Building A Raised Garden Bed

Raised garden beds are an excellent way to add beauty, interest and practicality to your yard. They look wonderful, but only if they are done properly. The main key to remember is to build a stable, solid foundation that is always level. It's a lot of work, but not difficult if you know what to do. Here are the steps you need to follow to create your very own raised garden bed.

Here is a list of supplies that you will need for this project:

• Bricks;
• Limestone screening;
• Edger;
• Shovel;
• Landscape fabric;
• Level;
• Landscape glue;
• Soil; and
• Plants.

Buy the bricks that you will be using. Bricks come in different sizes and shapes. If you want a square or rectangle garden bed, you can buy square bricks. However, if you would like the garden bed to have curves in the wall, then you will need to buy bricks that are trapezoid shaped – that is they have one side that is longer than the other.

Next, choose a spot in your yard where you would like to create a raised garden bed. Then, lay out the bricks on the grass to determine the shape of your garden bed. Your goal here is to come up with a design that you like and to determine the number of bricks you will need for your project. Remember to do all four sides of the garden bed. Once you have a design you like, then use a marker to number the bricks. Place the number on the top of the brick. For example, if you have 30 bricks, number them 1/30, 2/30, etc. This marker will be permanent, but since the bricks will be covered it doesn't matter.

You are now ready to remove the grass below the bricks. Use an edger and go around the edge of the bricks on both sides. Push the edger deep enough in the ground to cut the grass so that it will be easy to remove. Once you have gone around all the bricks, you can remove them and place them to the side. Remove the grass – start with where the bricks were placed. Once that grass has been removed, you can dig down a few inches. Then remove the remaining grass.

Once all the grass has been removed, you are ready to prepare the foundation for the bricks. The bricks must sit on at least two inches of screening and must be two inches below the ground from the lowest point of the garden. This last point is very important, as most yards will have a slight slope to them, however, you do not want your garden bed to have a slope. It must be level; otherwise it will not be stable or attractive looking.

Before you start digging the trench for the foundation, you must determine what the lowest point of the garden bed is. To help you figure that out, use a long wood board, a measuring tape and a level. Lay the board on the ground and move it around. Measure the distance from the ground to the top of the board and make a note of where the lowest point is.

Once you have found the lowest point, you want to dig down 4 inches. The width of the trench should be the width of the brick, plus 2 inches. This will allow you about an extra inch on either side of the brick to play with. Once you have established the width of the trench, you can dig out the rest of the foundation. Try to keep the bottom roughly level, but don't worry about it being perfectly level.

Once the trench has been dug, it is time to add the limestone screening. The screening allows you to make the bottom of the trench perfectly level and provides a solid foundation for the garden bed. The screening should be at least two inches in depth. Start by adding screening at the lowest point of the garden bed. Smooth it out and then compress it by stepping on it. Scatter a handful of screening on the ground and then place the first brick in. Use the level to make sure that the brick is level. Add the second brick and place the level over both the first and second brick. You may need to add more or take away screening, until both bricks are level.

 

 

Repeat the process, going brick by brick, of adding screening, compressing it, adding a brick and checking to see if it is level. Be patient and take your time. It is important that the foundation and the first level of bricks are solid, so that the rest of the garden bed will be solid. You will also find that if the ground is uneven or if it slopes, that some bricks will be farther underground than the first brick. That is okay, as long as the bricks are level with each other.

Once the bricks are level, you can backfill any gaps between the ground and the bricks. Use the edger to push the soil in between the ground and the bricks, until the soil is compact.

Once the first layer of bricks is finished, you are ready to add the second layer. The second layer will go on top of the first layer, but slightly off center, which will add more stability. The edges of the bricks from the second layer should line up with the middle of the bricks on the first layer. Adjust the bricks as needed, until you are happy with the way they line up. Do a quick check to ensure that the bricks are level.

To add further stability, the bricks from the second layer will be glued to the first layer. Start by removing 2 or 3 bricks at a time and dust the bricks off to remove any excess dirt. Place a thin line of landscape glue over the top of the bricks from the first layer. Then place the second layer bricks on top. Do only 2 or 3 bricks at a time, so that the bricks will stay within your original design and that they will line up properly.

Now your second layer is done. If you like, you can add up to 3 more layers. It is best not to have more than a total of 5 layers because the garden walls won't be stable and could topple over in the future.

Once you have added all the layers, you will need to place landscape fabric around the inside edges. It only needs to cover up the inside of the bricks and a few inches of the ground. The fabric will prevent soil and water from entering into any spaces between the bricks, so that the water will not shift the garden walls.

Once the landscape fabric is in place, simply add soil and plants. Sit back, show off your beautiful garden beds and enjoy!

 

Don't have all the gardening tools that you need for this project?  Then why not visit our Gardening Tools & Solutions pages and quickly find the tools that you need for this project and all your other gardening projects.

 

 

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