How to Build a Raised Bed Cheaply

Except for decorative value, cheaply built gardens perform as well as more expensive ones. Each produces abundant plants in areas of poor native soil and requires less water and weed control measures. Cheap raised bed gardens can be constructed of a variety of used materials found in the garage or available from used building material outlets. When new materials are used, choose ones that are cheap, simple to work with and can be assembled in a short amount of time.

Stakes
String
Pitchfork
Shovel
Concrete blocks, 8 by 8 by 16 inches
Rubber mallet
Burlap bags
Soil mixture

Instructions

- 1
  Locate the raised bed garden on a level, well-drained area receiving full sunlight through 3/4 of the day. Make certain the raised bed garden is protected from high winds by a building, fence or hedge.
- 2
  Mark the dimensions of the garden by driving stakes in each corner and pulling string tautly around them. Dimensions of 4 by 4 feet allow the gardener reach the middle and work the garden from all sides.
- 3
  Use a pitchfork to till the area marked off for the garden to a depth of 8 inches.
- 4
  Dig a trench 1 inch deep and 8 inches wide around the perimeter of the garden. Make the bottom of the trench as level as possible.
- 5
  Lay the concrete blocks snugly, end to end in the trench. Gently and firmly tap them with a rubber mallet until they are level with each other.
- 6
  Place burlap bags along the inside perimeter of the concrete blocks to make certain soil doesn’t sift out between the blocks.
- 7
  Fill the raised bed garden with a mixture of sandy loam soil amended with perlite, peat moss and organic material such as mature compost or tree bark. Add the mixture gradually while mixing it thoroughly with the existing soil. This process avoids building a barrier between the new soil and the old that inhibits water absorption and root growth.

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