expensive it will be to fill with soil! Therefore plan accordingly.
Once you have taken measurements and selected materials for your greenhouse project, visit a hardware store or lumber yard and purchase materials accordingly. When buying wood for use as your planter bed materials, ensure it is rot-proof as it will come into constant contact with wet soil and should be free from creosote preservative – railroad ties often contain this substance which could harm or kill vegetable crops! Also be wary of purchasing salvaged lumber which might not know its history of treatment history and avoid railroad ties containing creosote treatment history when purchasing materials as these can contain creosote preservatives may harm or kill vegetable crops – avoid railroad ties treated with creosote preservative and salvaged lumbers which you don’t know its history.
Step one in creating your raised garden is building its short sides. Align a 2×4 length against one of the framing angles and mark holes for drilling before cutting and drilling the board with a circular saw before fastening to it with 3-in screws – repeat this process for both sides.
Once this step is complete, construct the long end pieces for your garden bed. Place four 4-by-4 lengths upright along the ends of each long side approximately 4 ft apart, using shorter 4×4 pieces as supports. Nail three 2×6 end pieces securely to each corner post along one of these short boards ensuring they fit flush against their corners.
Once all the long and short side pieces have been assembled, you can set your frame on the ground and begin filling it with soil. Before adding soil, however, ensure to line the bottom of the bed with organic material such as bark mulch or leaves or even grass clippings as this will improve drainage while adding nutrients to your soil over time. For optimal results in areas prone to gophers or voles it would also be wise to staple hardware cloth across its bottom edge as protection.
Soil
Soil is the foundation of any vegetable garden, so making sure it’s of high quality organic quality is of critical importance to their success. An ideal “loamy” texture combining equal parts sand, silt and clay holds moisture well while draining easily, allows oxygen to reach roots easily, contains rich humus content and is easy to work and aerate without crusting or clumping of dry clay crusting up or crusting over. Most vegetables you grow require slightly acidic to neutral pH range (6.5-7.0); getting tested and amending as necessary is the best way to bring your garden soil up to par.
Material selection for raised beds is also key. When choosing materials to line them with, make sure it doesn’t contain CCA pressure-treated wood as this can leach arsenic into the soil; pressure-treated wood that has been kiln dried does not contain harmful chemicals; some people also opt for galvanized metal sides lining their raised beds, which is another great choice as long as you line its interior with something like hardware cloth or weed cloth to reduce leakage into the soil.
Before beginning construction of your raised bed, loosen and till the soil in its designated location. Make sure it’s completely broken up, before adding compost or aged manure to improve its quality. Some gardeners opt for the no-dig method when prepping their raised beds; this approach saves both time and effort while protecting nutrient loss through surface soil layers.
When adding organic matter, make sure it is either screened or “no-till”, to reduce the risk of disease-causing pathogens entering your garden. Ideally, organic matter should have been mixed into the soil several months in advance so it has time to break down and add nutrients. Leaf mold and composted manure make good options as these offer slow release forms of fertilizer while simultaneously aerating and aerating the soil. Organic matter also helps move pH closer towards its optimal range for vegetable cultivation while making more nutrients more available for plant use by making more readily available to plants than would otherwise be the case!
Planting
When the weather permits in your region for planting, don’t wait a moment longer! Be sure that frost has passed and that soil conditions are ideal before beginning. Additionally, use this vegetable garden planner as a tool to plan ahead – use our guide on ideal planting times for veggies.
To help your vegetable garden flourish, line its box with weed cloth or hardware cloth to protect it from insects (especially gophers) as well as excess moisture that could potentially harm plants. This will also prevent soil erosion.
Prior to planting soil in each box, it’s a smart idea to incorporate inexpensive or free materials such as cardboard, sticks, grass clippings without pesticide spraying, leaves and other compostables like cardboard into each box. These will break down into essential nutrients while suppressing weeds – saving both money and creating an ideal environment for vegetables. Make sure at least 6 inches of soil are planted – most vegetables require more. You could also consider planting flowers alongside your vegetables to draw pollinators in and deter bugs that threaten them against eating their crops!
Harvesting
Raised vegetable gardens make harvesting simple and deliver fresh produce year round. Plus, flowers help attract pollinators while repelling plant pests; try planting marigolds or nasturtiums as pollinator attractants!
As soon as the dew dries off and before direct sunlight strikes them too harshly, it is ideal to harvest your veggies early morning before any intense sunlight hits them too much. Leafy vegetables such as spinach and lettuce may wilt quickly when exposed to sun light, reducing harvest times by cutting short harvest times in half.
Before adding soil, it is a wise move to line the box with hardware cloth and weed fabric, along with free or inexpensive materials like sticks, leaves, unsprayed straw and grass clippings which will break down into organic matter that enriches the soil.